Team Europe is preparing for the Global Baseball Games, the CARNEXT SAMURAI JAPAN SERIES. The 28 players practised at an indoor facility near the Kyocera Dome, the venue of the games against World No. 1 Japan scheduled for Wednesday, 6 and Thursday, 7 March.
After manager Marco Mazzieri introduced his staff, the players warmed up with strength and conditioning coach Gianni Natale.
Pitchers Martin Schneider (with catcher Alberto Mineo), Tom De Blok (Martin Cervenka) and Markus Solbach (Gabriel Lino) held bullpen sessions coordinated by pitching coach Alessandro Maestri.
All pitchers and infielders participated in defensive drills
Right-hander Matteo Bocchi threw a 20-pitch live batting practice session, followed by batting practice sessions with Mazzieri and coaches Luis Camargo and Aritz Garcia.
The rest of the day was spent on fundamentals.
"We are satisfied," commented Mazzieri. "Today's goal was getting everybody involved in baseball activities."
On Monday, 4 March, team Europe will play a warm-up game at 1 pm (local time) against Hayate 223, an expansion team joining the Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) farm system.
Hayate's manager, Motoyuki Akahori, a former pitcher and pitching coach at the NPB level, will field a roster of prospects also including NPB veterans like pitchers Yoshiaki Fujioka (38) and Kenjiro Tanaka (a 34-year-old former All-Star) or infielder Toshihiko Kuramoto (33) and Mexican Baseball League alum Rintaro Hirama (29).
Mazzieri will rest Schneider, De Blok, Solbach and Bocchi and send to the mound the rest of the staff.
