1956 European Baseball Championship
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Country | Italy |
| Dates | 10 – 15 July |
| Teams | 5 |
| Final positions | |
| Champions | Netherlands |
| Runners-up | Belgium |
| Third place | Italy |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Games played | 10 |
The 1956 European Baseball Championship was held in Rome, Italy and was won by the Netherlands, in its tournament debut. Belgium finished as runner-up. The games were played at the Motovelodromo Appio, former home stadium of AS Roma.[1][2]
As winner of the tournament, the Netherlands qualified for the 1956 Global World Series, held in Milwaukee in the United States.[3]
Tournament summary
The Netherlands, which debuted in the tournament and won its first gold medal, won most of its games by a thin margin; the only blowout was its victory against Italy, the continent's baseball powerhouse. Dutch ace Han Urbanus squared off against Italy's Giulio Glorioso; Urbanus would later call the 1956 Netherlands-Italy game one of the best moments of his career.[4]
France, which had debuted in the tournament the previous year, did not participate, reportedly since many of its players were drafted to fight in the ongoing Algerian War.[4]
Results
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | RF | RA | RD | PCT | GB | NED | BEL | ITA | ESP | FRG | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Netherlands | 4 | 4 | 0 | 23 | 8 | +15 | 1.000 | — | 1–0 | 13–2 | 6–4 | 3–2 | ||
| 2 | Belgium | 4 | 3 | 1 | 27 | 8 | +19 | .750 | 1 | 0–1 | 3–2 | 14–3 | 10–2 | ||
| 3 | Italy (H) | 4 | 2 | 2 | 17 | 24 | −7 | .500 | 2 | 2–13 | 2–3 | 7–5 | 7–3 | ||
| 4 | Spain | 4 | 1 | 3 | 17 | 30 | −13 | .250 | 3 | 4–6 | 3–14 | 5–7 | 5–4 | ||
| 5 | West Germany | 4 | 0 | 4 | 11 | 25 | −14 | .000 | 4 | 2–3 | 2–10 | 3–7 | 4–5 |
References
- ^ "Second annual Global World Series baseball scorecard". Detroit Public Library. 1956. p. 18. Retrieved 26 January 2025.
- ^ "A.S. Roma". AlbionRoad.com. 24 June 2007. Archived from the original on 14 April 2008.
- ^ Josh Chetwynd (2019). Baseball in Europe: A Country by Country History. McFarland, Incorporated, Publishers. pp. 22–23. ISBN 9780786437245.
- ^ a b c Chetwynd, pp. 250–51
Bibliography