Manager Drew Spencer of Team Great Britain walks off the field during the World Baseball Classic Pool C game against Team Mexico at Chase Field on March 14, 2023 in Phoenix, Arizona. Mexico defeated Great Britain 2-1. (Photo by Chris Coduto/Getty Images)
The British Baseball Federation announced their roster for the 2023 Euro Championships, which will be held in the Czech Republic from September 24 to October 1.
The relegation and placement rounds will be from September 28-30. The gold medal and bronze medal games will be on October 1.
The 2023 European Championships will have six venues during the international senior event: Eagles Prague in Prague, Arrows Park Ostrava in Ostrava-Poruba, BrnoField in Brno, Třebíč Na Hvězdě in Třebíč, YD Baseball Arena Brno in Brno, and Strawberry Field Blansko in Blansko will be the host sites.
There will be four groups listed during the European Championships for the participating countries. Group A: Austria, host nation Czech Republic, Spain, and Greece. Group B: Hungary, Italy, Great Britain, and Sweden. Group C: The Netherlands, Ukraine, Croatia, and France. Group D: Belgium, Germany, Israel, and Switzerland.
Great Britain has won silver twice at the European Championships during the 1967 and 2007 tournaments.
Great Britain, No. 20 in the World Baseball Rankings, was one of the five nations in the World Baseball Softball Confederation Europe sector that participated in the 2023 World Baseball Classic, along with the Czech Republic, Italy, Israel, and the Netherlands.
Great Britain qualified for their first trip to the World Baseball Classic last September, beating Spain 10-9 in Regensburg, Germany.
During the 2023 World Baseball Classic, Great Britain won one game at Chase Field in Phoenix against Colombia 7-5. Great Britain went 1-3 ibut will not have to qualify for the next World Baseball Classic in 2026 due to the Team Quality Run Balance runs for/runs against tiebreaker.
Drew Spencer will return as the Great Britain national team manager in the 2023 European Championships. Pitching coach Conor Brooks is promoted from being the bullpen coach at the 2023 World Baseball Classic.
Third base coach TS Reed will return to the Great Britain coaching staff after holding the same role at the 2023 World Baseball Classic.
Great Britain will have players from the roster that are from the British Virgin Islands and the Cayman Islands. Nateshon Thomas, Kennard Dawson, Shamoy Christopher, Demoi Hodge, and Rayondre Mercer are from the British Virgin Islands, and Chris Messer will be the only player from the Cayman Islands on the active roster for the Great Britain National Team in the 2023 European Championships.
Jacob Esch, Joseph King, Nick Ward, Harrison Ford, Alex Webb and Alex Crosby are the only players returning from the 2023 World Baseball Classic roster that are listed for the 2023 European Championships.
The rest of the roster will consist of players that are playing in the upper level of the professional league operated by the British Baseball Federation, minor league players at the lower levels in Major League Baseball organizations, and players that have previously played in international age group events with the Great Britain National Team.
The WBSC Europe website and social media pages will have all the listed information on streaming the European Championships on their YouTube and Facebook page.
2023 Great Britain European Championships Pool Round Schedule
Sunday, September 24, 2023
11:30 a.m. EDT – Sweden vs. Great Britain – Třebíč Na Hvězdě, Třebíč
Monday, September 25, 2023
5 a.m. EDT – Hungary vs. Great Britain – Třebíč Na Hvězdě, Třebíč
Tuesday, September 26, 2023
11:30 a.m. EDT – Great Britain vs. Italy – Třebíč Na Hvězdě, Třebíč
2023 Great Britain National Team European Championships Roster
* – Two Way Player
Pitchers
Jacob Esch
Austin Hassani
Demoi Hodge
Joseph King
Christopher Messer
Fred Moiser
Matteo Sollecito
Ethan Solomon
Alex Webb
Catchers
Shamoy Christopher
Harrison Ford
Austin Hassani
Jackson Pritchard
Infielders
Nick Ward
Aaron Singh
Jacob Lambdin
Michael Flaherty
Alex Crosby
Outfielders
Kennard Dawson
Julian Sanders*
Tyler Sharples*
Nateshon Thomas*
Ben Leid
Rayondre Mercer
2023 Great Britain European Championships Coaching Staff
Drew Spencer – Manager
Jonathan Cramman – Bench Coach
Brad Marcelino – Hitting Coach
Conor Brooks – Pitching Coach
Brock Riley – Bullpen Coach
Scott Bourgeois – First Base Coach
TS Reed – Third Base Coach