(Story by Marco Stoovelaar; Photos by Henk Seppen & Marco Stoovelaar)
 Mauro Mazzotti named Manager Greek Baseball Team
Nederlands
...Mauro Mazzotti with the second place-trophy...
...at the European Cup-tournament in 2010...
...At right is Jürgen Elsishans (Technical Comm. CEB)...
(© Photo: Marco Stoovelaar) |
 ATHENS (Greece) -
Experienced Italian baseball-coach Mauro Mazzotti has been named as the new Manager of the National Baseball Team of Greece, the Hellenic Amateur Baseball Federation announced in a press release on Thursday (February 11).
Mazzotti succeeds Tom Mazarakis, who led the Greek Team during the 2014 European Championship in the Czech Republic.
In the past, former Major League-catcher Jim Essian led the team for several years.
Essian played 12 years in the Majors for five clubs.
Mazzotti will lead the Greek Baseball Team during this years European Baseball Championship, which will be held September 9-18 in Haarlemmermeer (Netherlands).
During that event, Greece will play in Pool B and meets Belgium, Croatia, France, Italy and Spain in the preliminary round.
With that, Mazzotti will face two countries where he has been active as a coach before, Italy and Spain.
In recent weeks, a fundraising project was set up to help raise money to enable to the Greek National Baseball Team to participate in the European Championship.
As a result of the financial problems in Greece, it was proposed some two years ago to bring several national sports federations (including baseball) under the direction of one federation.
As there was no official federation in place, the 2015 baseball-season in Greece was cancelled.
...Tom Mazarakis led the...
...Greek during the 2013...
...European Championship...
(© Photo: Henk Seppen) |
Mauro Mazzotti played baseball himself in Italy, then went on to coach youth-teams.
In 1987, he moved up to coach the main squad of Mediolanum Milano, which was the start of a very successful career of coaching teams at the highest Italian level.
Mazzotti led Mediolanum Milano (1987-1993; 1998), Codogno (Serie A2, 1994-1995), Rimini (1996-1997; 1999; 2009-2010), Fortitudo Bologna (2000-2005), Grosseto (2006-2008) and San Marino (2010).
With Rimini (1999), Bologna (2003, 2005) and Grosseto (2007) he won the Italian Championship to become the first coach in Italian history to win four titles.
Since 2011, Mazzotti is the General Manager of T&A San Marino, which won the title in the Italian Baseball League in 2011, 2012 and 2013.
In 2001, Mazzotti became a member of the coaching staff of the National Team of Italy when he was the 3B Coach.
In 2005-2007, he was the Bench Coach of Manager Gianpiero Faraone with the National Italian squad.
Since 2009, Mauro Mazzotti was the Manager of the National Team of Spain.
He led the squad during several big international events, which began with the 2009 World Championship, which then was organized in several European countries.
Hereafter, Mazzotti coached the Spanish team during the European Championships in 2010 (Germany), 2012 (Netherlands) and 2014 (Czech Republic).
Spain won the Bronze Medal in 2012 and 2014.
Mazzotti also was the Manager of Spain in 2012 during the successful World Baseball Classic Qualifier, with the team qualifying to play in the World Baseball Classic in 2013.
In 2006, Mazzotti als participated as a coach in the first Classic, but then with Italy.
Currently, Mazzotti also is the European Scouting Consultant for the Baltimore Orioles after having been a Scout for the Seattle Mariners and Houston Astros in the past.
In 2012, Mazzotti won the Coach of the Year Award of the European Baseball Coaches Association for leading Spain to the World Baseball Classic.
Earlier, he was named Coach of the Year in Italy twice (2005, 2007) and was named CEB Coach of the Year in 2009 by the European Baseball Confederation.
(February 15)
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