(Story by Marco Stoovelaar)
 Brno vs. Blansko postponed in Czech Extra League; Hippos in first place
Nederlands
      BLANSKO / BRNO / HLUBOKÁ NAD VLTABOU / OSTRAVA / PRAGUE / TŘEBÍČ (Czech Rep.) -
Cardion Hroši Brno is the leader in the Czech Extraliga after the second round of games was played last weekend.
Hippos had opened the season a week earlier with three wins, but it suffered its first loss in the first game of a double-header on Saturday (April 17).
The 3-game series between reigning champion Draci Brno and Olympia Blansko was cancelled.
The two teams were to play on Friday-evening and Sunday-afternoon in Blansko and on Saturday in Brno.
On Thursday, it was announced that the series was postponed due to a positive case of the coronavirus (COVID-19) in the team of Blansko.
Playing at home, Cardion Hrošo Brno lost 5-3 to Kotlářka Praha, then nipped its opponent 7-6 in the second game.
On Sunday, the team from Brno recorded a comfortable 15-4 victory in Prague.
In the first game, the team from Prague scored its five runs in the first two innings, then was held scoreless and was outhit 9-5.
In the second game, Brno trailed 2-0, then rallied for four runs in the second inning.
The team led 7-3 after six innings.
Praha then scored three runs in the top of the seventh, but ended up short.
Michal Ondráček batted in four runs for Brno.
Mikuláš Hanuš batted in three runs for Praha.
On Sunday, Brno broke a 2-2 tie by scoring six runs in the top of the fourth inning, then added seven more in the next at bat.
The team collected 12 basehits, including three by American Kellen Croce and a homerun by Jakub Ondráček.
Arrows Ostrava won two of is three games against Eagles Praha.
In Prague, Eagles opened on Friday with a 12-9 win on 19 basehits with four players hitting three.
The next day, Arrows recorded a 14-0 shutout, then won 5-2 at home om Sunday.
In the shutout on Saturday, Arrows rallied for eight runs in the second at bat and collected 14 basehits, including homeruns by Radim Novotný, Matěj Menšík and Michael Vykoukal.
Sokol Hluboká swept Tempo Praha.
On Saturday, the team won 2-1 and 6-1 in a double-header at home in Hluboká nad Vltavou.
On Sunday, in Prague, the sweep was completed with an 8-5 win.
In the opener on Saturday, Hluboká scored its lone two runs in the first inning of the pitching-duel.
Winning pitcher Jan Novák struckout twelve batters in eight innings.
Losing pitcher Joey Wagman went the distance for Praha and struckout eleven batters.
Třebíč Nuclears won two of its three games against Blesk Jablonec.
All three games were played in Třebí©.
On Saturday, Jablonec was the home-team in a double-header and was shutout 9-0 in the opener, but then wont 10-4.
On Sunday, the home-playing Nuclears won 16-2.
In the opener, Nuclears collected 15 basehits, including five by Tomáš Chadim.
Winning pitcher Ryan Johnson struckout ten batters in eight innings, giving up only two basehits.
In the second game, American James Smiley went the distance for Jablonec and struckout seven batters.
On Sunday, Nuclears scored its 16 runs in the first four innings and collected 15 basehits. including four by Matěj Brabec.
(April 20)
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