The Stade Toulousain has failed three times in a row in the semi-finals. With their mix of youth and experience, the team seems ready to finally lift a trophy.
There’s reason to be frustrated. Over the past three seasons, Toulouse has fallen short in the semi-finals each time. Defeated by the eventual champion, not without taking the first game against the Barracudas in 2023 and leading 2-0 against the Huskies in 2025. After this double victory, President Yanael Delpech’s phone hasn’t stopped ringing. People were already talking about the final. « But I know Rouen well and you must never open the door to them. » A few individual performances slightly below the norm were enough for the Rouennais to make the difference. « In the end, I was sad, but not surprised. »
The word « frustration » does not appear in the leader’s mouth. « On the contrary. We came close, and it makes you want to succeed. We see the team’s progress. I know it takes time to bring home a title. » This ambition, this perspective, he brought with him when he took over the club three seasons ago. And he doesn’t deviate from his program. As a good connoisseur of what makes a champion team, he has made a big effort on the baseball school, with the idea of setting up a core of players trained at the club, of creating a Toulouse spirit that works well in this city so proud of its history and present.
It’s starting to pay off, as we saw last year with the D1 debuts of very young players like Feliu and Perez, and the presence in the outfield for a few seasons of the very talented Cegielski and Baisse-Depontieu. This year, one of the great hopes of French baseball, Kylian Bramberger, will complete the roster. « When there is talent and hard work, we are not afraid to give young players a chance. We know it takes time for things to work perfectly, especially at the plate. In D1, all teams have pitchers who exceed 90 mph, the adjustment is not easy. But this investment will pay off. » One of Toulouse’s goals, and that of their coach Randy Perez, is to bet on speed, aggression, and put the ball in play to provoke errors from opponents. The signing of Bramberger fits perfectly into this approach.
The other characteristic of Toulouse is to rely on a core of high-level veterans, first and foremost Soriano and Mendoza, these two sluggers who continue year after year to destroy opposing pitching staffs, and on whom the weight of the years seems to have no hold. To maintain this philosophy, Toulouse brings back Velazco, in great form this season and whose mentality fits perfectly with the Toulouse spirit, will find Perdomo after a year off for family reasons and can occasionally count on Ozanich, when he can free himself from his Canadian team. This dichotomy between young and old is also present on the mound, with the pair Rojas / Laot who are capable of great things.
The first objective is clearly identified: the Challenge de France, co-organized with Boe-Bon-Encontre. A competition that has not been very successful for the Toulousains in recent years, but which they will approach with a new perspective. « What doesn’t work for us is traveling, » corrects Yanael Delpech. « We have players who work, for whom it’s complicated to take vacation days, we have never arrived with a complete roster. » Indeed, if we take all competitions into account (season, playoffs, challenge), over the past three years, Toulouse has a .744 record at home and .271 on the road. Reason to be « motivated and confident to achieve something. » This will be an opportunity to showcase the lighting, finally installed, and which is a great success, and to mobilize the volunteers who are capable of giving a lot, as they proved at a recent men’s softball challenge. A baseball celebration « from which we will emerge with the Cup, » hopes the president.
In any case, even if the preparation has been a bit disrupted by the weather conditions (the field was unusable at the beginning of the year), Toulouse believes more than ever. « What will make the difference is the mental strength to face the long journey that a season represents. It’s in the head that it will be played, that we will meet with success. » So, 20 years after their last championship final and 19 years after their last challenge final, the Toulousains are in the starting blocks to finally reach the end. To finally break through the glass ceiling.
F.C.
Credit Photo: F.Volpato
