Here we are: the regular season has spoken. Well, not quite. There’s still a Savigny – Toulouse match postponed to squeeze in before the semi-finals begin. The result won’t affect the semi-final lineup, but it will decide the 5th/6th place, which is relatively anecdotal, even if the composition of the Challenge de France pools depends on it. The match is scheduled for Sunday, August 3rd; Toulouse must travel, as a forfeit would cost them 3rd place in favor of La Rochelle.
In the meantime, one certainty: Metz is relegated after five seasons in D1. The Cometz went down fighting, with a final victory that will stay in the memories—a totally crazy game against La Rochelle, 31 runs scored in the first three innings, an extra inning, and a final hit by Pastran that sealed the win. We must not forget the game of his life played by Axel Hansch, 4 hits including 3 doubles, 5 RBIs (2nd best stat of the season), a game score of 72.25 that gives him the 7th best offensive performance in D1 this year. This incredible victory won’t erase the bitter taste of relegation, after 6 seasons in D1, 50 wins against 86 losses in the regular season, 19 wins 13 losses in the play-downs, a semi-final spot that only lasted a technical loss last season and two consecutive Challenge de France finals, something only Rouen, Savigny, and Sénart have achieved. What did Metz lack? A slightly too unreliable JFL pitching, with Mathéo Launay underperforming compared to 2024, a weak lineup too often struck out, an A. Paredes finishing with 1-8 and 4.62, also on the decline. Maybe if Pastran and Brantley had been present from the start of the season (the beginning was catastrophic, 1 win in the first 9 matches), Metz could have secured one or two more wins, but the Lorraine mound was too big a weak point. Metz has the means to bounce back, and we can think that D1 needs an organization like the Cometz.
Béziers finishes 7th. At first glance, it’s a good performance, as maintaining their status was likely their top priority. The Pirates finish with a .367 record, which is better than the average for promoted teams since 2022, which is .314. But it was time for Béziers’ season to end, as they only won 2 of their last 11 matches, after exciting us all season long. They were even on track for glory for several weeks, qualifying for the semi-finals and giving their opponents the toughest time imaginable. But Béziers clearly ran out of steam, and Debonville’s absence didn’t help during the last four matchdays. But Béziers brought a real freshness throughout the season and will undoubtedly have learned a lot to come back even stronger in 2026. Of course, the offense and JFL pitching will need to improve to keep the ship afloat, as relying too much on foreign recruits can sometimes be risky. But we won’t forget the revelation of the year, a Lucio Keurinck who made everyone’s eyes widen, and who will certainly be the leader of Béziers for several seasons.
Moving up the standings, we find the Templiers, who scraped through after a satisfying start to the season. The suspension of Lopez and do Carmo totally derailed the club, and the next generation is still waiting, even if Camara showed some promising signs. The best Templiers were certainly the veterans Brown and Mayeux, which is not surprising, but not necessarily a good sign for the future.
Savigny had a successful season by winning the Challenge and qualifying for the European Cup. But the Lions fell short of securing a playoff spot, despite the efforts of an ever-impressive Acuna, a Coste who had his best season, the flashes shown by Désir, and the surprising and exciting performances of Nunez. The 5 opening losses to start the 2025 campaign weighed too heavily to hope for more.
La Rochelle qualifies for the semi-finals for the second time in its existence and the first since 2022 (defeat 0-3 against Savigny). The Boucaniers perfectly managed the end of the season, facing lower-ranked teams: 5-1 in the last six matches, proof of the mental strength of Pablo Ossandon’s men. The season was very contrasting: euphoric at the start, with 5 wins in 6 matches, worrying afterwards, 2 wins in 10 matches, accelerating at the end, 7 wins in 10 matches, with as a turning point a two-game sweep of walk-offs against Rouen. The Boucaniers would have loved to face the Huskies in the semi-finals. La Rochelle relied on a solid offense where Johnston and Pena shone, and where a Briones finishes the season (.346 in his last 11 matches, .210 before). We salute the return of Crawford who rejuvenated after a difficult season and note that Laufenbuchler is the Boucaniers’ good luck charm: when he gets at least one hit, La Rochelle has 12 wins and 3 losses. On the mound, if the Canelon experience turned into a fiasco, De La Rosa, after some difficult outings and control issues, finds his groove at the end of the season (1.02 ERA in his last 8 matches), and Perrois shows some interesting promises. La Rochelle beat Montpellier twice, it was admittedly a long time ago, during the 1st matchday, but this double victory is certainly anchored in the memory of the Boucaniers who will have no complexes facing the leader.
In third place, Toulouse managed their season well, without storms (never more than 3 consecutive defeats) or euphorias (never more than 3 consecutive victories). The Stade confirms that it belongs to the D1 elite, with a third consecutive qualification for the semi-finals, and seems armed to take the next step. Toulouse has been very hampered throughout the season by injuries and absences, but has nothing to fear from anyone once at full strength. But we don’t know if that will be the case during the playoffs, with Blancot, Navarro, and Saumande called to cross the Atlantic. Toulouse relies, however, on the eternal efficiency of Mendoza, one of the best hitters in the championship, and on the danger represented by Soriano, on the very noticeable progress of Baisse-Depontieu and Cegielski, and on quite a few solutions on the mound. Rouen will have to beware.
The Huskies finished the season strong: 11 wins in their last 14 matches, they even caught up with the Barracudas, which wasn’t obvious after their double defeat in Veyrassi. The Huskies could have hung their heads after the surprise departure of their ace, Bellina. Instead, they rose to the challenge, and showing strength in adversity is generally a good sign before decisive matches. Everything seems to be falling into place little by little in the Rouen engine, everyone is contributing, and the winning culture seems to continue to flow in the veins of the Huskies. The Huskies’ lineup is not restful for opposing pitchers, the defense is very solid, the pitching has depth. We’ve been saying this for several years, and it remains true: to be champion, you have to beat Rouen. And it’s not a given.
But to be champion, you’ll also (and above all) have to beat Montpellier. This requires solving several equations. The first, essential, is to win in Veyrassi. No one has managed this year: Montpellier is 14-0 at home, batting .345 and pitching with a 2.25 ERA. It’s a fortress to be taken, and nothing indicates that anyone will succeed. The second is to silence Brossier and Flores. We could cite other names, as Montpellier’s offense is very complete, but these two are totally unstoppable. They both finish with an OPS above 1.000, and you only find such heights with Acuna (Brantley didn’t have enough at-bats). 50 hits, 47 RBIs, 19 stolen bases, 24 extra-base hits between them, it’s generally around individual performances of this order that you build a title. The third is to succeed in dominating the Montpellier bullpen: Ozanich and Quinonez close the door with great authority, and Montpellier has often managed to turn the tide late in games in recent weeks.
The first place in the regular season guarantees nothing. In the last 22 seasons, it has only happened 12 times that the 1st was also champion. And if we look at the confrontations between the 4 qualifiers, we see that it’s very tight: 7-5 for Montpellier, 6-6 for Rouen and La Rochelle, 5-7 for Toulouse. So, we can dream of exciting semi-finals, upsets, extra innings, passionate baseball in the heart of August. We can’t wait.
F Colombier
Credit Photo : RS Clubs
