Interview with Metz Baseball President David Ten Eyck

After spending much of the season leading the championship race against ambitious rivals determined to return to Division 1 (including Nice, Montigny, and Meyzieu), the Cometz de Metz ultimately secured the title of French Division 2 champions in 2026.

This achievement crowns a masterfully executed season and confirms the club’s ambitions. For Baseball TV France, we look back at this journey with a naturally delighted president, David Ten Eyck, who shares his thoughts on this successful season.

BTVF: David, one year ago, the Cometz were relegated from Division 1 after seven seasons in the top flight. Today, you’re French Division 2 champions and back in Division 1. Looking back at the past twelve months, what made the difference?

David: I think we’ve been very consistent since 2019. We’ve always finished between fifth and eighth place in Division 1. But with the league shrinking from twelve to eight teams, and the elimination of the relegation playoff, eighth place was no longer enough.

The 2025 season was tough—both on the field and in managing personal constraints for many of our players, coaches, and volunteers. Then there were bad breaks, injuries… But very quickly after relegation, we collectively agreed we would bounce back immediately and stronger. Everyone kept believing in the club’s project and our ability to deliver, despite the disappointment of the drop. We can be proud of that.

BTVF: You made it very clear that the season’s goal was to win the championship and return to Division 1 immediately. Was that ambition easy to carry all year, with very little room for error?

David: Very honestly, yes, because everyone believed in it and worked toward it. I never had to remind players or volunteers what it would take to succeed in the playoffs and secure our return to Division 1. The Division 2 schedule has big gaps, and it’s not easy to balance playing time in seven-inning games with many ‘mercy rule’ finishes. But we filled those gaps by improving the field and supplemented playing time with internal training and exchanges between Division 2 and Division 3. Everyone showed great maturity on these points.

BTVF: If you had to pick the moment you thought, ‘This team really has what it takes to win the title,’ when would it have been?

Very early. Last autumn, when Victorien Roze messaged me to say he’d accept the manager’s role. At the same time, Yeixon Ruiz and Matheo Launay confirmed their commitment to the project and re-signed, and Antoine Takezawa told me he was returning after a year off. Everyone was there, motivated, and in the right mindset by the All Saints’ break.

BTVF: This final seems to sum up your season: two wins over Montigny, including a 10-0 shutout, then the chance to close it out in front of your home crowd. What did you see in your team during that series that you hadn’t seen with such strength all year?

David: I tried to experience the final as just a fan, without overanalyzing. And I still don’t want to break it down. It’s so rare to have a series where everything goes right and comes together in a moment that will stay with us forever: almost everyone involved—on the field, in the dugout, in the new center-field camera setup, in the ‘City Connect Metz’ uniforms, with perfect weather—and so much more. I was just in ‘sit back and soak it in’ mode for the final—and I want to stay in that mindset.

BTVF: This title is also the Cometz’s first-ever senior national championship in history. For a president who’s been with the club for fifteen years, seven as its leader, does this title have a special meaning beyond just the return to Division 1?

David: Of course! We climbed from National 2 to National 1 administratively. Then it was the same for the jump from National 1 to Division 2, after losing a final to Rouen’s reserve team. And the move from Division 2 to Division 1 came with the league’s expansion to twelve teams. We can be proud of handling all those promotions. But we’d never before reached the top of the second tier before moving up. And we’d lost several finals in recent years—the National 1 final in Rouen, an 18U final in Nantes, two French Challenge finals… This time, we had to win—and we did.

BTVF: In 2027, the Cometz will return to Division 1. What will need to be different from 2025 to ensure Metz doesn’t just return to the top flight but establishes itself there and plays a real role?

David: Let me rephrase your question a bit—I think we’ve already played a real role in Division 1. We reached two French Challenge finals, lost a playoff spot only due to an unfavorable tiebreaker, and permanently established high-level baseball in northeastern France, where it hadn’t existed in a generation. That’s no small feat!

Now, regarding our ability to stay in Division 1 long-term, it will be a tough fight. With eight teams in 2027, I think we’ll need to win 11 or even 12 games to secure our spot. But there are already big differences from 2025. The clubhouse is operational, the equipment for high-quality match broadcasts is in place, and the extra-sporting investments we needed to make are done… Our club is far more attractive than it was in 2025, and our core of local players is more mature and complete. We’re well-positioned to succeed in 2027—as long as we keep working with discipline and dedication.

BTVF: Who was the first person you thought of when the final out was made?

David: First, I was glad the final out went to Noa Cailteux’s glove. Baseball’s gods know what they’re doing!

I was sitting next to Bruno Fagnoni in the broadcast booth, so we shook hands hard after the last out. Audrey Frulloni came into the booth right after. I quickly saw Pierre Cezard and Carole Maimbourg and went onto the field to see Vic. It’s rare to have a group of volunteers like ours who’ve worked together for 10 to 15 years. Too often, amazing volunteers end up isolated—or nearly so—in their clubs. I’m incredibly lucky to be surrounded by such great people.

Personally, I was lucky to share this moment with my wife and two sons. And I’ve been thinking a lot about my dad since that final out.

Interview conducted by D. Cannioux

Photo credits: Jérémy Pruzsina