In January 2020, the first French Baseball5 Open was held in Île-de-France at the INSEP. The first French champions emerged: the Squales de Vauréal. Due to the health crisis, 2021 didn’t happen, and here we are in Montpellier in 2022 for the second French Open. More teams, higher level, but once again, nearly the same Squales squad managed to retain their French championship title.
Interview with Emmanuel Pauthe, coach of the Squales Baseball5 team
BTVF: What are your first impressions?
E.P.: It was an intense tournament where we won all our matches. The intensity was especially high in the semifinals where we left a lot of energy against the Prospect Team. For the final, we faced the home team from Montpellier and managed to win the title with two victories, both by the same score: 8-6.
BTVF: A solid team made up of experienced players used to winning?
E.P.: The core of the 2020 team was there, especially for the men. On the women’s side, some are in the USA playing softball. We’ve integrated new recruits like Léonie and Amina, who are just 16 years old. It’s also a family team with me and two of my children, and it includes players from the French Baseball5 national team like Amed and Chiara.
BTVF: In terms of coaching, how do you handle the pace of the game?
E.P.: Indeed, everything moves fast, and the officials ensure this pace is maintained between innings. For lineup changes, everything must be planned during the defensive inning, so every decision must be anticipated to be quick. You also have to factor in that a player who is out can re-enter the game, which is quite different from the more deliberate coaching of traditional baseball. It’s very demanding for a coach.
BTVF: How does Baseball5 practice work in your club?
E.P.: Despite the health crisis, it’s easier to attract new players thanks to Baseball5. We have a gym we use on Wednesday evenings where we set up two fields with barriers we were able to acquire thanks to a federation project call.
BTVF: What can we wish for you?
E.P.: To maintain our level and participate in other tournaments. There is still no Baseball5 championship in France or Europe, which would surely create an even stronger dynamic.
Interview conducted by Didier CANNIOUX
