Le Stade Toulousain has failed three times in a row in the semi-finals. With its cocktail of youth and experience, the team seems to finally be able to lift a Cup.
There is reason to be frustrated. Over the last three seasons, Toulouse has failed three times in the semi-finals. Defeated by the future champion, not without taking the first match against the Barracudas in 2023 and leading 2-0 against the Huskies in 2025. After this double victory, the phone of president Yanael Delpech did not stop ringing. They were already talking about the final. « But I know Rouen well and I know that you should never open the door to them. » A few individual performances just below what was 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 mouth of the director. « On the contrary. We came close, and it makes you want to achieve it. We see the progression of the team. I know that it always takes time to bring a title. » This ambition, this perspective, he brought it with him when he joined the club.reprise of the club for three seasons. And he does not deviate from his plan. As a connoisseur of what makes a champion team, he has made a big effort on the baseball school, with the idea of creating a core of players trained in the club, creating a Toulouse spirit that works well in this city that is proud of its history and its present.
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This is starting to pay off, we saw it last year with the debuts in D1 of very young players like Feliu and Perez, and the presence for a few seasons in the outfield of the very talented Cegielski and Baisse-Depontieu. This year, one of the great hopes of French baseball, Kylian Bramberger, will complete the team. « When there is talent and work, we are not afraid to give young players a chance. We know that it takes time for everything to work perfectly, especially at the plate. In D1, all teams have pitchers who throw over 90 Mph, adjusting is not easy. But this season, we have a very talented team and we are confident that we can compete for the championship. « Investment will eventually pay. One of the goals of Toulouse, and its coach Randy Perez, is to rely on speed, aggression, and passing the ball to provoke opponents’ mistakes. The recruitment of Bramberger is fully consistent with this goal.
Another characteristic of Toulouse is to rely on a core of high-level veterans, such as Soriano and Mendoza, two sluggers who continue year after year to destroy opposing pitching staffs, and on whom the weight of age does not seem to have any effect. To maintain this philosophy, Toulouse brings back Velazco, who is in great shape this season and whose mentality fits perfectly with the Toulouse spirit, will reunite with 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 of young / old is also present on the mound, with the pair Rojas / Laot, who are capable of great things.>Le premier objectif est clairement identifié : le Challenge de France, co-organisé avec Boe-Bon-Encontre. Une compétition qui n’a pas trop réussi aux Toulousains ces dernières années, mais qu’ils aborderont avec un nouveau regard. « Ce qui ne nous réussit pas, c’est de voyager », corrige Yanael Delpech. « Nous avons des joueurs qui travaillent, pour qui s’est compliqué de poser des jours de vacances, nous ne sommes jamais arrivés avec un effectif au complet ». En effet, si on prend toutes les compétitions en compte (saison, play-offs, challenge), depuis trois ans, Toulouse joue pour .744 à domicile et .271 en déplacement. De quoi être « motivés et confiants pour faire quelque chose ». Ce sera l’occasion de valoriser l’éclairage, enfin posé, et qui est une grande réussite, et de mobiliser les bénévoles qui sont capables de donner beaucoup, comme ils l’ont prouvé à un récent Challenge de soft masculin. Une fête du baseball « dont on sortira avec la Coupe », espère le président.Toulouse believes more than ever in this year’s title. « What will make the difference is the mental strength to face the long journey that a season represents. It will be in the head that it will be played, that we will find success. » So, 20 years after their last championship final and 19 years after their last challenge final, the Toulousains are ready to finally reach the end. In order to finally break the glass ceiling.
