Members of the UK baseball team London Mets practice during a training session at the Finsbury Park in London, Thursday, May 16, 2024. Baseball at the highest club level in Britain is competitive. Teams are mélange of locals and expats some with college and minor league experience. Members of the UK baseball team London Mets setup a net during a training session at the Finsbury Park in London, Thursday, May 16, 2024. Baseball at the highest club level in Britain is competitive.
“It’s more like a big brother, little brother situation in a sense,” Mets coach Derrick Cook explained at a recent game in Enfield, just north of London. “It’s like, ‘Hey, the big brother is good at everything and the little brother is always trying to beat the big brother.”Indeed, the Finsbury Park baseball diamond had been used for cricket until being abandoned because it was too easily waterlogged.
The Mets attract some of the best players. Many are in their 20s and 30s. A handful of youngsters have come through the system and played some U.S. college ball. London native Freddy Mosier has pitched for the Mets, Britain’s national team and Middlebury College in Vermont. Hashiguchi, the Capitals’ ace, said he sees different Mets’ lineups all the time for their 7-inning affairs.
A year later, Hashiguchi threw 148 pitches in a semifinal victory. The bad news for the Capitals? The final was the next day. Then last season, the final switched to a three-game series. Hashiguchi won Game 1, but the Mets cruised in the doubleheader a day later.