The season opener of the Dohren Wild Farmers vs the Cologne Cardinals turned out in a crazy and ugly game. Early in the game, there was a bench-clearing brawl that led to several ejections. Eventually, the Cologne Cardinals won game one 15-8.
Cologne Cardinals @ Dohren Wild Farmers
The Cologne Cardinals took an early lead in the first inning when Brandt Holland hit a 
three-run dinger. Cologne continued to extend its lead as it scored twice in the second and twice in the fourth.
Things turned ugly with a bench-clearing brawl in the fourth inning, Brandt Holland and Gianni Fracchiolla were tossed. From that moment on every hit pitch resulted in a pitcher being tossed, so in total five pitchers were ejected after the brawl.
It took the Wild Farmers until the fifth inning to get on the scoreboard. A single by Edvardas Matusevicius drove in Wester Bocio Cabral. In the eighth inning, the Wild Farmers seemed to fight their way back as they trailed by five runs, but a two-run home run by Nicolas Eckhardt to left field in the top of the ninth was a blow to the Wild 
Farmers they could not overcome.
The second game was called due to darkness when the Wild Farmers were leading 5-1. The game will be continued at a later stage. Dohren trailed 1-0 at the start of the bottom of the fifth but two singles, a double and a wild pitch drove in five runs for the village close to Hamburg.
Munich-Haar Disciples @ Saarlouis Hornets
The Munich-Haar Disciples went to Saarlouis to face the Hornets. The Disciples never got into trouble as they beat the Hornets 17-1 though this score was rather flattering. Sure the Disciples were stronger than the Hornets as they had an 8-1 lead at the start of the ninth.
Just like the second game between the Dohren Wild Farmers and the Cologne Cardinals, the second game in Saarlouis was called due to darkness. But also in this game, the Saarlouis Hornets were no match for the Munich Haar Disciples as the latter won 10-1 in seven innings.
Mannheim Tornados @ IT Sure Falcons
Another lopsided game could be seen in Ulm where the Mannheim Tornados needed 
seven innings to beat the IT Sure Falcons. In fact, the game was played after one inning when the Tornados scored eleven runs. Eventually, Mannheim won 19-1 as they did not only outscore the Falcons but also outhit them 15-2. Falcons’ starting pitcher J. Leon Mendez lasted 2.2 innings in which he surrendered 16 runs. He was simply hit hard but he didn’t issue that many walks with only three. For Mannheim, Sascha Lutz was the best hitter as he went 4 for 4 with two doubles and four RBI.
The second in Ulm was a much closer one as the IT Sure Falcons beat the Tornados 5-4. In a game that lasted only 1h54, the Falcons scored the decisive runs in the fifth inning as Luis Santa Cruz hit a solo home run and Joseph Germaine scored on a 5-3 groundout hit by Mauritzio Rojas Autunno.
Buchbinder Legionäre @ Mainz Athletics
Last night, the Mainz Athletics opened the Bundesliga season at home against the 
Buchbinder Legionäre from Regensburg. In a close game, the Athletics stayed at the right side of the score as they won 3-2. In a quick game (2:24), the Athletics beat the Legionäre in the second game (on Saturday) 4-3.
Stuttgart Reds @ Heidenheim Heideköpfe
Another close game was played this afternoon as the Heidenheim Heideköpfe opened the 
season at home vs the Stuttgart Reds. In the fourth inning, the Heideköpfe took a 2-0 lead on a single by Gary Michael Owens and a sac fly by Johannes Krumm. But the Reds fought their way back in the game as they scored a run in the seventh and eighth innings. Apparently, this was a wakeup call for the Heideköpfe as they scored twice in the bottom of the eighth when Shawn Larry doubled home Gary Michael Owens and Fernando Escarro 
drove in Shawn Larry on a single. Eventually, Escarro scored the fifth run on a wild pitch. The Reds came close in the top of the ninth when they scored twice but closer Seyfried managed to keep them at bay for the save to secure the first victory of the Heideköpfe in the 2019 season.
The second game of this series will be played tomorrow.
Other games that are scheduled for tomorrow are Bremen Dockers @ Solingen Alligators, Paderborn Untouchables @ Wesseling Vermins and Bonn Capitals @ Hamburg Stealers.
Dutch Baseball Hangout 