Crossing the plate vs. the Praha Dragons (Czech Republic) in the Collegiate Baseball League Europe (CBLE) Championship Series, Sant Boi Barcelona Falcons rookie centerfielder Connor Graham scored for the 14th time of the season, becoming the first player in franchise history to score so many runs.
Crossing again two days later in the CBLE finals, he finished the 2016 CBLE campaign through Great Britain, France, Spain, The Netherlands, Czech Republic, and Austria with 15 runs, adding further to the new franchise record. The 15 runs are the most ever scored by a Falcons player and tied for third all-time in the league.
Graham said, “When it comes right down to it, the object of the game is to score runs. One of my AAU coaches, Ken Arnold, played pro (MLB’s Chicago Cubs, Baltimore Orioles, Texas Rangers, Pittsburgh Pirates organizations) and said the baseball statistic that matters most is runs. He says if you’re doing your part to score or drive in runs, then you’re doing the things your team needs or you wouldn’t be scoring. That made a lot of sense to me and I’ve never forgotten it.”
The 5-foot-10, 150-pound Virginia Wesleyan College recruit helped the Falcons post an 11-4-1 (9-2-1 West) record earning the CBLE’s regular season Western Division Championship and a fifth consecutive berth in the CBLE Championship Series finals.
“I take a lot of pride in baserunning and had a few misfires over there [in Europe] that bugged me,” Graham said. “I wasn’t always as aggressive as I like to be and cost my team runs. The bottom line is you don't win the game if you don’t score more runs than the other team."
Even so Graham, 18, unseated former Falcons players Christopher Mortimer (Germany), Dietrich de Jongh (Holland) and Roderick Mitchell (Canada) tied with 13 runs each as Sant Boi Barcelona’s new record holder for runs scored.
He also became the only Falcon ever to have three straight multi-run games and score multiple runs in five games, notching 3 runs in a game once and 2 runs four times.
"It's hard to believe with all the players that have been here who put up some big numbers and the crazy success the club has had winning and going to five straight championships in the past five years,” he said.
“But baserunning is about taking risks. Our coaches push baserunning intelligence to advance on the bases, be aggressive and score, and to be successful you can’t be afraid to fail—turn and burn, stretch the bases, singles to doubles, first to third, second to home. We emphasize putting pressure on the defense. The result is more runs.”
Batting second in the lineup, the Falcons rookie was hitting at a red hot .409 clip through the first half of the season before he was moved to leadoff and cooled off (.283, 13-for-46). His output included one triple, two RBIs, seven walks, two hit by pitch, two sacrifices, four reached base on errors, two steals, and 15 runs scored.
“Connor did a phenomenal job for us,” Falcons head coach Chris Cummings said. “He owned the outfield and played with great character. He made a lot of very good plays that was a real key to our success.
"Our offense obviously, for us to average over 5 runs per game, did an outstanding job and Connor accounted for nearly 20 percent of that production.
"The way he leads the outfield, swung the bat, taking over leadoff responsibility in midseason, the job he did overall—he had just an extremely impressive summer.”
Graham committed to playing collegiately for the NCAA Division III Marlins under Coach Chris Francis in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference.
About CBLE
The Sant Boi Barcelona Falcons are a charter member of the CBLE, which was founded by European baseball innovator Jan Maarten Kops in 2012 in Oosterhout, The Netherlands. The 2016 season featured six teams representing cities in Spain (Barcelona), France (La Rochelle), the Netherlands (Amsterdam and Oosterhout), Austria (Vienna), Great Britain (London), and Czech Republic (Prague). Rosters included players from all over the world ages 18-23.
As the only collegiate summer league in "the Old World," CBLE offers collegiate players a high-level baseball experience and cultural exposure to Europe at the same time. CBLE is affiliated with the Northwoods League, one of America’s premier summer collegiate baseball leagues comprising teams of top college players from the Midwestern United States and Canada.
Follow CBLE at http://www.cble.org. To keep up to date on the latest happenings, become a fan and follow Sant Boi Barcelona Falcons baseball on Facebook. Visit https://www.facebook.com/santboifalcons.
Graham said, “When it comes right down to it, the object of the game is to score runs. One of my AAU coaches, Ken Arnold, played pro (MLB’s Chicago Cubs, Baltimore Orioles, Texas Rangers, Pittsburgh Pirates organizations) and said the baseball statistic that matters most is runs. He says if you’re doing your part to score or drive in runs, then you’re doing the things your team needs or you wouldn’t be scoring. That made a lot of sense to me and I’ve never forgotten it.”
The 5-foot-10, 150-pound Virginia Wesleyan College recruit helped the Falcons post an 11-4-1 (9-2-1 West) record earning the CBLE’s regular season Western Division Championship and a fifth consecutive berth in the CBLE Championship Series finals.
“I take a lot of pride in baserunning and had a few misfires over there [in Europe] that bugged me,” Graham said. “I wasn’t always as aggressive as I like to be and cost my team runs. The bottom line is you don't win the game if you don’t score more runs than the other team."
Even so Graham, 18, unseated former Falcons players Christopher Mortimer (Germany), Dietrich de Jongh (Holland) and Roderick Mitchell (Canada) tied with 13 runs each as Sant Boi Barcelona’s new record holder for runs scored.
He also became the only Falcon ever to have three straight multi-run games and score multiple runs in five games, notching 3 runs in a game once and 2 runs four times.
"It's hard to believe with all the players that have been here who put up some big numbers and the crazy success the club has had winning and going to five straight championships in the past five years,” he said.
“But baserunning is about taking risks. Our coaches push baserunning intelligence to advance on the bases, be aggressive and score, and to be successful you can’t be afraid to fail—turn and burn, stretch the bases, singles to doubles, first to third, second to home. We emphasize putting pressure on the defense. The result is more runs.”
Batting second in the lineup, the Falcons rookie was hitting at a red hot .409 clip through the first half of the season before he was moved to leadoff and cooled off (.283, 13-for-46). His output included one triple, two RBIs, seven walks, two hit by pitch, two sacrifices, four reached base on errors, two steals, and 15 runs scored.
“Connor did a phenomenal job for us,” Falcons head coach Chris Cummings said. “He owned the outfield and played with great character. He made a lot of very good plays that was a real key to our success.
"Our offense obviously, for us to average over 5 runs per game, did an outstanding job and Connor accounted for nearly 20 percent of that production.
"The way he leads the outfield, swung the bat, taking over leadoff responsibility in midseason, the job he did overall—he had just an extremely impressive summer.”
Graham committed to playing collegiately for the NCAA Division III Marlins under Coach Chris Francis in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference.
About CBLE
The Sant Boi Barcelona Falcons are a charter member of the CBLE, which was founded by European baseball innovator Jan Maarten Kops in 2012 in Oosterhout, The Netherlands. The 2016 season featured six teams representing cities in Spain (Barcelona), France (La Rochelle), the Netherlands (Amsterdam and Oosterhout), Austria (Vienna), Great Britain (London), and Czech Republic (Prague). Rosters included players from all over the world ages 18-23.
As the only collegiate summer league in "the Old World," CBLE offers collegiate players a high-level baseball experience and cultural exposure to Europe at the same time. CBLE is affiliated with the Northwoods League, one of America’s premier summer collegiate baseball leagues comprising teams of top college players from the Midwestern United States and Canada.
Follow CBLE at http://www.cble.org. To keep up to date on the latest happenings, become a fan and follow Sant Boi Barcelona Falcons baseball on Facebook. Visit https://www.facebook.com/santboifalcons.
