The performance of the always exemplary sportsman is more than extraordinary and only possible through a very long career at the highest level. Brief explanation: In baseball, a hit is a hit that gets the player at least to first base without the opposing defense making a mistake. Gühring is currently at the start of his 21st Bundesliga season, meaning he has scored an average of 50 such successful shots over the past 20 seasons.
The Leonberger came to Heidenheim in 2001 and played his first Bundesliga season here at the age of 17. A short time later, his outstanding talent earned the catcher a contract in the USA, where he played for two years and then a season in the Dutch professional league. Then it went back to the Heidekopfen, with whom he has won seven German championship titles to date and for whom he has now landed his 1000th hit. He beat many more in the German national team, for which he competed at five European and two World Championships.
Gühring is playing his 21st season for the Heideköpfe
“For a long time I didn’t even know where I stood, then Ty Erikson created the statistics and we’ve been counting ever since,” reports the athlete, who was always supported by his wife Sarai and has now achieved a very special record. In second place in the all-time rankings is Max Boldt from Mainz with over 150 fewer hits – and he has already ended his career. Gühring, on the other hand, is still an important part of the Heidenheim team at 40 years old; his 1000th hit was ultimately the decisive one in the narrow victory over Mainz.
The teammates congratulate Simon Gühring (right) on his very special record. Kalle Linkert
“I’m very happy that it worked here in front of the home fans and not in Hünstetten or somewhere else,” said Gühring after the game. He doesn’t remember his first hit, but he does remember a few special ones: For example, the three home runs in Mannheim that led to the Heideköpfe’s first title in 2009. Speaking of which: Gühring has hit 98 shots over the fence in the Bundesliga so far – so there could be another anniversary here this season.
Graduation season?
The hits from Mannheim are all the more remarkable because Gühring had only recently torn his syndesmotic ligament. It wasn’t his only injury, including a torn cruciate ligament and a herniated disc. Even though the model athlete has fought his way up again and again, his career is now coming to an end. “I played as a catcher for so many years, it takes its toll on my body. I assume that I will stop after this season,” says Gühring, who will definitely stay with the Heideköpfe, where his sons Samuel and Jacob also play. This year he wants to achieve as much as possible with the HSB baseball players, not least in the European Champions Cup.
Simon Gühring is happy about another highlight of his extraordinary career. Kalle Linkert
But also in the Bundesliga, where Heidenheim moved back into second place at the weekend with two wins over Mainz. Both teams were weakened, but the Heideköpfe didn’t notice this on Friday evening. With strong pitching from Sven Schüller and Chris Ehrich as well as excellent defense, the guests were hardly allowed to score. Offensively, the highlights in the early 11-1 win were Drew Janssen with two home runs and Gary Owens with a home run and two more hits.
Clear victory and thrill
However, the game on Saturday showed that things are still not going quite smoothly. The Heidenheimers got off to a good start. Gary Owens and Shawn Larry gave the visitors a quick 2-0 lead and pitcher Jared Mortensen initially had the guests fully under control. But last year’s MVP isn’t quite at his best yet, plus there were uncertainties in field defense and missed opportunities on offense. Mainz equalized 2-2 in the fourth inning, and even the 6-2 lead after Gühring’s hit didn’t bring any security.
The guests came close again, Janssen took over as pitcher in the eighth round, conceded the score 6:5, but then brought home the narrow victory with three strikeouts. Gühring and Owens stood out at bat with three hits each. Overall, the Heidekopfs have to become more effective, with almost twice as many hits and walks as the opponent, the result was far too close. On the other hand, the team showed good nerves and could be on the right track, especially since things should look better again soon.
Names and numbers
Heidenheim Heideköpfe – Mainz Athletics 11:1 / 6:5
Hits: 13:4 / 14:8, Errors: 3:1, Viewers: 150 / 250
Heath heads: Thomas (2B; 3 Hits bei 9 Schlagversuchen, 1 RBI, 1 Walk, 3 Stolen Bases), Janssen (3B/RF/P; 2/7, 2 Homeruns, 3 RBI, 3 Walks, 1 Stolen Base), Owens (CF; 6/8, 1 Homerun, 1 Double, 5 RBI, 1 Walk), Germaine (C; 3/7, 1 RBI, 1 Walk, 1 Stolen Base), Larry (DH; 2/6, 2 RBI, 1 Walk), Gühring (1B; 5/8, 1 Double, 2 RBI, 1 Walk), Dinski (RF/CF; 0/5, 1 RBI), Liedtke (SS; 3/6, 1 Double, 1 RBI, 2 Walks), Geiger (LF; 1/4), Plitz (3B; 0/1), K. Redle (DH/1B; 1/3), E. Redle (LF; 1/4) – Pitcher: Schüller (5 innings, 1 earned run, 5 strikeouts), Ehrich (3 I, 0 ER, 3 SO), Mortensen (6.2 I, 3 ER, 7 SO), Bolsenborek (0.1 I, 0 ER, 1 SO) , Janssen (2I, 0 ER, 3 SO)
2024-04-28 19:08:14
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