The Quebec Capitales will return from France with one more player for their next training camp, young pitcher Thibault Mercadier.
“He was quite happy when we told him,” admitted manager Patrick Scalabrini on Tuesday, who is still on French soil.
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Mercadier, 21, should participate in the Capitales camp starting April 27 in Quebec. If the gunner from Normandy has interesting potential, we should not expect him to play an important role with the Quebec team next season.
“He has the potential, but our experience shows us that this is not always enough, so we must remain cautious,” warned Scalabrini. He is only 21 years old. The next two or three years will provide us with more information.”
“He is a young man with very intriguing potential, his ceiling is very high,” nevertheless recognized the manager of the Capitals. He has a good base and excellent change of speed.”
Michel Laplante ravi
The Capitals, who landed in Europe last Thursday, are fully satisfied with this first mission in France to recruit new talented players as part of an evaluation camp held in collaboration with the Rouen Huskies organization.
“I am delighted,” said the president of Capitales, Michel Laplante. Why wasn’t this done before? We share a lot of values with the Huskies… There is something special here, the people I met have this love of baseball that unites them. We wish to solidify this privileged link which has linked the two organizations for several years.”
Capitales president Michel Laplante (right) gives instructions to pitcher Thibault Mercadier, during an evaluation camp held these days in France. Photo provided by the Rouen Huskies
Mercadier actually wore the colors of the Huskies in France. He also played in the United States, during the 2022-2023 season, with the Western Nebraska College Cougars. In 19 innings pitched, however, he allowed 34 earned runs.
“We really like his personality,” insisted Scalabrini. He must become a good ambassador for relations between the Capitals and the Huskies.”
An outfielder for the Eagles
During this same trial camp held in France, the Aigles de Trois-Rivières for their part set their sights on Léo Jiminian, a 25-year-old outfielder wearing the uniform of the Lions de Savigny.
The one who notably played in the NCAA, with the East Tennessee State University Buccaneers, will also join the Eagles in April during their training camp.
Remember that the start of the season in the Frontier Baseball League is scheduled for May 9 for the Capitales, two-time defending champions, and May 10 for the Eagles.
2024-04-02 17:28:28
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