The Israeli national team finished in sixth place in the 2023 European Baseball Championship, following a 5-1 loss on Sunday night to hosts Czech Republic.
Israel had defeated Belgium 11-8 to secure a place in the quarter-finals, but then lost to the Netherlands 12-2, before defeating Sweden 6-4 and finishing off with Sunday’s defeat.
Spain clinched the gold medal with an 11-2 win over Britain, with the Netherlands beating Germany 5-4 in extra innings to secure third place.
Israel won the silver medal at the biennial European Baseball Championship tournament in 2021, held in Turin, Italy.
This year’s competition was held from Sept. 23 to Oct. 1. Event organizers scheduled Israel’s games on the day before and after Yom Kippur to accommodate observant players.
Israel is set to host the 2025 tournament, again with the participation of 16 teams.
Team Israel posted a disappointing performance at the World Baseball Classic earlier this year, finishing third out of four teams in its pool with a 1-3 record. The squad beat Nicaragua but suffered lopsided defeats to Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic and Venezuela.
That Israel did not finish last in the pool ensured that the Blue-and-White has a spot in the next WBC tournament in 2026.