William Germaine Repeats as DBL South MVP After 12-Homer Season

William “Billy” Germaine has repeated as Deutsche Baseball Liga South MVP after a dominant 2026 season for the Heidenheim Heideköpfe. The 32-year-old power hitter received 39.4 percent of the vote after leading the league with 12 home runs and posting a .750 slugging percentage.

Germaine, who primarily played third base while also offering experience behind the plate and at first base, defended the MVP award he won in 2025. The German international also captured the 2026 Best Batter South honor, giving him two DBL awards from the same season.

A complete power season for Heidenheim

Germaine appeared in all 32 of Heidenheim’s regular-season and interleague games. Along with his league-leading 12 home runs, he recorded 17 extra-base hits and led the competition with a .503 on-base percentage.

His .361 batting average ranked second in the league behind Stuttgart Reds hitter Austin Bull, who finished at .406. Germaine’s combination of power and plate discipline made him the centerpiece of a Heidenheim lineup that won the DBL South division.

The home-run total was comfortably the highest in the league. Germaine also finished the full regular season with a 1.253 OPS, ahead of Regensburg’s Kohei Sasagawa at 1.070 and Bull at 1.013.

Interleague surge strengthened MVP case

Germaine raised his production when Heidenheim faced the strongest teams from the DBL North in interleague play. He hit six home runs and drove in 18 runs across 12 interleague games—the same totals he produced over the 20-game South schedule.

His most explosive performance came in a 14-6 victory over the Hamburg Stealers, when he homered in all three of his plate appearances. Across two games against Hamburg and the Paderborn Untouchables, Germaine collected 11 RBIs.

Those performances helped separate him in the MVP voting. Germaine’s 39.4-percent share improved on the 30.5 percent he received while winning the award a year earlier.

Germaine wins a clear vote

Gauting Indians infielder Jakob Huber finished second with 17.4 percent of the vote. Regensburg players Christian Pedrol and Nino Sacasa followed with 16.3 and 13.7 percent, while Bull received 13.3 percent.

The result gives Germaine another individual honor after a season in which Heidenheim’s title defense ended in the playoff quarterfinals. His production nevertheless remained among the clearest constants in German baseball: elite power, frequent extra-base contact and an on-base rate above .500.