New Management for the French National Team

The French national baseball team’s performance at the 2025 European Baseball Championship was yet another disappointment. It finished in a dismal 12th place, ending the tournament with defeats to Switzerland and Austria that went down very badly within the French baseball community.

In an attempt to make a fresh start, an entirely new coaching staff has been appointed to reverse the trend and help France achieve better results at the next European Championship, which will be held in Germany in 2027.

Mike Griffin, the Canadian who managed the Czech national team from 2014 to 2021, has been appointed manager of the French team. He will be assisted by Corey Lee, who will serve as pitching coach and previously pitched in MLB and NPB, and Dave Jauss, who will be bench coach and is a senior advisor to the Washington Nationals. Former manager Keino Perez will remain on the staff, which will also include Rouen Huskies coach Quentin Becquey. They will contribute their knowledge of the players competing in the French league.

“Our plan is to build a team capable of competing for a medal at the 2027 European Championship,” the new manager said in an interview published on the French Federation’s website. “I know France has the talent to compete with almost anyone in Europe. Another goal will be to develop greater roster depth and competition in order to raise our level of play. Competition will make everyone better.”

He plans to draw on a broad pool of 70 players when selecting his future squad.

A trip to Barcelona

For now, he will take a 22-man roster to Barcelona for a series of games against Spain. It includes veterans such as Felix Brown, Frederic Hanvi, Ivan Acuna, Miguel Lopez, Leo Jiminian and Paolo Brossier, as well as several promising young players who will earn their first caps, including Emile Brelle, Romain Krzykawiak, Gabriel Harrison, Nathan Laot, Oscar Lebouc and Theo Rioux. The roster also includes players competing in other European leagues, such as Jose Paula and Miguel Lopez in Italy, and Nicolas Antoine and Quentin Moulin in Germany.

“Our immediate objectives are to build strong relationships with the staff and players, develop a championship culture and mindset, identify talent, and then assess which individuals can help us create the culture we want and win games,” Griffin said.

He will, of course, also be keeping a close eye on players such as Mathias Lacombe of the Chicago White Sox, Mathis Nayral of the Toronto Blue Jays, Ben Couvreur of the University of Kansas, Ernesto Martinez Jr. of the New York Yankees, Jordan Ouanyou of the Cincinnati Reds, Esteban Briones of Arizona Western College, and others who are expected to play a role in future competitions.

France will face the Netherlands, Great Britain and Slovakia in the first round of the European Championship. The team has not won a medal since the 1999 tournament and has not reached the semifinals since 2001.