Gateway as a European window into the big world of baseball
Successful premiere with great attention from MLB scouts for the U16 version of the tournament. Gateway U18 also prepares for the European Championship.
When Bob Engle is sitting on the terrace in the Armin Wolf Arena, it’s Gateway time. The American scouting legend is an important partner of the tournaments, which give young European baseball players the opportunity to showcase themselves in the USA. Martin Brunner, Director of the Regensburg Baseball Academy and MLB European Development Coordinator, says of Engle: „Bob is a true international ambassador for baseball and the best resource for international players. We are honored to have him as our eyes and ears for the players, and we are proud that his depth of experience adds credibility and value to the event.“
International attention
Since the highly successful launch of the program in 2021, the tournament has been designed for the European U18/U19 elite, showcasing the majority of Europe’s young talent year after year. In 2024, a younger version of the tournament was also on the program for the first time. Gateway U16 gives players the opportunity to prove their skills to scouts even earlier.
Transparency toward the USA
The whole thing was closely followed by scouts from many MLB teams. The logos of Toronto Blue Jays, Arizona Diamondbacks, Cincinnati Reds, LA Dodgers, Kansas City Royals, Pittsburgh Pirates, New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, Oakland Athletics could be seen in the stands. Gateway U16 has also been broadcast to MLB teams and colleges across the US with analytics data through Synergy Sports.
This means that the Gateway tournaments also reflect a development in recent years. Scouting is increasingly moving towards collecting data remotely and being able to log into tagged video from changing angles. In addition, it is difficult for the European player to be transparent as a person and as a player to MLB clubs and US college programs. Regensburg Gateway should be the beacon in Europe to allow the talented and ambitious players full transparency in the US.
