Falcons sign Matt Gilbert. He needs just 2 strikeouts to set a new NBL record

Herts Falcons have added pitcher Matt Gilbert to their roster. We understand that he was registered on Thursday night or Friday morning making him eligible to play in Sunday’s Opening Day games. This is a major coup for Herts as Gilbert is a legend in British baseball.

In the last two seasons he played for the Harlow Nationals winning the NBL national championship in 2013. In his NBL career spanning 17 years, he has also played for the Bracknell Blazers, Essex Arrows, Cambridge Monarchs and Bracknell-Richmond Wildfire.

 

MATT GILBERT – NBL BATTING STATS

TEAM

SEASON

AB

R

H

HR

RBI

BA

OBA

SLA

Cambridge Monarchs

1998

54

26

27

8

26

0.500

0.550

1.056

Cambridge Monarchs

2001

76

15

33

2

14

0.434

0.450

0.618

Bracknell-Richmond Wildfire

2002

10

0

2

0

2

0.200

0.273

0.200

Bracknell Blazers

2003

28

4

10

0

4

0.357

0.379

0.357

Essex Arrows

2010

63

11

17

2

17

0.270

0.355

0.413

Essex Arrows

2011

46

15

18

0

20

0.391

0.525

0.478

Essex Arrows

2012

57

9

15

0

0

0.263

0.368

0.316

Harlow Nationals

2013

54

13

17

0

7

0.315

0.479

0.333

Southern Nationals

2014

21

3

8

0

2

0.381

0.517

0.476

Source: Project COBB

Last year Matt Gilbert became the first player in modern British baseball history to pass a half-century of recorded complete games, moving to a total of 54. Gilbert now has 408 career strike-outs, and his next strike-out will draw him level with Cody Cain’s modern British record of 409. We understand that one of the reasons why Gilbert decided to play this season is his aim of setting a new record. In the process of doing so he can also help the Falcons to be in the playoff race this season. It is not clear whether Gilbert will continue playing if he breaks the strikeout record. Herts fans will certainly hope that the club will be able to convince him to stay longer.

MATT GILBERT – NBL PITCHING STATS

TEAM

SEASON

W

L

ERA

SV

CG

SO

SO/9IP

Cambridge Monarchs

2001

6

7

3.54

0

12

118

10

Bracknell-Richmond Wildfire

2002

1

2

2.25

0

1

15

11.3

Bracknell Blazers

2003

3

3

3.48

0

4

38

8.3

Essex Arrows

2010

2

11

9.59

0

11

72

8.5

Essex Arrows

2011

5

5

5.56

0

8

65

8.6

Essex Arrows

2012

3

6

5.65

0

8

33

5.8

Harlow Nationals

2013

3

1

5.63

1

4

30

5.6

Southern Nationals

2014

2

3

6.12

0

6

37

6.7

Can he break the record? No one knows what manager Lee Manning will decide in terms of his pitcher selection on Opening Day this Sunday, but if Gilbert gets on the mound, we may witness a new NBL record at Grovehill Ballpark.

SCHEDULE AT GROVEHILL BALLPARK

10:30am, Herts Falcons vs South London Pirates (NBL)
1:00pm, South London Pirates vs Southampton Mustangs (NBL)
1:00pm, Herts Eagles vs London Metros (Triple-A League)
3:30pm, Southampton Mustangs vs Herts Falcons (NBL)
3:30pm, Herts Eagles vs London Metros (Triple-A League)

FOOD AND DRINKS

Apart from five cracking baseball games, fans coming to Grovehill Ballpark this Sunday can look forward to the famous Herts hot dogs as well as many other snacks and drinks. The Herts shop will also be offering Herts, MLB and other baseball merchandise. Admission is free. Click here for directions to Grovehill Ballpark.