[FuzzyRussianHat]

For the third consecutive season, Zaragoza finished first in the Western Conference standings. They had won 107 and 120 in the prior two years, but had failed to earn a promotion out of the European Second League regardless. In 2033, the Gold Hawks only narrowly took the #1 spot at 97-65. Naples (93-69) and Hamburg (92-70) were close behind and earned playoff spots. It was the Nobles’ first berth since returning to E2L in 2031. The Hammers hoped for a one-and-done escape, having been relegated out of the European Baseball Federation’s Elite Tier the prior season.

The fourth and final postseason spot went to Amsterdam at 89-73. The Anacondas fended off 87-75 Luxembourg and 84-78 efforts by Belfast and Stuttgart. This was Amsterdam’s first playoff trip and winning season since getting relegated for 2030. With their near miss, the Silver Sabres remain the only original E2L team yet to be promoted at least once.

Palermo had been in the EBF Elite from 2017-31, but got relegated for 2032. The Priests continued to fall, suffering a further demotion to European Tier Three. They had the last place spot at 62-100 with only Toulouse close by at 65-97.

In the Round Robin, the top two advanced to the Western Conference Championship and earned promotions with Zaragoza at 5-1 and Naples at 4-2. Hamburg was ousted at 2-4 and Amsterdam finished 1-5. The Gold Hawks finally made it back up after a four year E2L run while the Nobles’ tenure went three years. In the conference final, Zaragoza defeated Naples 4-2.



The Eastern Conference was top-heavy with Bucharest (107-55) and Vienna (105-57) lapping the field. Both bullpens recorded 68 saves, tied for the second-most in E2L history. The Broncos got their first playoff trip since joining E2L in 2026, while it was the second in three years for the Vultures.

Lviv and Malta tied for third at 92-70 to take the remaining playoff spots ahead of Riga (90-72), Leipzig (88-74), and Skopje (87-75). The Marvels hadn’t made the playoffs since getting relegated for 2027. The Lunkers got their fifth playoff appearance in seven years, hoping this one finally got them the promotion.

Last place by a considerable margin was Athens at 42-120, continuing their rollercoaster ride. The Anchors had gotten demoted to ET3 for 2031, but climbed back to E2L after two years. Athens in 2033 set new E2L all-time worsts for wins, runs scored (348) and stolen bases (20). Montenegro was a terrible 57-105 in their E2L debut, but the Anchors’ abysmal effort saved them from immediate relegation.



The Eastern Conference also had their top two advance from the Round Robin and secure promotions with Vienna at 5-1 and Bucharest at 4-2. Lviv finished 2-4 and Malta went 1-5. The Vultures escaped after a four-year E2L tenure, while the Broncos had to wait eight years. Vienna won a seven-game classic over Bucharest to claim the conference championship. The Vultures then outlasted Zaragoza in seven to win the Second League Championship.



Other notes: Vienna’s Achim Vetter set E2L pitching records among qualifiers (162+ innings) for BB/9 (0.78), WHIP (0.63), opponent’s OBP (.180), and opponent’s OPS (.411). Vetter also had a 12 strikeout no-hitter on June 24 against Varna. Despite that, he lost Pitcher of the Year to Skopje’s Apostolos Anaximenes, whose 1.26 ERA was the second-best in E2L history.



In their first year in European Tier Three, Vilnius quickly escaped with a dominant first place at 106-56. For the other promotion spot, eight teams finished the regular season within five games. Leeds and Ostrava were tied for second at 89-73, followed by 88-74 efforts by Kosovo, The Hague, and Venice. Newcastle (86-76), Florence (84-78), Nuremberg (84-78), and Bordeaux (83-79) were all right in the mix. In a tiebreaker game, Leeds defeated Ostrava to earn their first-ever promotion. The Lagers would then upset top-seed Vilnius 4-1 to win the ET3 championship.