Today’s installment of Europeans playing baseball at American institutions covers another 14 players, these with last names beginning with ‘C’ or ‘D’. If you are only tuning in now, the introduction can be found here [link]. It includes a trio of draftees and three players developed in the Czech Republic, with three players from Ireland’s national team and two from France’s. One of the players selected in the MLB Draft, Isaiah Campbell, is also the only player on our list with a connection to Portugal. One final point of interest is the inclusion of two players at Canadian universities.
Isaiah Campbell, RHP (RS JR, University of Arkansas [46-20], Ark.) [Bio]
Last year, we highlighted draftee Isaiah Campbell as a rare baseball player with Portuguese connections after a season with Arkansas which had some moments of excellence. In his third full year, the righty put it all together, turning in a dominant campaign and a second-round draft selection by Seattle.
Campbell finished with a 2.27 ERA and a 108/19 K/BB ration in 103 innings. His list of gems is considerable: seven shutout with 13 Ks and four baserunners on March 1 against Stony Brook, a near identical start against Missouri a fortnight later, seven scoreless against Alabama a week on, and eight one-run frames against Texas Christian on June 1, during which Campbell whiffed eight.
Should Portugal ever decide to compete again in European competition (only two appearances all-time), Campbell would immediately become its ace and one of the top pitchers in a B- or C-Level Championship, assuming he is a) eligible and b) interested.
Filip Čapka, RHP (FR, Wake Technical Community College [27-18-1], N.C.) [Bio]
For the second year in-a-row, Wake Tech had a pair of Czechs on the roster, though Martin Červinka and Martin Mužík had returned home. One was Čapka, had his K-ball working in 17.2 frames as he sent down 23 on strikes. The righty was unable to keep runs off the board, however, as he surrendered 16 earned runs on 29 hits and eight walks, leading to an 8.15 ERA and 2.09 WHIP.
Marek Chlup, OF (FR, North Carolina State University [42-19], N.C.) [Bio]
We first reported that Chlup would join the Wolfpack in 
early 2018 and the Czech Under-23 national teamer had a solid debut in limited time for the Division-I school. Chlup saw action in 17 games, though he received only 34 plate appearances, slashing .185/.324/.444. Given the competition against which he held his own, Chlup is likely to see more action in 2020.
Dean Christidis, LHP (JR, University of Toronto [21-12-2], Ont.) [Bio]
Christidis excelled as the Varsity Blues advanced all the way to the Ontario University Association final. As seems to be common with Canadian universities, not all of his statistics are available, but in the five games for which statistics are available, the Greek right-hander went 3-0 with a 0.92 ERA and 1.12 WHIP. Christidis had nine walks and five strikeouts in 19.2 frames.
Josef Cihlář, RHP (SO, Odessa Junior College [38-22], Tx.) [Bio]
We noted last year that NJCAA Region 5 regularly features blowouts in its gusty parks, leading to some eye-catchingly bad ERAs. Cihlář had a strong ERA in 2019 given these conditions, though there were some underlying issues. Were he to have had enough innings, his 2.82 ERA would have been second in the Western Junior College Athletic Conference and third in the region.
Cihlář was limited to only 22.1 innings, whiffing 28 and allowing only 11 hits. On the other hand, he walked 15 and hit 10.
Michael Cole, C (FR, Franklin & Marshall College [27-15], Pa.) [Bio]
Cole only saw action in seven games, mostly early in the season, collecting both of his hits off the bench in a March 13 game. Overall, he was 2-for-6 with two walks and two strikeouts.
Nik Constantakos, RHP (SO, Tampa University, Fla.) [Bio]
It appears that Constantakos took the spring season off, likely from a serious arm injury, as he missed most of the 2018 season. The righty will suit up with a new university at a level below his previous Charleston Southern programme.
Joe Cosgrove, C (SO, Rollins College [25-24], Fla.) [Bio]
Cosgrove started off the season in a time-share at catcher, but last suited up on Feb. 17 after a three-game set against Bentley in which he went 4-for-8 with a double, a walk, and two stolen bases. In only seven games (four in which he received a plate appearance), he went 5-for-11 with a double and three walks. The backstop now has a .273/.365/.291 mark in 33 games and 55 at bats.
Cal Djurašković, LHP (RS JR, Davenport University [32-18], Mich.) [Bio]
Djurašković had an up-and-down season for the D-II Panthers, starting and finishing on high notes before joining Serbia for European play. Djurašković was boom or bust all season, with no appearances of only one earned run yet six without any earned and another seven with multiple runs scored against him. The result was a 5.50 ERA despite a .197 average against. Djurašković struck out 45, but walked 32 in 36 frames.
The southpaw’s best appearance was a season-opening start against Ohio Valley on Feb. 15 in which he struck out six over five shutout frames, surrendering a single hit and one free pass. Near the end of the campaign, he ran off a streak of three scoreless games in which he allowed only two hits in 8.2 innings with 10 Ks, but walked seven. With one more pro season, Djurašković can still become a dominant pitcher for the Serbian national team.
John Doxakis, LHP (SO, Texas A&M University [40-21], Tex.) [Bio]
A member of the U.S. Collegiate National Team, the Greece-eligible Doxakis had an All-American season and was drafted by the Rays in June. The southpaw was a model of consistency all season, not allowing more than three runs in a start till he permitted four in the NCAA Regional final.
Doxakis began the campaign with a near perfect seven innings, surrendering a single hit and striking out 12 against Fordham on Feb. 15. A fortnight later, he whiffed another 12 in eight one-run frames versus Baylor. Sweden’s Antoine Duplantis was 0-for-3 on April 5 against Doxakis. Other highlights included eight shutout against Auburn on April 12 and eight no-hit, no-run frames against Ole Miss on May 23, during which he sent down 10 on strikes.
The result was a sparkling 2.06 ERA, .207 average against, and a 115-26 K-BB ratio in 104.2 innings. Doxakis had a 2.98 ERA and 258 strikeouts in 247.2 career innings for the Aggies.
Jonathan DuForest, OF-1B (JR, McGill University [34-9-3], Que.) [Bio]
DuForest had an excellent season as McGill defended its Canadian Collegiate Baseball Association (CCBA) National Championship. The Montréal-based university won its final seven games on its way to the Canadian title, which is consisted in the autumn season. Unfortunately, statistics are only available for CCBA games, meaning 19 games (in which McGill went 12-4-3) are not included in DuForest’s line.
The club’s starting rightfielder slashed .338/.432/.405 in the rest of the season’s games, striking out only nine times in 74 at bats. DuForest’s best game came against Ottawa on Sept. 9 as he went 3-for-4 with two walks, scoring three runs. France’s national teamer was very consistent as his average never dropped below .300 after the CCBA season’s fifth game.
Antoine Duplantis, OF (JR, Louisiana State University [40-26], La.) [Bio]
It was a shock when Duplantis was taken so late in the 2018 draft, leaving a return to LSU the obvious choice for the U.S. Collegiate National Team member and for World Series All-Tournament Team selection. Duplantis has also suited up for Sweden at the youth levels, though he did not return for the European Championship this summer.
Duplantis turned in another excellent season for a Tigers squad that improved one game on its 2018 record and finished its season in Super Regional play. Duplantis started off well, drilling a pair of homers on Opening Day (Feb. 15), adding a four-hit game against Southern on Feb. 27.
Duplantis was a wrecking ball against a very strong Mississippi State team from March 28-30, going 9-for-12 with five runs and three walks and his second two-dinger game of the year in the Sunday rubber match. The rightfielder was 9-for-16 against Florida in a series over April’s second weekend. Against Ole Miss on May 5, Duplantis was 5-for-6 with a double and a home run. The following Friday, Duplantis was 1-for-3 with a double against Isaiah Campbell.
The net result was a 12th round selection by the Mets, improving his draft position by seven rounds. Duplantis finished as LSU’s career leader in hits (359), while slashing .324/.379/.442. His batting average was testament to his reliability, as he hit .327, .316, .328, and .324, with his season on-base percentage never finishing below .350 and his slugging never below .400.
Luke Duris, RHP (SR, Haverford College [20-20], Penn.) [Bio]
Duris was a regular starter for the Fords, notching 39 innings over 10 games, eight starts. Although he improved his control (4.62 BB/9 from 6.25 in 2018) and struck out significantly more batters (8.54 K/9 from 6.50), Duris finished with a 5.54 ERA, though with a .310 BABIP, he may have been slightly unlucky.
France’s right-hander tossed a brilliant start on March 12, striking out 10 in 5.1 shutout innings, permitting Pittsburgh-Bradford only one hit and three walks. An April 10 game against Ursinus resulted in similar dominance as he struck out 10 in 7.2, scattering three hits and two walks with an unearned run.
Luke Dvorak, RHP (SO, Holy Cross University [22-32], Mass.) [Bio]
Ireland ‘signed’ this talented right-hander for the European B-Level Championship after a season in which he earned First Team All-Patriot League honours as a sophomore. Dvorak tossed 75.1 inning and struck out 83, while batters hit .238 against him with 34 walks.
We return tomorrow with players E-J. Previous installments:
Introduction [link]
Players A-B [link]
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