Amongst over 90 British and Irish players to have played in the MLB Danny Cox, Lance Painter and Bobby Thomson are notable. ĭespite relatively low numbers of participation in the United Kingdom, there have been a number players to have played in the MLB. The under 23 team placed fifth at the 2019 European Under 23 Baseball Championship. As of 2020 Great Britain competed internationally at under 12, under 15, under 18, under 23 and senior levels.
In 1938 the Great Britain national baseball team won the Baseball World Cup, and were runners-up in the 19 European Baseball Championship. There are also independent regional leagues, and around 20 universities field teams currently in existence. The sport is governed by the British Baseball Federation, which runs a multi-tier national league.
Baseball is a growing, minor sport in the United Kingdom, with an estimated 3,000 (baseball only) participants in 2011 rising to over 22,000 (combined) softball and baseball participants by 2016.
