Clash at the Coast 2026

21st-22nd March 2026

What a weekend. The Clash at the Coast pre-season tournament went off with a bang and saw the Outlaws rookie players thrown well and truly into the deep end!

A long and wet winter has finally given way to the start of Spring and with it, the excitement for baseball is now in full bloom!

The 2026 Clash at the Coast was designated as a rookie / Division 5 tournament and for us here at the Outlaws that could not have been better. With strong recruitment over the winter months we found ourselves with a 15 person squad ready to take to the field. Of those 15 in the squad, 9 of them were in line to play in their first ever game of baseball, including Sam Klang (who pitched Game 1), Josh Harvey (who pitched Games 2 and 3) and Austin Lister (who took the mound in Game 3). With the remaining 6 boasting just single digit appearances in competitive games.

Indoor training over the past 6 months has kept people fit, but there’s no substitute for actual game time and the energy within the squad was electric from the start. Our first game came against our cross town rivals the Plymouth Mariners, who it’s fair to say gave us a thrashing! Despite the result, there were big moments, with Becky Lacey-Sawyer becoming the first female player to represent the Outlaws in a game, lining up at 2B, and strong defensive work across the field, with Simon Pritchard earning MVP for an outstanding performance at Short Stop.

Game 2 saw us face off against the newest team in the South West, the Exeter Wyverns, the division 5 arm of the Exeter Baseball Club. A much stronger performance from the Outlaws saw game 2 hanging in the balance until the death, but a strong finish from the Wyverns saw them run out winners. Josh Harvey was named MVP for an excellent pitching performance, backing it up by fielding his position well.

Day 2 once again saw us back in action up against the Cornish Pioneers and despite a slow start, the Outlaws were well and truly in the mix for most of the game but unfortunately couldn’t bring home a win. Austin Lister took to the mound in Game 3, supported behind the plate by James ‘Jimmy’ Pollard and Kayden Dechkan, who made their catching debuts across the weekend and both featured again in Game 3. Stu Kellie earned MVP honours for being a rock at 1B and contributing strongly at the plate, with the team also beginning to show more confidence and consistency offensively.

On the surface an 0-3 weekend may not seem like a roaring success, but in truth, whilst it is undoubtedly more fun to win, this weekend was always first and foremost about development. Getting to witness the excitement of people playing in their first ever game, getting their first hit, making their first catch, was incredible, with clear progress visible from Game 1 through to Game 3 and strong foundations now in place for the season ahead. The energy remained high throughout, with players constantly supporting one another and the contribution from support staff on hand making a real difference across all three games.

The Plymouth Outlaws would like to extend a huge thank you to our friends the Plymouth Mariners for hosting an excellent tournament! This weekend has well and truly shown that Plymouth is one of the strongest hubs of baseball, not only in the South West, but the entire UK.

We now look forward to a few more Spring training games against Exeter and Newton Abbot before we kick off the season on the 12th April.