Pilgrim Nation puts baseball first

Pilgrim Nation with Bart Jan Westerduin, Sherman Garrio (baseball coach) and Paco Bustros Leon. (Photo: Jerry Van Bakel)

The American baseball finale is central to October’s Pilgrim Nation, a show about American sports with a Leiden twist. Our guest was Sherman Jarreau, one of the great names in Dutch baseball history.

This time Pilgrim Nation starts with short news from the world of American sports. Soccer, a less rough-and-tumble version of American football, will become an Olympic sport in 2028, when the Olympics are held in Los Angeles.

Hosts Bart-Jan Westerduin and Paco Bustros-Lyon also discuss women’s basketball champion and French phenom Victor Wimbanyama, who is playing his first NBA game and is literally on top of everyone. It is 2.24 meters long.

Thanks to the indefatigable LeBron James, it’s shaping up to be an interesting season.

The same can’t be said for the NFL. Pilgrim Nation believes the season has yet to shine. The game is conservative and there is little scenery. But there is already initial anticipation for the Superbowl.

In the second half of Pilgrim Nation, all eyes are on baseball’s ultimate finale: the World Series. There are two surprising teams facing each other. Phoenix (Ariz.) vs. Arlington (Texas). The hosts discuss with baseball coach Sherman Jarreau, a European champion with the Dutch Juniors and a Little League World Series participant with the same team, this final series. The result is now known and the Texas Rangers win their first World Series.

Pilgrim Nation’s next broadcast will be Wednesday, November 22 at 6 p.m.

Leiden Sports Pilgrim Nation