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At LLWS, Italy is on top of the world
- Updated: August 19, 2016
Sixteen teams participate in the Little League World Series each summer: half from the United States and half from eight regions around the world. Marco Bortolotti, the manager of the Europe-Africa Region Champions from Italy, sees quite the comparison.
“Williamsport,” he said, “is a little World Baseball Classic.”
And while soccer certainly reigns supreme in Italy, the Emilia Little Leaguers — and their professional counterparts in the WBC — are doing their part to make that reality far less certain.
“All baseball fans in Italy follow World Baseball Classic,” Bortolotti said. “It’s important for growing the game. [And] it’s an honor for us representing Italy.”
Emilia Little League from Emilia-Romagna, a region in Northern Italy between Florence and Milan, is participating in the LLWS for the second time in tournament history, and for the second time, they’ve brought one of the Bortolotti boys with them. Manager Marco is in Williamsport this year, but it was his brother, Luca, who preceded him, as a pitcher and catcher for the Emilia team …
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