GROSSETO FIRES MANAGER AFTER 8-15 START

Because baseball is a minor sport in Europe, some people may hold the misbegotten notion that the game is a casual thing there. In fact, it is anything but casual in the more competitive leagues, including Italy’s Serie 1A. Just ask Mario Labastidas.

Labastidas was relieved of his duties as managers of the Montepaschi Grosseto Orioles last week after the O’s won just eight of their first 23 games this season, miring the team in sixth place in the eight-team league. The tipping point was reached last Saturday when Grosseto was shut out in both ends of a doubleheader with league-leading Rimini, 2-0 and 1-0. Rafael Garcia and Chris Di Roma got the wins for Rimini, who now leads Fortitudo Bologna by 1.5 games with a 17-6 record.

Orioles team president Roberto Ferri sacked Labastidas last Monday, replacing him with Paul Minozzi. Winning the Italian league pennant in 2007 has not meant stability in the manager’s office for Grosseto. The team dismissed Mauro Mazzotti midway through last year’s playoffs, with Minozzi named interim manager then, too, before Labastidas was hired in the offseason.