Neptunus played its 1,600th regular season-game in the Dutch big league today.
With that, the Rotterdam-team became the third team in history to have accomplised that.
Since the first Championship-season was played in 1922, only seven teams has played 1,000 or more games in the highest league.
The list is headed by HCAW, which played 1,874 games through today.
Sparta-Feyenoord is in second place with 1,629 games.
Neptunus again had to do today without second baseman Benjamin Dille, who also missed the first two games of the series, due to sickness.
Today, catcher/designated hitter Gianison Boekhoudt also was not with the team, as he also had fallen ill.
With that, Quintin De Cuba became the third catcher used in the series.
In the opener on Thursday, Julian Goins was the starting catcher, but he left the game in the ninth with an injury.
Boekhoudt then took over and also was the catcher on Saturday.
Today, Goins returned to the line-up as the designated hitter.
There also was a change in the umpiring assignments today.
Jos van Eijsden, who was to be the Home Plate Umpire today, got stuck in a traffic jam and because of that arrived late at the site in Amersfoort.
It was then decided that 3B Umpire Stenar van Groningen Schinkel took over behind the plate, while Van Eijsden officiated at third base.
Neptunus opened the score with three runs in the top of the first inning off of Brian van Laar.
The lefthander caught a line drive from lead-off hitter Stijn van der Meer, but then walked Shaldimar Daantji and Dudley Leonora.
After the two had advanced on a passed ball, Dwayne Kemp and Quintin De Cuba delivered runscoring singles.
With runners at the corners, De Cuba stole second base.
When an error was made at second base, Kemp score to make it a 3-0 score.
Quick Amersfoort got one run back in the bottom of the first inning off of starter Misja Harcksen.
Joran Berkhout led off with a double.
With one out, he stole third base, then scored on a following throwing error.
Neptunus got its lead-off batter on base in the second and fourth inning, but both were left behind.
Quick was retired in order in the second and third inning, then narrowed the deficit to 3-2 in the bottom of the fourth.
With two outs, Bryan Engelhardt walked and Taylor Clemensia singled.
Rowan van Hoek followed with a runscoring single, but two runners were left behind.
Neptunus appeared to take some more distance in the top of the sixth, scoring two runs off of reliever Pastor Enrique Martínez Chavez.
He gave up a lead-off infield-hit to Dudley Leonora, who then scored on a following triple by Dwayne Kemp.
With one out, Kemp scored on a single by Julian Goins.
...Dwayne Kemp...
...4-for-5, triple, homerun, 3 runs scored, 5 RBI's...
(© Photo: Henk Seppen) |
But Quick Amersfoort again got back and answered with two runs of its own in the bottom of the sixth.
Rachid Engelhardt led off with a single and scored on a double from his brother Bryan Engelhardt, who ended up on third base.
Taylor Clemensia followed with a runscoring single to make it a 5-4 score and also led to a pitching change, as Berry van Driel took over.
He saw Clemensia advanced on a sacrifice bunt, but then retired the next two batters.
Neptunus then decided the game by scoring three runs in the top of the seventh inning, which began with an unscheduled pitching change.
With Jochem Koedijk in the batter's box, Pastor Enrique Martínez Chavez got to a 2-0 count, but then sustained some kind of injury.
The righthander was unable to continue and left the field hopping with his leg.
Jasper Popken took over from Martínez and completed the at bat of Koedijk, who walked.
The walk was credited to Martínez.
Koedijk moved on a sacrifice bunt by Stijn van der Meer and with two outs, Dudley Leonora delivered a runscoring single.
Next batter Dwayne Kemp homered to make it an 8-4 score.
Quick Amerfoort scored one more run in the eighth inning off of closer Kevin Kelly.
With one out, Bryan Engelhardt singled into short right-centerfield, where the ball dropped between the centerfielder, rightfielder and second baseman.
Engelhardt advanced to third base on a wild pitch, then scored on another wild pitch, which also led to a walk for Taylor Clemensia.
On the wild pitch, Neptunus-catcher Quintin De Cuba slipped, but he was able to stay in the game.
Otherwise, Neptunus would have to insert a fourth different catcher in this series, which would have been back-up player and bullpen-catcher Joel Hernandez.
Hereafter, Kelly closed with two strikeouts.
In the top of the ninth, Neptunus also scored another run.
With one out, Shaldimar Daantji doubled and scored on a 2-out single by Dwayne Kemp, who was 4-for-5.
The third baseman only missed the double to hit for-the-cycle.
He scored three runs and batted in five and was responsible for seven of the nine runs Neptunus scored today.
In the bottom of the ninth, Jordy Burger led off for Quick with a walk.
With one out, an error was made on a force play-grounder by Joran Berkhout.
But the two runners were left behind, as a strikeout and foul-out ended the game.
|
Neptunus wins, but has hands full in 1600th game
AMERSFOORT (Neth.) -
Curaçao Neptunus won 9-5 on Sunday (Mary 5) to complete its series against Quick Amersfoort, but it didn't come easy.
For Neptunus, this was its 1,600th regular season-game at the big league-level.
Neptunus plays its 1,600th regular season-game in the Dutch big league.