(Story by Marco Stoovelaar)
 Four close games in Dutch big league-season on sunny Saturday
Nederlands
    BUSSUM / ROTTERDAM / HEEMSTEDE / HOOFDDORP (Neth.) -
For the first time, after some cold and rainy 'exhibition-weeks', on Saturday (April 13), we had a really fine and sunny day to play baseball with temperatures reaching 20 degrees Celsius (68 F) on what was the first of two Opening Days in this Opening Weekend of the Dutch big league.
The highest league went underway on Thursday-evening (April 11) with some high-scoring games.
Today, the scores were much closer, three games finished with an one-run difference, the fourth had a 2-run difference.
One game ended with a come-from-behind victory, but in fact, all four games could have ended with a come-from-behind win.
In Bussum, HCAW appeared to have a comfortable 8-0 lead after three innings against Amsterdam Pirates.
However, the team really needed two insurance runs in the seventh inning, as Pirates came back and scored nine runs in the final three at bats.
HCAW won 10-9 on 16 basehits, including three by Brendly Martina, Delano Selassa and Shurman Marlin.
Pirates recorded eight basehits.
Marlin (first inning) and Martina (third) contributed with a 2-run single.
In the top of the 7th, Pirates scored its first two runs on a single by Tommy van de Sanden.
After HCAW had answered with two (important) runs, Pirates rallied for four runs in the 8th on three singles and a sac-fly.
Pirates narrowed the deficit to 10-9 by scoring three runs in the ninth, highlighted by a 2-run single by Alex Madera.
But that was to be it.
In Rotterdam, it was Oosterhout Twins that almost turned a deficit into a win against Curaçao Neptunus.
After six innings, Neptunus led 5-0, highlighted by an RBI-double by Arthur Bonevacia (1st inning), RBI-triple by German Vincent Ahrens (4th inning) and 2-run single by Jesse Aussems (6th inning).
Twins then rallied for four runs in the seventh on a basesloaded walk for Luuk Visser, 2-run double by Terrence Garcia and a wild pitch.
Neptunus immediately took some more distance by scoring twice in the bottom of the seventh.
Twins was able to add a run in the eighth and ninth inning, but ended up short, losing 7-6.
In Heemstede, it was UVV that came close in turning the game around in its favor.
Instead, the team lost 6-5 against RCH-Pinguïns.
UVV initially led 2-0, but RCH-Pinguïns came alongside, then took the lead in the fifth when Aldrich Guzman hit his second homerun of the season.
This time, UVV tied the score, thanks to a lead-off homerun by (former RCH-Pinguïns player) Geoffrey Verhoef in the sixth.
RCH-Pinguïns came back again and scored twice in its sixth to take a 5-3 lead.
UVV was able to score again in the sixth on a single by Thijs Helms, but the team left three runners behind.
A single by Jordy Burger made it a 5-5 score in the eighth.
In the bottom of the eighth, RCH-Pinguïns re-took the lead on a double by Nathan Berkel.
UVV then got runners on second and third base with two outs in the top of the ninth. but they were left behind.
In Hoofddorp, DSS/Kinheim was the lone team that indeed successfully turned the game around in its favor against Worldwide Pharma Logistics Hoofddorp Pioniers and won 9-7.
Pioniers rallied for four runs in the bottom of the third, which began with a basesloaded walk for rookie Raff Diters.
Hereafter, Luca van Gorkum (who was 4-for-5) delivered a 2-run single and a run was scored on a force play-grounder by Duncan Beljaards.
DSS/Kinheim got two runs back in the fourth via a 2-run double by Marcel Tolenaars, but Pioniers added three more runs in its fourth at bat.
A balk and two sacrifice flies then lifted the lead to 7-2.
But it was not enough.
Pioniers was kept scoreless by reliever Mike Groen (who threw six fine innings) and DSS/Kinheim came back with two runs in the fifth on an error and RBI-single by Ibrahin Redan, who was 2-for-2, walked twice, scored twice and batted in a run.
In the top of the seventh, DSS/Kinheim scored another run on a hit batter, but also left three runners behind.
The turnaround came in the top of the ninth when DSS/Kinheim scored four runs without recording a basehit.
The bases got loaded via two hit batters and a walk.
A sacrifice fly led to a run, as did a throwing error following a stolen base, which tied the score at 7-7.
After another hit batter, a pitching change followed, but two wild pitches then led to two more runs and put DSS/Kinheim ahead, 9-7.
In the bottom of the ninth, Robyn Clara closed for the Haarlem-team and earned a save.
More detailed and expanded recaps will be added later.
(April 13)
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Opening Weekend 2024 Season.
