 Neptunus captures 1st place and qualifies for EC
Nederlands
 ROTTERDAM (Neth.) -
DOOR Neptunus came from behind to win 4-3 in the last inning vs. L&D Amsterdam Pirates on Thursday-evening to secure first place and qualify for next years European Cup Tournament.
With the win, Neptunus also secured home advantage in the 9-game Play-Offs, which open next Thursday.
Amsterdam initially led 2-0, while Neptunus was silenced by Rob Cordemans.
Neptunus came alongside in the seventh inning, but Amsterdam re-took the lead in the eighth at bat.
In the bottom of the ninth, Amsterdam committed three errors, leading to two runs and the loss.
With the loss of Amsterdam, Corendon Kinheim and Vaessen Pioniers both still have a chance of finishing in second place, which gives a home advantage in the Play-Offs.
Kinheim shutout ADO Lakers 7-0, while Pioniers downed UVV 5-0.
Kinheim now is only one point (half game) behind Amsterdam, while Pioniers trails Pirates by two points (one game).
Mampaey The Hawks won 7-6 at Mr. Cocker HCAW.
DOOR Neptunus vs. L&D Amsterdam Pirates
At Rotterdam, Amsterdam opened the score with two runs off of starter Diegomar Markwell in the fourth inning.
Kenny Berkenbosch led off with a single, then the bases got loaded when Markwell made a throwing error on a force play-grounder by Bas de Jong and Percy Isenia followed with another single.
Next, Wesley Connor also singled to bring in Berkenbosch.
The second run was then scored when Bas Nooij grounded into a double play.
Markwell then struckout Kevin Weijgertse, but faced a 2-0 deficit.
In the meantime, veteran Rob Cordemans silenced the Neptunian offense.
With two outs in the first inning, the righthander gave up a double to Raily Legito, but then 16 of the next 17 batters.
Cordemans retired the side in the second, third, fifth and sixth inning.
And so, Amsterdam appeared the en route to a victory in the opening game of the 3-game series against Neptunus.
But in the bottom of the seventh inning, Neptunus suddenly good better contact off of Cordemans.
Raily Legito and Dwayne Kemp singled, then advanced on a sacrifice bunt by Rafaël Jozefa.
The bases then got loaded when Gyenuar Lopez walked.
Amsterdam appeared to escape the inning unharmed when Cordemans struckout next batter Rudy Van Heydoorn, but then Adrian Anthony followed with a double that tied the score.
Kevin Heijstek took over the pitching, ended the inning with a flyout, but it now as a new ballgame with a 2-2 score.
Amsterdam immediately re-took the lead in the eighth inning .
Michael Duursma led off with a walk and Kenny Berkenbosch followed with a bunt-single.
Hereafter, Bas de Jong grounded into a double play, which also eliminated lead-runner Duursma.
With Berkenbosch now on second base, Markwell was relieved, who therefore lost his final opportunity of the season to become a 10-game winner (or he eventually must win in relief in the weekend).
Brendan Wise took over, but the Australian was greeted with a single by Percy Isenia that gave Amsterdam a 3-2 lead.
In the bottom of the eighth, Heijstek retired the side, then Amsterdam got a chance of adding an insurance run in the top of the ninth, but instead left the bases loaded.
With two outs, Rashid Gerard and Roelie Henrique singled, then Michael Duursma reached on an error.
However, the inning ended when Berkenbosch fouled out on the next delivery.
Trailing 3-2 in the bottom of the ninth inning, Neptunus turned the game around, scoring two runs as the Amsterdam-defense committed three errors.
Jurrian Koks became the new pitcher for Pirates and gave up a lead-off single to Dwayne Kemp.
Next, Koks made a throwing error on a sacrifice bunt by Rafaël Jozefa, which moved Kemp to third base.
Daniel Fernandes took over for Jozefa as pinch-runner and he reached second base safely when short stop Michael Duursma made an error on a force play-grounder by Gyenuar Lopez, which enabled Kemp to score the tying run.
And so, it now was 3-3 with runners on first and second base and still no outs.
Rudy Van Heydoorn then drove the ball into centerfield where Roelie Henrique made an error on the third consecutive play to make an out.
Fernandes was able to score on this error and so Neptunus, which was outhit 10-5, won 4-3 to claim first place in the regular season.
And secure participation in next years European Cup Tournament, as well as home advantage in the upcoming Play-Offs.
ADO Lakers vs. Corendon Kinheim
At The Hague, Corendon Kinheim led only 3-0, before rallying for four runs in the ninth at bat to make it a 7-0 score.
Kinheim opened the score with a run in the second inning when Jeffrey Arends led off with a double, moved on a grounder by Quintin De Cuba and scored on a sac-fly by Roy Seltenrijch.
Kinheim then left the bases loaded in the fourth inning, but added two runs in the fifth at bat.
Remco Draijer led off with a single, then scored all the way from first base when René Cremer followed with a single into left-centerfield.
Cremer then stole second base and moved to third on a grounder by Dirk van 't Klooster.
Next batter Mervin Gario then walked, leading to a pitching change.
Bryan Engelhardt followed with a sacrifice fly to bring in Cremer and make it 3-0.
Kinheim increased the lead to 7-0 with a 4-run rally in the ninth inning.
With one out, the first two runs were scored on a double by Van 't Klooster, who later scored himself on a wild pitch.
A single by Arends accounted for the fourth run in the at bat.
David Bergman went the distance for Kinheim, his first complete game of the season.
The righthander struckout 14 batters and gave up only four basehits.
Only three players of ADO Lakers reached second base in the game.
With the win, Bergman lifted his record to 9-2 and now leads the league with 103 strikeouts.
UVV vs. Vaessen Pioniers
At Vleuten, Vaessen Pioniers held UVV scoreless, but scored only five runs on 16 basehits.
Phil Ortez and Michael Pluijmers both had three basehits.
Pioniers scored a run in the second, third and fourth inning.
In the second at bat, Mark-Jan Moorman led off with a double and scored on a single by Pluijmers.
The next run was added in the third when Vince Rooi hit an one-out homerun.
Kevin Dirksen led off the fourth at bat with a homerun to make it 3-0.
In the sixth inning, Pioniers scored another run.
Dè Flanegin led off with a single and was replaced by Djewi Appelman as pinch-runner, who then scored on a force play-grounder by Zerzinho Croes.
But Pioniers also left the bases loaded in this at bat.
After leaving two more runners in the seventh, Pioniers scored another run in the eighth.
Croes led off with a single, but was thrown out at second base trying to stretch it into a double.
Next, with two outs, Danny Rombley was hit by a pitch and went on to score on a single by Skip Visser.
UVV hit only three basehits off of starter Josh Rickards, then added only two more in the remainder of the game.
UVV reached third base only twice, both via a triple.
In the first inning, Norbert Jongerius led off with a triple.
Hereafter, Rickards struckout next batters Daan Cornelissen and Dennis De Quint, but then catcher Mark Duursma had to be replaced.
Earlier this week, Jongerius received an invitation for attending the series of instructional practices of the Dutch National Baseball Team in the upcoming weeks.
In the seventh inning, De Quint triples with two outs, but also stranded.
On Wednesday, UVV-pitcher Jerremyh Angela left the team, as he traveled to Phoenix (Arizona) to play for a Junior College.
Ian Delemarre and Oscar Meuris, two other pitchers, will leave late September.
Delemarre will play for St. Augustine University in North Carolina, while Meuris will play for a Junior College in Texas.
Outfielder Jordan Illis returns to the USA to play again for Carl Albert State College, a Junior College in Oklahoma.
Mr. Cocker HCAW vs. Mampaey The Hawks
At Bussum, Mampaey The Hawks defeated Mr. Cocker HCAW 7-6 to register its third win in the last four games.
For The Hawks, which makes its big league-debut this season, this was their tenth victory of the year.
The Hawks led comfortably 6-2 in the third inning, but then added only one more run in the remainder of the game, while HCAW came back, but ended up one run short.
In the first inning, Urving Kemp led off with a double and scored on a sacrifice fly by Steven Wharwood, but HCAW answered with two runs.
With two outs, Sergino Martis and Jesus Latte singled, then the first run was scored when Jim Froberg also singled.
Hereafter, Jelle Blaauw singled in his first-ever big league at bat to bring in the next run.
Blaauw, who played at third base, went 2-for-3 in his big league-debut.
In the third inning, The Hawks rallied for five runs to take a 6-2 lead.
With one out, the bases got loaded when Joris Naber and Berend Ruben were hit by a pitch and Urving Kemp doubled in between.
Next, Steven Wharwood singled to bring in two runs, then Berry van Donselaar hit a 3-run homerun, making in 6-2.
HCAW got a run back in the home of the third on a single by Latte, but also left the bases loaded.
Both teams scored a run in the sixth inning.
The Hawks on a single by Ruben, HCAW on a sac-fly by Joris van Amstel.
HCAW narrowed the deficit to 7-6 in the seventh inning on four hits, including an RBI-single by Max Clarijs, followed by a sac-fly by Tim Vermij.
HCAW also left two runners and then was retired in order in the eighth inning, which was the last due to the 10:30 PM curfew-rule.
(August 15)
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