(Story by Marco Stoovelaar; Photo by Henk Seppen)
 The curtain has fallen for ADO Lakers
Nederlands
 THE HAGUE (Neth.) -
ADO Lakers is now part of the long and rich baseball-history in the Netherlands.
Unfortunately, the club was terminated today (Saturday, March 7) during a special club-council at its home site in The Hague.
Last month, the club already announced that it was withdrawing its baseball-team from the Dutch big league.
As a majority of its members were not at the club-meeting in February, a decision on the future of the club could not be taken then.
According to the statutes of the club, a new meeting had to be arranged within a month and was scheduled for today.
In the weeks following the meeting of last month, several club-members already decided to change clubs.
Players of the big league-teams also opted to join other teams, as a change was not foreseeable, due to the current difficult financial situation of the club.
ADO was founded on March 23, 1949.
After having played in lower divisions for ten seasons, the baseball-team promoted to a national division in 1958.
Twelve years followed in mostly the Second and First Division, but a highlight came in 1970 when the team, led by Head Coach Leen Volkerijk, were crowned champion of the First Division and promoted to the Dutch big league.
It regelated from the highest division after one season, but returned after one year.
And so, sinds 1971, ADO played in the Dutch big league, except for three years.
Last season, was the 40th for ADO in the highest league.
And unfortunately, also the last.
...Bart Volkerijk (left) congratulates Rob Cordemans...
...(L&D Amsterdam Pirates) after becoming the...
...all-time recordholder in wins in June 2012...
(© Photo: Henk Seppen) |
In the forty big league-years, ADO captured the Dutch championship-title once, in 1992, led by veteran pitcher Bart Volkerijk, who has remained loyal to the club his entire career.
In all its ups and downs, Volkerijk played in 21 seasons for ADO, setting several all-time records, including victories and strikeouts.
The win-record was broken recently, but Volkerijk still holds the all-time strikeout-record.
Other wellknown players of the ADO-history include pitchers Ferry Neuteboom, Jerry Remmerswaal and Patrick Klerx, outfielders Berry Eijgendaal and Erik Volkerijk, first baseman René Nieveld, infielder Lou Halkema and catcher Frank van Rest, amongst may others.
In January 2012, ADO merged with local club Losdun Lakers to become ADO Lakers.
The last few years things didn't went well for the club, as it ended up in the cellar of the league annually, and also encoutering financial problems.
In 2011 and 2013, ADO was able to remain in the highest division by winning the best-of-five Promotion/Relegation Play-Off against Euro Stars and Twins respectively.
Before the start of last season, it also looked as if the team would withdraw, but then the club-members meeting decided to continue playing, so ADO Lakers again played in the big league in 2014.
But today, the curtain fell for the club.
And that was a sad moment for Dutch baseball!
(March 7)
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