(Story by Marco Stoovelaar; Photos by Harrisburg Senators & Dayton Dragons)
 Carter Kieboom hits two homeruns; Hendrik Clementina makes debut
Nederlands
    WEST PALM BEACH / FORT MYERS / KISSIMMEE, Florida / MESA, Arizona (USA) -
Carter Kieboom has had another productive day playing for Washington Nationals.
On Tuesday (March 12), the non-roster player hit two homeruns in a Spring Training-game against Houston Astros.
And Kieboom hit both homeruns off of Cy Young Award-winner Justin Verlander.
Curaçao-born catcher Hendrik Clementina played in his first game for Cincinnati Reds on Tuesday and scored a run.
Ozzie Albies, Ray-Patrick Didder (both Atlanta Braves) and Xander Bogaerts also played on Tuesday.
Five games had to be cancelled due to rain.
On Monday (March 11), three Dutch players came into action.
Jonathan Schoop struckout twice for Minnesota Twins in a 3-0 loss against Detroit Tigers.
Jurickson Profar was 1-for-3 and scored once for Oakland Athletics in a 6-3 loss against Colorado Rockies.
Ray-Patrick Didder was 0-for-1 as a pinch-hitter/designated hitter for Atlanta Braves in a 6-2 win against Pittsburgh Pirates.
At FITTEAM Ballpark of the Palm Beaches in West Palm Beach (Florida), Washington Nationals played at home and won 5-3 against Houston Astros.
Carter Kieboom started as second baseman for Washington and was 2-for-2, both homeruns.
He batted in three runs and also walked.
Trailing 1-0, Yan Gomes led off the bottom of the second inning for Washington with a single.
After Andrew Stevenson had lined out to rightfield, Carter Kieboom was the next batter and he hit a line drive, 2-run homerun over the fence in left-centerfield to put Washington ahead.
Kieboom hit the homerun off of veteran starter Justin Verlander, who last year won the Cy Young Award in the American League.
...Carter Kieboom...
...2 homeruns...
(© Photo:
Harrisburg Senators) |
Houston came alongside in the third inning, but in the bottom of the fourth, Kieboom again gave his team the lead.
With one out, Kieboom hit his second homerun in the game, again off of Verlander, to make it a 3-2 score.
It was to be the game-winning RBI, as Washington stayed ahead in the remainder of the game.
In the past five seasons, only two players homered twice off of Verlander in a Major League-game, both times last year.
Washington added a run in the fifth when Taylor Gushue led off with a homerun.
In the bottom of the sixth, Washington got a big opportunity to add some more runs, as it got the bases loaded with no outs.
Gomes led off with a walk, Stevenson singled and Kieboom also walked.
However, a flyout followed and then the next two batters struckout.
In the top of the seventh, Kieboom made a fielding error on a force play-grounder, which led to Houston's third run.
Washington added an insurance run in its seventh on a passed ball.
Kieboom was replaced in the top of the eighth.
So far, the 21-year old Carter Kieboom is having a good Spring Training as the number two prospect in the Washington-organization.
In fourteen games, he is hitting 8-for-22 (.364), including three doubles and three homeruns.
He scored six runs and batted in eight.
Besides that, he walked five times and struckout only twice.
With his three homeruns, Kieboom leads Washington.
He shared first place in runs batted in with third baseman Brandon Snyder.
Kieboom is third-best in the team in basehits and runs scored and is the fourth-best hitter.
With that, he becomes a serious candidate to make his Major League-debut this year.
And maybe even make the 25-man roster when the season opens.
His brother Spencer Kieboom has played in nine games so far, hitting 3-for-12 (.250).
The catcher made his Major League-debut in 2016 playing in one game for Washington.
Last year, he was added to the roster in May and went on to play in 52 games.
He batted .232 (29-for-125) with five doubles and two homeruns, scored 16 runs and batted in 13.
...Hendrik Clementina...
...debut...
(© Photo:
Dayton Dragons) |
At Sloan Park in Mesa (Arizona), Cincinnati Reds visited Chicago Cubs and won 12-3.
In the bottom of the fifth inning, Hendrik Clementina entered the game as catcher, taking over from Curt Casali.
He scored a run and walked.
Clementina, wearing uniform number 24, got his first plate appearance in the top of the sixth.
With one out and Phillip Ervin (error) on first base, Clementina walked.
They both scored when Connor Joe followed with a homerun.
In the top of the eighth, with two outs and runners on second and third base, Clementina got his next at bat.
The 21-year old catcher hit a line drive into rightfield, but the ball was caught by rightfielder Mark Zagunis.
For Clementina, this was his debut in a Major League Spring Training-game.
Earlier, he was added to the team for one of the first games, but then didn't play.
Last year, he also was added for a game, but then also didn't get into action.
At jetBlue Park at Fenway South in Fort Myers (Florida), Boston Red Sox lost 4-3 at home against Detroit Tigers.
Boston's starting short stop Xander Bogaerts was 0-for-2 with a walk.
Bogaerts grounded out in the first inning.
With two outs and a runner on first base in the third, he walked, but a pop-fly then ended the inning.
Bogaerts popped out in the sixth, then was replaced in the top of the seventh.
At Champion Stadium at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in the Walt Disney World Resort in Kissimmee (Florida), Atlanta Braves played at home and recorded a 5-0 shutout-win against St. Louis Cardinals.
Ozzie Albies was the starting second baseman for Atlanta and was 0-for-2, but he batted in a run with a sacrifice fly.
Albies struckout in the second inning and grounded out in the fourth.
In the sixth inning, Atlanta added two runs.
The first was scored on a single by Ronald Acuña.
His pinch-runner Izzy Wilson later scored on a sacrifice fly by Albies, which lifted the lead to 5-0.
Albies was replaced in the top of the seventh.
Ray-Patrick Didder also played again for Atlanta.
With one out in the bottom of the eighth, he entered the game as pinch-runner for Charlie Culberson, who had singled.
With two outs, the inning ended when Didder was caught stealing at second base.
Didder stayed in the game as short stop.
(March 12)
Related Articles:
 Curaçao OF Shean Michel in Spring Training; 3 Dutch doubles. (March 10)
Carter Kieboom hits first Spring Training-homerun. (March 9)
Didder homers and scores winning run for Atlanta. (March 8)
Profar, Bogaerts, Schoop hit basehits. (March 7)
Basehits for Ozzie Albies and Ray-Patrick Didder. (March 6)
Jurickson Profar delivers deciding basehit for Oakland. (March 5)
Czech Martin Červenka homers in Spring Training. (March 4)
Schoop homers; Jansen winner in first appearance. (March 3)
Bogaerts homers; Kieboom-brothers hit doubles. (March 2)
Productive day (homerun) for Jurickson Profar. (March 1)
Ozzie Albies & Xander Bogaerts both hit two basehits. (February 28)
Carter Kieboom hits another Spring Training-basehit. (February 27)
Didder & Profar lone two Dutch players to play on Tuesday. (February 26)
Four Dutch players in one game; Czech makes Spring Training-debut. (February 25)
Basehits for Albies, Profar & Kieboom. (February 24)
Two more Dutch players in Spring Training; Kieboom HRs. (February 23)
Jurickson Profar first Dutch MLB-player to get into action. (February 21)
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