(Story by Marco Stoovelaar; Photo by Henk Seppen)
 Michael Crouwel to coach DSS/Kinheim-combination in big league
Nederlands
 HAARLEM (Neth.) -
Michael Crouwel will be the Head Coach of the DSS/Kinheim-combination in next years big league.
This season, Crouwel led the team of Kinheim in the second highest league ('Overgangsklasse').
Early September, DSS and Kinheim announced that representatives of both both clubs have had a talk with each other to discuss wether the possibility for a cooperation between the two clubs can be studied.
...Michael Crouwel will lead the main-squad of DSS/Kinheim...
(© Photo: Henk Seppen) |
This season, DSS finished in seventh place in the big league with a 13-29 record.
After the regular season, DSS was swept 3-0 in the best-of-five Play-Downs against Twins Oosterhout.
In the following Play-Downs Final Series, the team met Silicon Storks, which had lost its Play-Down against Quick Amersfoort (3-2).
DSS lost the best-of-five against Storks, 3-1.
With that, (a month later) DSS had to play in the best-of-five Promotion/Relegation Series and faced Kinheim, which finished in first place in the 'Overgangsklasse'.
Last month, DSS won the Series 3-2 to stay in the highest league.
Three weeks ago, DSS and Kinheim held a simultaneous meeting with its club-members to discuss the cooperation.
Coming season, a team will play in the highest league under the name of DSS/Kinheim.
This will be spot secured by DSS.
In the 'Overgangsklasse', the spot of Kinheim will be filled in by DSS/Kinheim-2.
Michael Crouwel will lead the main-squad next season.
Dave Zijlstra, who was his Assistant Coach, will join him.
David Bergman, who served as Pitching Instructor at Kinheim, also will move to the big league-team to become the Pitching Coach.
Al Morales Gomes, who this season was Kinheim's Pitching Coach, as well as being one of the pitchers himself, stepped down as coach.
During the Promotion/Relegation Series, DSS was led by Interim Head Coach Nick Stuifbergen.
He was the third Head Coach of the team this season.
Stuifbergen took over in September from José Baez, who had taken over the coaching in June as the successor of Marco Wels.
Next year, the team in the second highest league will be led by Robert Martin.
Both DSS and Kinheim play at the Pim Mulier Sports Complex in Haarlem.
The baseball-team of Kinheim played its home-games in the Pim Mulier Stadium, while DSS played its games at the neighboring baseball-field.
The softball-fields are also at the same site.
While the two baseball-fields are separated by a small road, the clubhouse of DSS is located behind the centerfield-fence of Kinheim's stadium.
Coming season, the main-squad will play in the Stadium, while the second team will play at the site of DSS.
Kinheim and DSS are two of the oldest existing baseball- and softball-clubs in Haarlem.
Kinheim was founded in 1935, DSS in 1950.
Michael Crouwel became the Head Coach of Kinheim after the 2015 season when he succeeded Wim Martinus.
In 2016, he led the team to the Play-Offs.
In November 2016, Kinheim decided to withdraw its team from the highest league after most players had left.
The team opted to play in the second highest league.
In the following three seasons, Kinheim played in the 'Overgangsklasse', led by Crouwel.
Last year and this season, Kinheim qualified for the Promotion/Relegation Series.
Last year, the team lost vs. Storks, this year vs. DSS.
Before becoming Head Coach of Kinheim, Crouwel was the 3B Coach of the Haarlem-based team in the staff of Wim Martinus, who was named Head Coach in October 2013.
Before that, he had last coached in the big league in 2006 when he was a member of the coaching staff of ADO.
In 2003-2005, Crouwel was one of the coaches at Amsterdam Pirates.
In 2003, he and Ronald Stoovelaar were the Assistant Coaches of Brian Finnegan.
The two then also assisted Paul Nanne, who was the Head Coach of Pirates in 2004 and 2005.
The 2005 staff was expanded with Eelco Jansen as Pitching Coach.
With that, Amsterdam Pirates had an unique coaching staff in 2005, as Nanne, Crouwel, Stoovelaar and Jansen all had participated in an Olympic Games with the Netherlands National Baseball Team.
As a player, Crouwel played in the big league for Amstel Tijgers, Haarlem Nicols, Kinheim and Amsterdam Pirates.
In 1992, he played one season professionally in the organization of the Philadelphia Phillies, playing in Rookie League and Single-A.
(November 15)
Related Articles:
 DSS comes from behind to defeat Kinheim and to stay in big league. (October 13)
DSS and Kinheim discuss possible cooperation. (September 3)
|
