(Story by Marco Stoovelaar; Photos by Jac. de Nijs (Anefo) & Marco Stoovelaar)
IN MEMORIAM
...Gé Oosterbaan...
(1928 - 2019)
(© Photo: Marco Stoovelaar) |
 Former big league and Netherlands Team-outfielder Gé Oosterbaan passed away
Nederlands
 HAARLEM (Neth.) -
Gé Oosterbaan, who was the centerfielder of big league-teams RCH, EHS and ABC, as well as the Netherlands National Baseball Team in the fifties and sixties, passed away on Wednesday, February 20, at the age of 90 after a short illness.
Oosterbaan played in the highest Dutch baseball-league for 18 seasons (1947-1948; 1951-1966) and was named Best All-Rounder of the highest league in 1959.
The memorial service was held privately.
Gerardus (Gé) Oosterbaan was born on November 5, 1928 in Haarlem.
He always enthousiastically told stories about his baseball-career, but also about several travels he made.
In a 1995 interview with Grand Slam * Stats & News-webmaster Marco Stoovelaar, Oosterbaan showed an interesting memorabilia he took with him from a trip to Berlin in Germany.
Oosterbaan: ,,I was in Berlin at the moment the wall was torn down.
At the same moment, American President Ronald Reagan also was there.
I was able to give him a hand and even spoke with him briefly.
He then gave his signature to me''.
Gé Oosterbaan initially started his sporting career in soccer at Schoten in Haarlem.
At the same time, he attended many baseball-games of the same club, where top-players such as Henk Keulemans and Joop Geurts played.
Shortly thereafter, at age 14, Oosterbaan started playing baseball himself.
While playing mainly for the second team of the club, Oosterbaan moved up to the main-squad of Schoten which played in the highest division.
During the 1947 season, playing for Schoten, the talented Oosterbaan made his debut in the First Division, which was the highest Dutch league through 1957.
After the 1948 season, Oosterbaan decided to transfer to RCH, where he became a teammate of Nol Houtkamp, who passed away in February last year.
RCH played in the second highest league in 1949 and 1950, but then played in the highest division from 1951 on.
Oosterbaan, who initially was a first baseman, was a solid contact-hitter and speedy outfielder.
Oosterbaan and Houtkamp were important players for RCH, but after having played for the team for eight seasons (including six in the big league), the two were asked by Gé Hoogenbos to join EHS, which they did after the 1956 season.
EHS merged with EDO after the 1963 season to become Haarlem Nicols.
Oosterbaan then played for Nicols in 1964.
Hereafter, he played two seasons for Amsterdam-based ABC, then ended his playing career at the highest level.
With EHS, Oosterbaan won the Dutch Championship-title in 1959 and 1962.
Looking back to his baseball-career, Oosterbaan said: ,,I've played against Blauw-Wit with players such as Cor Wilders and Piet Altink''.
With that, Oosterbaan referred to the Amsterdam-based club and the two legendary players of Blauw-Wit.
,,In those days, there was a more than sportive connection between the players.
Games between EHS and Sparta were heated, but afterwards, the contact was fine'', Oosterbaan said.
In 1958, Oosterbaan made his debut in the Netherlands National Team during the European Championship, which then was organized in Dutch capital Amsterdam at the site of OVVO.
Amongst his teammates in the Orange Team during this successful Championship were Nico Brands, Joop Geurts, Nol Houtkamp, Henk Keulemans (playing head coach), Leo Kops, Piet de Nieuwe, Ben Tromp, Nico Tromp, Han Urbanus, Dolf de Zwart and Jan Smidt, who passed away in early January.
...The Championship-team of EHS in 1962...
...Gé Oosterbaan is standing in the back row, fourth from right...
(© Photo: Jac. de Nijs, Anefo) |
Oosterbaan: ,,All players slept at home, we only got dinners together and before the games, Otto Sterman told special stories to strengthen us''.
Sterman, who was a great story-teller and elocutionist, not only was the trainer of the Netherlands Team in those years, he also was a wellknown actor.
Sterman started acting in 1935 and became the first colored actor who got a successful acting career in the Netherlands.
He acted in stage plays, on radio, TV and in some movies.
From 1935 through 1947, Sterman combined his acting with his work as a physical education teacher and masseur.
And he played baseball for Quick Amsterdam and ABC.
Sterman, who passed away in 1997, continued acting through 1995.
In the first game of the Championship in Amsterdam against Italy, the Netherlands won 6-5 in twelve innings.
Oosterbaan played a major role.
In the top of the twelfth, Italian legend Giulio Glorioso drove the ball into deep centerfield.
There, Oosterbaan ran backwards, fell against the fence, but moved his arm forward and caught the ball to end the inning.
Moments later, the Orange-squad won.
Later, the team also captured the European title and Oosterbaan was named to the European All Star Team.
Gé Oosterbaan also played for the Netherlands Team in 1959 and 1960.
In total, the outfielder played in eleven official international games.
He made a less fortunate catch while playing in a game for EHS.
Oosterbaan: ,,Jules de Pierre played in leftfield, I was in centerfield and Nol Houtkamp was the rightfielder.
At one moment, the ball was hit into my direction and someone yelled that I was 'your catch'.
I dove and caught the ball.
I got a standing ovation, but at the same time, I had broken my collarbone''.
Afterwards, the fracture was not handed correctly, which gave him a big bump at the front of his right shoulder for the rest of his life.
,,But I had caught the ball and that was the most important thing'', Oosterbaan said.
In 1959, Oosterbaan led the highest Dutch league in Runs Scored (16) and won the Award for Best All-Rounder.
This trophy was introduced in 1953.
Oosterbaan was the seventh player to win the Award and the first of EHS.
He also was the last, as the name was changed to Most Valuable Player the next year.
In the same period, the early sixties, Gé Oosterbaan also was a talented soccer-player, playing for the team of Zandvoortmeeuwen (located in Zandvoort), which then played in the Second Division West of the so-called Sunday-competition.
Looking back to his playing days, Oosterbaan said in the 1995 interview:
,,I don't know, but it appears to me that we did more for the sport back then.
After our working day, we went to the field, took something to eat and started playing.
Nowadays, the players are pampered.
Of course, baseball has improved a lot since then and more is done to get better, but we had a lot of fun in our days''.
...Gé Oosterbaan with other former players of the...
... Netherlands Team-players at a reunion during the...
...2014 Haarlem Baseball Week...
...Surrounding him from left are Flip le Cuivre, Sidney...
...Hickinson, Harry van der Vaart, Franklin Victor (umpire)...
...Bart Volkerijk, Jan Smidt, Steve Matthew (coach),...
...Michael Crouwel and Boudewijn Maat...
(© Photo: Marco Stoovelaar) |
After he had retired as a player in 1967, Oosterbaan stayed in baseball and turned to coaching.
The former outfielder started his coaching career with Giants Diemen, whom he led to promotion to the highest league.
Hereafter, he coached the baseball-teams of Thamen and HBC '64.
This last club played at a regional level, but the team promoted to a national dvision under Oosterbaan's guidance.
In 1971, Oosterbaan coached the women softball-team of Onze Gezellen.
In September 1971, Oosterbaan was named the new Head Coach for 1972 of Rotterdam-based Sparta, which then was one of the top-teams in the Dutch big league.
The appointment of Oosterbaan was unique, as the it was the first time that a Head Coach was named from outside the club.
The team was led for 15 seasons by John Heijt, then the next four years by Henk Hendriks.
However, the preparations for the 1972 season didn't went well, due to a difference of insight with the group of players.
Before the start of the season, Oosterbaan asked to relief him of his acting duties and Hendriks returned as coach.
In later years, Oosterbaan coached in the Haarlem-area, which he continued to do so through the nineties.
But he also was an baseball umpire commissioner, writing game-reports of umpires between 1980-1987 and was a member of the protest committee baseball in 1982-1992.
Through the years, Oosterbaan visited the bi-annual Haarlem Baseball Week daily and always attended the reunion of former National Team-players, as well as the get-togethers of Alumni-organization 'De Kieviten'.
After recovering from a severe illness in 1982, Oosterbaan continued his coaching activities in baseball.
He stayed a frequent visitor of baseball-games in Haarlem and loved it.
Oosterbaan: ,,I remained baseball-crazy.
Baseball just is the most ideal sport''.
The webmaster of Grand Slam * Stats & News offers his condolences to the family of Gé and wishes them a lot of strength with this loss.
(February 26)
Related Articles:
 Former Dutch Team-player, pitching-legend Jan Smidt passed away. (January 7, 2019)
Ex-Netherlands Team-player; Iconic softball-coach Nol Houtkamp passed away. (February 22, 2018)
|
