(Story by Marco Stoovelaar)
 Starting Pitchers coming series
Nederlands
 AMSTERDAM (Neth.) -
On Thursday-evening (June 30), the season in the Dutch big league will resume.
The season has been interrupted in the past weeks, as the Netherlands National Baseball Team was in Mexico to participate in the WBSC Baseball Final Quaflier.
There, the Orange Team lost to Venezuela and the Dominican Republic and was eliminated for the Olympic Games.
The Dominicans won the event to become the sixth and final country to qualify.
Last week, one 3-game series was played between DSS/Kinheim and Twins Oosterhout.
In that series, Twins won two of the three games to move into second place.
After conclusion of this series, all eight teams in the Dutch big league have now played 18 games.
Also last weekend, HCAW and Quick Amersfoort faced each other in two exhibition games.
HCAW won 6-0 and 6-4.
When the season resumes on Thursday, reigning champion L&D Amsterdam Pirates will have to do without its pitching-ace Tom de Blok.
After conclusion of the Olympic Qualifier, the righthander signed a professional contract with Pericos de Puebla, which plays in the Liga Mexicana de Béisbol.
So far this season, De Blok was the starting pitcher for Pirates the opening games of the 3-game series the team played.
In six games, he was 3-2 with a 1.64 ERA and 45 strikeouts.
On May 13, De Blok threw the fourth Perfect Game in the history of the Dutch big league.
With that, Pirates not only will be shorthanded in its pitching in the remainder of the season, but also during the upcoming European Champions Cup-tournament, which will be played July 13-17 in Ostrava (Czech Republic).
In the upcoming series against Hoofddorp Pioniers, righthander Gio de Graauw will make his first start of the season for Pirates.
Curaçao Neptunus-lefthander Diegomar Markwell gets another chance to record his 1,000th career strikeout.
Markwell needs six strikeouts to reach the milestone.
So far, Markwell has been the Game 1 starter for the team in a 3-game series, but not so this time.
In the opener against Silicon Storks on Thursday, righthander Misja Harcksen will be the starter.
The starters for the two games in the weekend have not yet been announced, which might have to do with the status of righthander Orlando Yntema.
Almost a month ago, he left the mound in a game against L&D Amsterdam Pirates with an injury before the interruption of the season.
Thereafter, he was selected for the Netherlands Team for the Olympic Qualifier and traveled with the team to Mexico.
However, a few days before the tournament, he was replaced as he wasn't fit yet.
The starters for the two games in the weekend were announced on Friday.
Coming Friday and also in the weekend, several exhibition games are scheduled to be played by teams from the First Division.
Their season opens on Friday, July 9.
Due to the measures against the coronavirus, all other leagues, besides the big league, had not started their season yet.
Beneath are the announced starting pitchers for the upcoming series in the big league.
As always, these assignments can change on game-days.
(June 30)
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| Roster | HOOFDDORP PIONIERS (6-12) | vs. |
L&D AMSTERDAM PIRATES (11-6-1) | Roster | Game-info |
| # | Starting Pitchers Pioniers | G | # | Starting Pitchers Pirates |
| Date, Time & Site |
| 36 | RHP Scott Prins (0-1) | 1 | 66 | RHP Naut Kragt (0-1) | Th. July 1, 7:30 PM, Hoofddorp (1) |
| 8 | LHP Ryan Huntington (1-3) | 2 | 45 | RHP Juan Carlos Sulbaran (3-2) | Sa. July 3, 2:00 PM, Amsterdam (2) |
| 7 | RHP John Michael Halley (3-2) | 3 | 31 | RHP Gio de Graauw (1-0) | Su. July 4, 1:00 PM, Hoofddorp (1) |
| (1) - ETO Ballpark, Sportpark Hoofddorp Pioniers, Park21, Hoofddorp; (2) - Loek Loevendie Ballpark, Sportpark 'Ookmeer', Amsterdam |
| Roster | CURAÇAO NEPTUNUS (17-1) | vs. |
SILICON STORKS (4-14) | Roster | Game-info |
| # | Starting Pitchers Neptunus | G | # | Starting Pitchers Storks |
| Date, Time & Site |
| 19 | RHP Misja Harcksen (0-0) | 1 | 25 | RHP Twan Naessens (0-3) | Th. July 1, 7:30 PM, Rotterdam (3) |
| 27 | RHP Kaj Timmermans (4-1) | 2 | | to be announced | Sa. July 3, 2:30 PM, The Hague (2) |
| 35 | LHP Diegomar Markwell (5-0) | 3 | | to be announced | Su. July 4, 2:00 PM, Rotterdam (3) |
| (3) - Neptunus Familiestadion, Sportpark Abraham van Stolkweg, Rotterdam; (4) - Sportpark 'Kijkduin', The Hague |
| Roster | TWINS OOSTERHOUT (13-5) | vs. |
HCAW (12-5-1) | Roster | Game-info |
| # | Starting Pitchers Twins | G | # | Starting Pitchers HCAW |
| Date, Time & Site |
| 8 | RHP Koen Postelmans (1-1) | 1 | 39 | RHP Lars Huijer (3-1) | Th. July 1, 7:30 PM, Bussum (5)(*) |
| 11 | RHP Simon Gross (2-1) | 2 | 45 | LHP Jim Ploeger (1-1) | Sa. July 3, 2:00 PM, Bussum (5) |
| | to be announced | 3 | 7 | RHP Dennis Burgersdijk (5-0) | Su. July 4, 2:00 PM, Oosterhout (6) |
| (5) - Rob Hoffmann Vallei, Sportpark Zanderijweg, Bussum; (6) - Sportpark 'De Slotbosse Toren', Oosterhout |
| (*) - Thursday's home-game of Twins Oosterhout will be played at the site of HCAW in Bussum |
| Roster | DSS/KINHEIM (6-12) | vs. |
QUICK AMERSFOORT (2-16) | Roster | Game-info |
| # | Starting Pitchers Neptunus | G | # | Starting Pitchers Storks |
| Date, Time & Site |
| 3 | RHP Martijn Schoonderwoerd (0-0) | 1 | 14 | RHP Jan-Willem Geerts (1-3) | Th. July 1, 7:30 PM, Haarlem (7) |
| 44 | RHP Tom Stuifbergen (0-2) | 2 | 25 | LHP Maverich Lourens (0-2) | Sa. July 3, 2:00 PM, Amersfoort (8) |
| 12 | RHP Glenn Wassink (2-3) | 3 | | to be announced | Su. July 4, 2:00 PM, Haarlem (7) |
| (7) - Pim Mulier Stadion, Pim Mulier Sportpark, Haarlem; (8) - XL Lease Park 'Dorrestein;, Amersfoort |
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