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(Story by Marco Stoovelaar; Photos by Janneke Louisa-van der Ploeg & Robert Bos) Pilot-Pool: Twins Oosterhout wins rainy double-header at Sparks Haarlem Nederlands HAARLEM (Neth.) - Sparks Haarlem and the second team of Twins Oosterhout played a double-header on a rainy Sunday-afternoon (September 25) in the Major League/First Division Pilot-Pool. After Saturday's game in Oosterhout was cancelled due to field-conditions because of rain, it was decided to re-schedule that game for today in Haarlem as second game of a double-header. Today's originally scheduled make-up game was moved up to start at 12 PM instead on 2 PM. It was also decided that both games of the double-header would be 7-inning games instead of playing nine innings. Twins Oosterhout won both games and finished in fourth place in this new Pool, while Sparks Haarlem finished in sixth place. In the first game, the visiting Twins-team led 4-0 when it was halted after completion of the top of the fifth inning due to heavy rain and field-conditions. The game didn't resume thereafter and Twins-pitcher Jan van den Hurk threw a 4-inning Perfect Game. The game was declared valid, but according to the rules, five complete innings are needed to be played when the visiting team is leading. Four-and-a-half inning is enough when the home-team has the lead (or when the home-team takes the lead in the bottom of the fifth). These rules also apply to 7-inning games in both baseball and softball. After a lot of hard work by the Sparks-team, the field was made playable again for the second game, which started some two hours later. In that game, Twins was the home-team and this time won with a 3-0 score. Both games were originally scheduled for last weekend, but then were cancelled due to rain and field-conditions. The games were then tentatively re-scheduled to be played last Tuesday- and Thursday-evening. But on Monday, due to travel-time between the two sites in the evening, it was decided to move the two games to this weekend. On the other site of the complex, the women's softball-team of Sparks Haarlem had a make-up double-header scheduled against Tex Town Tigers. Due to the rain, the first game was halted with one out in the bottom of the first inning and Sparks leading 1-0. A long rain-delay of more than two hours followed and it was not possible to make the field playable again. With that, the double-header was cancelled for the second time. The games are now re-scheduled for coming Saturday (October 1), which means that the start of the best-of-five Holland Series will be moved up a week and now opens on October 8 instead. Also today, UVV and Quick Amersfoort played their final make-up game of the season, which was cancelled again on Saturday and was re-scheduled for today. Quick won with a 3-1 score to finish in first place in this Pool, which was introduced for the first time this season. (September 25)

Game 1 ...Rob Hendriks led his team to... ...two victories today... (© Photo: Janneke Louisa-van der Ploeg) The first three innings went by quickly, as both starting pitchers did well. Twins Oosterhout then rallied for four runs in the fourth inning and hold onto it until the game was suspended halfway the fifth inning. Sparks-starter Mees de By retired the first eight batters he faced, three of them with a strikeout. With two outs in the top of the third inning, the righthander gave up a single to Thijmen Peters, but closed with another strikeout. But in the top of the fourth inning, Twins was very productive, reached base frequently and rallied for four runs. Esra van den Berg led off with walk and moved to third base when Gijs van Zalingen singled. The bases then got loaded when Jerzy van Gool was hit by a pitch. Van den Berg and Van Zalingen then scored on a following single by Stefan Schoonheydt to put Twins ahead, 2-0. Next, the bases were re-loaded when Bo Kops walked. Mees de By then struckout the next batter to record the first out, but hereafter, he walked Dick van Heesch, which led to the next run. A sacrifice fly by Thijmen Peters then brought in Schoonheydt, which increased the lead to 4-0. Moments later, Twins again got three runners on base when Marnix Ruben also walked. But this time, the runners were left behind, as a pop-fly ended the long at bat. Twins-pitcher Jan van den Hurk encountered no problems. In the four innings he was on the mound, the righthander retired all twelve batters he faced, three of them with a strikeout. Van den Hurk got six flyouts and three groundouts. With that, he was pitching a Perfect Game. In the meantime, it had started to rain, but the fifth inning went underway. Mees de By gave up a lead-off single to Gijs van Zalingen, but he eliminated when next batter Jerzy van Gool grounded into a double play. A grounder by Stefan Schoonheydt ended the at bat. At that moment, halfway the fifth inning and with the visiting team leading, the game was halted due to rain, as the field became unplayable. Apparently, it was then stated that the game could be declared valid and so, it was not resumed. Instead, the field was prepared for the second game.

Sparks Haarlem - Twins Oosterhout-2 0-4 (4½ inn.) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E Twins Oosterhout-2 0 0 0 4 0 - 4 4 0 Sparks Haarlem 0 0 0 0 X - 0 0 0 (game halted after 4½ inning due to rain and field-conditions) pitcher Twins Oosterhout-2 inn. SO BB H R ER Jan van den Hurk, W (2-1) 4 3 - - - - pitcher Sparks Haarlem inn. SO BB H R ER Mees de By, L (0-4) 5 5 4 4 4 4 Standings Scores Schedule Rosters Major League Rosters First Division Umpires: HP-Rob Has, 1B-Aad Otsen. Scorer-Ralph van Gool (Twins Oosterhout-2). Technical Commissioner-None. Starting Time-12:00 PM. Time Played-0:00 hrs. Site-Noordersportpark, Haarlem. Game Notes: Major League/First Division Pilot-Pool. Jan van den Hurk (Twins Oosterhout-2) throws a 4-inning Perfect Game. Game halted halfway the fifth inning due to rain and field-conditions with Twins Oosterhout leading 4-0. It was agreed that both Game 1 and Game 2 of the double-header would be 7-inning games. Game was originally scheduled for Saturday, September 17 in Haarlem, but then was cancelled due to rain and field-conditions. Game was initially re-scheduled for Tuesday, September 20, but on Monday, September 19, the game was moved to today. Game was initially scheduled to start a 2 PM today, but was moved up to 12 PM to become Game 1 of a double-header. Weather conditions at game time: Overcast, rainy, 15° C (59° F); wind direction north; wind speed 10 kmh (6,2 mph); wind force 3 Bft; humidity 68%.

Game 2 After the field had been playable again after the first game had been halted some 1½ hour earlier, the second game also ended in a shutout-victory for the second team of Twins Oosterhout. In this game, Twins scored early and produced nine basehits. After having held hitless in the first game, Sparks now was limited to only three basehits. Twins, which was the home-team in this game, opened the score in the bottom of the first inning with two runs off of starter Rutger Zwaal. Marnix Ruben led off with a single, then scored when two errors were made on a hit by next batter Gijs van Zalingen. With one out, Van Zalingen moved to third base on a grounder by Jerzy van Gool and scored on a single by Berend Ruben. The inning ended with an assist on a line drive out. With Ruben at first base, Ben van Dulken hit a line drive back to Zwaal, who made the initial catch, but he was unable to hold onto it. Third baseman Jesse van de Berg was standing in the neighbourhood and completed the catch. And with that, Zwaal got an assist on this out. ...Berend Ruben... ...2 basehits, 1 RBI... ...on the photo he plays for HCAW in 2021... (© Photo: Robert Bos) Zwaal didn't encounter big problems in the next three innings he threw. After having retired the side in the second, the righthander gave up singles to Marnix Ruben and Gijs van Zalingen in the bottom of the third inning. An attempt for a double steal ended in the elimination at third base of Ruben. In this situation, Van Zalingen reached second base, then moved to third base on a grounder by Thijmen Peters, but was left behind. Twins got another runner in scoring position in the fourth. With one out, Ben van Dulken singled and moved on a grounder by Esra van den Berg, then also was left behind. Twins then added an insurance run in the bottom of the fifth off of new pitcher Menno Soederhuizen. Boris Aerts led off with a single, but he was caught stealing moments later. Marnix Ruben (who was 3-for-3) then followed with a single and scored on a double by next batter Gijs van Zalingen. Two flyouts ended the at bat, but Twins now led 3-0. In the bottom of the sixth, there was one more basehit for Twins. It was veteran player Berend Ruben, who led off with a single, but then was eliminated in a double play. Twins-starter Lucas den Duijn got two runners in scoring position in the four innings he was on the mound. The righthander retired the side in the first inning, then gave up an one-out single to Jerry Zonneveld in the second, but he was eliminated when he tried to stretch it into a double. In the top of the third inning, Sparks Haarlem got into scoring position for the first time. Arno Guntekin led off with a walk and later was awarded second base on a balk, but he stranded on second base. With one out in the fourth, Jesse van de Berg walked and moved when Jerry Zonneveld also walked with two outs. However, the at bat ended when the latter was picked off at first base by Den Duijn. With a 2-0 lead, Thijs Rijpstra took over the pitching for Twins in the top of the fifth inning. In that at bat, he got two baserunners with two outs. First, Siebe van Pelt walked, then Jimmy Osinga singled, which gave Sparks runners at the corners. A grounder ended the at bat. After leaving a runner behind on first base in the sixth inning, Sparks got another runner in scoring position in the top of the seventh. With one out, Mitchell Hetem and Siebe van Pelt both walked. Thijs Rijpstra then struckout the next batter and a pop-fly ended the at bat. And that also ended the game, as it was decided when the double-header was scheduled to play two 7-inning games, instead of 9-inning games. As starting pitcher Lucas den Duijn didn't throw the required five innings (which a starter also has to do in 7-inning games), reliever Thijs Rijpstra was credited with the win.

Twins Oosterhout-2 - Sparks Haarlem 3-0 (6½ inn.) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E Sparks Haarlem 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 - 0 3 2 Twins Oosterhout-2 2 0 0 0 1 0 X - 3 9 1 pitchers Sparks Haarlem inn. SO BB H R ER Rutger Zwaal, L (2-3) 4 2 - 5 2 - Menno Soederhuizen 2 - - 4 1 1 pitchers Twins Oosterhout-2 inn. SO BB H R ER Lucas den Duijn 4 - 2 2 - - Thijs Rijpstra, W (2-3) 3 1 3 1 - - (Rijpstra credited with the win based on Rule 9.17 b) Standings Scores Schedule Rosters Major League Rosters First Division Umpires: HP-Aad Otsen, 1B-Rob Has. Scorer-Ralph van Gool (Twins Oosterhout-2). Technical Commissioner-None. Starting Time-2:30 PM. Time Played-0:00 hrs. Site-Noordersportpark, Haarlem (site Sparks Haarlem). Game Notes: Major League/First Division Pilot-Pool. Game played at the site of Sparks Haarlem in Haarlem. It was agreed that both Game 1 and Game 2 of the double-header would be 7-inning games. Game was originally scheduled for Sunday, September 18 in Oosterhout, but then was cancelled due to rain and field-conditions. Game was initially re-scheduled for Thursday, September 22 in Oosterhout, but on Monday, September 19, the game was moved to Saturday, September 24 in Oosterhout. Game on Saturday, September 24 cancelled due to field-conditions after rain and re-scheduled for today as Game 2 of a double-header in Haarlem following the originally scheduled make-up game. Weather conditions at game time: Partly cloudy, 15° C (59° F); wind direction northwest; wind speed 13 kmh (8,1 mph); wind force 3 Bft; humidity 68%.

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