DPBL,professional baseball in the Netherlands

[Hageneezz]

I am starting a new dynasty,because of the technical problems at ootp. Also,i have changed some things in the DPBL. So here goes:

PROLOGUE

As most people know,football (or soccer) has always been the number one sport in The Netherlands. Tough not as popular as football,baseball is one of the more important sports here. A major event that took place in 2004 let to the creation of the new all professional DPBL. In 2004,the broadcast rights for soccer were purchased by a commercial television network named Talpa,their bid was way to high for the public network the NOS. So soccer was no longer shown on public television,which was a major loss for the NOS. Many people were very dissapointed,because they now had to pay to watch soccer on the television.

A group of wealthy baseball fans with connections in big Dutch companies such as the Rabobank and Telfort saw this as a big opportunity to boost baseball in The Netherlands and to create a professional baseball league. They contacted the NOS and explained their plans to them. The idea was to form a professional baseball league,which consisted of 16 teams,representing 16 different cities. They will be divided over 2 leagues,the Liga Oost(Eastern League) and the Liga West(Western League),each league has 2 divisions of 4 teams. There will be a 82 game season,and the winners of each division will advance to the play offs. The season will run from may through september,in the time that football has a summer break between the seasons.The NOS board of directors didnt take long to make a decision,and by late 2004 the contract was signed between the NOS and the DPBL. The NOS will show a live game of the week,and highlights from every baseball game. The inaugural DPBL season will begin in may of 2005,with a draft consisting of 35 rounds. Each team will be required to at least have 8 Dutch players on their roster. The minimal salary was set at $ 5000,and there will be a salary cap of $75,000,000 in the league.

[Hageneezz]

Here are the 16 teams that will participate in the first DPBL season. The teams all play in 16 different cities.

LIGA OOST REGION A
Groningen Oaks
Leeuwarden Liberty
Utrecht Express
Zwolle Zephyrs

LIGA OOST REGION B
Arnhem Alliance
Eindhoven Extreme
Nijmegen Terriers
Sittard Storm

LIGA WEST REGION C
Almere Admirals
Amsterdam Argonauts
Den Helder Seawolves
Haarlem Colonials

LIGA WEST REGION D
Breda Orange Sox
Den Haag Herons
Rotterdam Ports
Tilburg Trojans

Next up will be the draft. The draft will be held in the city of Amersfoort,where the DPBL headquarters are situated.

[Hageneezz]

THE DRAFT
Amersfoort,
Today,at the DPBL headquarters the very first draft has been held. The Rotterdam Ports were the first team to draft,they chose Larry Overturf,a 26 year old American starting pitcher,as their number 1 pick. Larry Overturf signed a contract through 2007 and he will have a salary of $9,610,000.
The first Dutch player to be drafted was Dolf Tan,a 32 year old southpaw.
He was drafted as the number 5 pick in round 1 by the Almere Admirals. The first hitter to be picked was CF Norman Gorman. The 27 year old was picked by Den Helder. And here are the draft results from round 1:

ROUND 1
Rotterdam pick P Larry Overturf
Haarlem pick P Jamie Roberts
Amsterdam pick P Michael Smith
Den Haag pick P Johnny Newman
Almere pick P Dolf Tan
Utrecht pick P John Manis
Eindhoven pick P Nelle Verlaan
Den Helder pick CF Norman Gorman
Nijmegen pick P Lawrence Rigg
Tilburg pick P Jop Aardoom
Leeuwarden pick P Paul Kegley
Arnhem pick P Guy Goderie
Breda pick P Kennet Bekema
Groningen pick P Steven Carroll
Zwolle pick P Lawrence Weddle
Sittard pick P Jessie Malpass

[Hageneezz]

Hilversum,
Today the NOS have announced their live game schedule. The following games will be shown live:

5/7/2005 Amsterdam at Almere
5/14/2005 Nijmegen at Utrecht
5/21/2005 Haarlem at Breda
5/28/2005 Groningen at Zwolle
6/5/2005 Den Haag at Breda
6/11/2005 Sittard at Zwolle
6/18/2005 Rotterdam at Haarlem
6/24/2005 All Star Game
7/2/2005 Arnhem at Nijmegen
7/9/2005 Breda at Amsterdam
7/17/2005 Utrecht at Leeuwarden
7/24/2005 Haarlem at Tilburg
7/30/2005 Eindhoven at Zwolle
8/6/2005 Den Haag at Rotterdam
8/12/2005 Groningen at Leeuwarden
8/17/2005 Breda at Den Helder

[Hageneezz]

Almere,
Admiraal Stadion was completely sold out with 12,460 spectators as the DPBL season got underway with the game between the Amsterdam Argonauts and the Almere Admirals. For the Admirals Dolf Tan got his first start and for the Argonauts Michael Smith was the starter. Dolf Tan immediately showed why Almere picked him in the first draft round,he struck out his first 2 opponents. The first inning remained scoreless.
In the 2nd inning 1B Wayne Davis recorded the very first hit,he singled of Tan. He then stole second and made it to third on a throwing error by Almere catcher Ooijendijk. John McLachlan then singled to left field to drive in the first run for Amsterdam. Almere tied the game at 1-1 in the bottom of the 2nd. The score remained 1-1 until the 8th inning,by good pitching and solid defensive work from both teams. RF Chang Smail then hit a solo homerun for Almere to give the home team a 2-1 lead. In the top of the 9th with a runner on first relief pitcher Derrick Beerens struck out 2 batters. Pinkley singled and the Amsterdam runner reached 3rd base. But then 2B Steven Merrill grounded out into fielders choice to the shortstop and Oolbekkink went out at 2nd base to give Almere the victory.

GAME DETAILS
Game time:2:51
Weather:Cloudy at 57 degrees with wind blowing in from center (7mph)
Attendance:12,460 at Admiraal Stadion
DPBL player of the game:P Dolf Tan (Almere)
WP: Dolf Tan
LP:Michael Smith
SV: Derrick Beerens

[Hageneezz]

DPBL STANDINGS 5/13/2005

LIGA OOST REGION A
1.Leeuwarden Liberty 7-0;1.000
2.Zwolle Zephyrs 3-4;.429;4GB
3.Groningen Oaks 2-5;.286;5GB
4.Utrecht Express 2-5;.286;5GB
LIGA OOST REGION B
1.Eindhoven Extreme 6-1;.857
2.Nijmegen Terriers 5-2;.714;1GB
3.Sittard Storm 2-5;.286;4GB
4.Arnhem Alliance 1-6;.143;5GB
LIGA WEST REGION C
1.Almere Admirals 5-2;.714
2.Amsterdam Argonauts 3-4;.429;2GB
3.Den Helder Seawolves 3-4;.429;2GB
4.Haarlem Colonials 3-4;.429;2GB
LIGA WEST REGION D
1.Den Haag Herons 5-2;.714
2.Breda Orange Sox 4-3;.571;1GB
3.Rotterdam Ports 3-4;.429;2GB
4.Tilburg Trojans 2-5;.286;3GB

In the Liga Oost 1B Michael Oostrom (Eindhoven) wins the first player of the week award. He batted .471 in 17 AB,and hit 4 homeruns and 6 RBI.
Pitcher Thomas Kees (Den Haag) wins the award in the Liga West with 2 wins,1 shutout and an ERA of 0.50.

[Hageneezz]

DPBL GAME OF THE WEEK
NIJMEGEN TERRIERS @ UTRECHT EXPRESS
Utrecht,
Prior to this game,Utrecht had a record of 2-5 and Nijmegen was at 5-2. Randy Rhodes started on the mound for the Express. The game was not sold out as their was an attendance of 10,300. The visitors took an early lead when Heeren scored on a single by Arthur Hilburn. But Utrecht quickly replied with a run in the 1st when Marvin Vigna hit a solo homerun of James Younker. Utrecht even took the lead in the 4th,Nicholas Bosserman singled and Dunagan scored. The 3-1 came as a result of a wild pitch by Younker,Dyer scored the run.
In the 5th Randy Rhodes balked and John Kazuhiko made the score 3-2. Then it was Utrecht turn to score again as Vigna again hit a homer of Younker in the bottom of the 5th inning. Zelmer scored for Nijmegen in the 8th but catcher Jonathan Redick got ejected by the umpire as he arguided over a call. Going into the ninth Utrecht still had the lead with a score of 4-2,but then Randy Rhodes got relieved by Frank Bufford. Kazuhiko and Heeren both hit singles to get onto 1st and 2nd base for the Terriers. John Caples then hit a 3 run homer to give Nijmegen the lead,6-4. George Belknap held onto the lead for the Nijmegen Terriers who turned the game around in the 9th. Terriers manager Karel van Ispelen was very happy with the result and told the press after the game that his team is still growing stronger each game.
GAME DETAILS:
Game time:4:03
Attendance:10,300 (12,000) at Utrechts Honkbalstadion
Weather:Partly cloudy (73 degrees) wind blowing in from right (9 mph)
DPBL Player of the Game:John Caples (Nijmegen)
WP:Agustin Carpentier (Nijmegen)
LP:Frank Bufford (Utrecht)
SV:George Belknap (Nijmegen)

[Hageneezz]

DPBL STANDINGS 05/21/2005

LIGA OOST REGION A
1.Leeuwarden Liberty 10-2;.833
2.Zwolle Zephyrs 6-6;.500;4GB
3.Utrecht Express 4-8;.333;6GB
4.Groningen Oaks 3-9;.250;7GB
LIGA OOST REGION B
1.Eindhoven Extreme 10-2;.833
2.Nijmegen Terriers 8-4;.667;2GB
3.Arnhem Alliance 5-7;.417;5GB
4.Sittard Storm 2-10;.167;8GB
LIGA WEST REGION C
1.Almere Admirals 9-3;.750
2.Amsterdam Argonauts 6-6;.500;3GB
3.Den Helder Seawolves 4-8;.333;5GB
4.Haarlem Colonials 4-8;.333;5GB
LIGA WEST REGION D
1.Den Haag Herons 7-5;.583
2.Rotterdam Ports 7-5;.583
3.Tilburg Trojans 6-6;.500;1GB
4.Breda Orange Sox 5-7;.417;2GB

LIGA OOST PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Zwolle pitcher Adrie Oostenbroek won the award with 1 shutout pitched,an ERA of 0.56 and 11 strikouts

LIGA WEST PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Dolf Tan(The Hunter) the starting pitcher for the Almere Admirals won with an ERA of 0.52,1 shutout and fanning 22.

[theasfl]

well I cant root for Haarlem anymore, and Utrecht and Amsterdam are middle of the pack, but Im glad to see this going again.

[Hageneezz]

Yeah i`m sorry for changing a couple of things but nice from you to stop by....

[Hageneezz]

DPBL GAME OF THE WEEK
HAARLEM COLONIALS @ BREDA ORANGE SOX
Breda,
A game between two teams who both are in 4th place in their division. But despite this fact the game was a sellout with a crowd of 9,978.
The Colonials got into business right from the start with a solo homer by LF Alex Farley off pitcher Eric Scott. Then 2B Paddy Bonis hit the back to back solo homerun to give Haarlem a 2-0 lead,as the spectators still where coming into the ballpark. But the fans could cheer for their favourites as Breda turned things around quickly,as they scored 3 runs in the bottom of the 1st. Lyman scored on a sac fly by Kevin Little,Horne scored as a result of a triple by 1B Landon Tressler and then Tressler scored himself on a single by Stone. After this highly amusing begin things settled down,as both pitchers began to get a grip on the game. Haarlem equalised in the 6th,again by a solo homerun,this time RF Feitze Cornelis was the man. They even took the lead with a score of 5-3 in the top of the 8th as Lex Coster doubled and Noonan and Huse crossed the plate. But Breda again clawed their way back as they replied with 2 runs of their own in the bottom of the 8th,Horne and Little scored the runs so much needed.
The game then went into extra innings,and it was the home side who claimed victory,again it was a solo homerun,Kevin Little hit it off relieve pitcher Neill Albers. The crowd gave both teams a standing ovation after the game,they clearly where satisfied.
GAME DETAILS:
Game time:5:37
Attendance:9,978
Weather:Clear skies with a temperature of 56 degrees,wind blowing in from right at 2mph
DPBL Player of the Game:Kevin Little (Breda)
WP:Ernest Eller (Breda)
LP:Stanton Culley (Haarlem)

[Hageneezz]

DPBL STANDINGS 5/28/2005

LIGA OOST REGION A
1.Leeuwarden Liberty 13-6;.684
2.Zwolle Zephyrs 10-9;.526;3GB
3.Groningen Oaks 7-12;.386;6GB
4.Utrecht Express 7-12;.386;6GB
LIGA OOST REGION B
1.Eindhoven Extreme 14-5;.737
2.Nijmegen Terriers 12-7;.632;2GB
3.Arnhem Alliance 9-10;.474;5GB
4.Sittard Storm 4-15;.211;10GB
LIGA WEST REGION C
1.Almere Admirals 11-8;.579
2.Amsterdam Argonauts 10-9;.526;1GB
3.Den Helder Seawolves 8-11;.421;3GB
4.Haarlem Colonials 7-12;.368;4GB
LIGA WEST REGION D
1.Rotterdam Ports 11-8;.579
2.Tilburg Trojans 11-8;.579
3.Den Haag Herons 10-9;.526;1GB
4.Breda Orange Sox 8-11;.421;3GB

LIGA OOST PLAYER OF THE WEEK
P Martin Eenhoorn (Eindhoven) won 2 games including 1 shutout,pitched 17 innings with an ERA of 1.06 and striking out 13

LIGA WEST PLAYER OF THE WEEK
P Johnny Newman (Den Haag) also won 2 games,both shutouts in 18 innings pitched he had an ERA 0f 0.00 and fanned 15

[Hageneezz]

DPBL GAME OF THE WEEK
GRONINGEN OAKS @ ZWOLLE ZEPHYRS
Zwolle,
It was glove day at Zwolle Stadium,and 10,761 spectators came to the ballpark to see the Zephyrs take on the Oaks. The first inning remained scoreless,and there was a long rain delay of 51 minutes in the second.
CF George Oliver got ejected after going into a debate with the ump about a call. Zwolle shortstop Cesar Naarden gave his team the lead as he homered to deep right field on a pitch by Steven Carroll.
Groningen made it 1 all in the 6th as James Verduzco homered off Lawrence Weddle. In the same inning Zwolle regained the lead as Kevin Lee scored. In the bottom of the 7th things started to get worse for the Oaks,as pitcher Steven Carroll got bombarded by the opposition.
Horst Houtman doubled and Cesar Naarden got the free pass. Douglas Gross then singled and fast base running by Houtman meant Zwolle took the lead with 3-1. Then Bob Cola hit a 3 run homer of 429 feet off Carroll and increased the lead by 6-1. On 3 hits the Zephyrs scored 4 runs.
Lawrence Weddle then completed his game as he only allowed one more hit.
GAME DETAILS:
Game time:2:50
Attendance:10,761
Weather:Rain (67 degrees ),wind blowing out to right(14mph)
DPBL Player of the Game:Lawrence Weddle (Zwolle)
WP:Lawrence Weddle (Zwolle)
LP:Steven Carroll (Groningen)

[Hageneezz]

DPBL STANDINGS 6/4/2005

LIGA OOST REGION A
1.Leeuwarden Liberty 17-8;.680
2.Zwolle Zephyrs 13-12;.520;4GB
3.Utrecht Express 10-15;.400;7GB
4.Groningen Oaks 9-16;.360;8GB
LIGA OOST REGION B
1.Eindhoven Extreme;18-7;.720
2.Nijmegen Terriers 15-10;.600;3GB
3.Arnhem Alliance 11-14;.440;7GB
4.Sittard Storm 7-18;.280;11GB
LIGA WEST REGION C
1.Almere Admirals 13-12;.520
2.Amsterdam Argonauts 12-13;.480;1GB
3.Den Helder Seawolves 12-13;.480;1GB
4.Haarlem Colonials 11-14;.440;2GB
LIGA WEST REGION D
1.Rotterdam Ports 15-10;.600
2.Tilburg Trojans 14-11;.560;1GB
3.Den Haag Herons 12-13;.480;3GB
4.Breda Orange Sox 11-14;.440;4GB

LIGA OOST PLAYER OF THE WEEK
RF Terry Brusse(Groningen) batted .313 in 16 AB with 4 HR and 8 RBI

LIGA WEST PLAYER OF THE WEEK
P Larry Overturf(Rotterdam) won 2 games with 2 shutouts,pitched 18 innings with an ERA of 0.00 and 21 strikeouts

DPBL PLAYER OF THE MONTH
Amersfoort,
Another important day for the DPBL,as the very first player and pitcher of the month were announced. Richard Apodoca of the Groningen Oaks was named the Liga Oost pitcher of the month as he had a record of 3-0 in 4 games started,with an ERA of 1.29 and 1 shutout. The leagues batter of the month was awarded to Joshua Zellmer (Nijmegen),he had a average of .260 in 77 AB and has hit 9 HR and 19 RBI.
In the Liga West Johnny Newman(Den Haag) was awarded the pitcher of the month,with a record of 3-3 in 6 games started,an ERA of 0.73 and 2 shutouts. Batter of the month was Feitze Cornelis (Haarlem),he batted .304 in 79 AB with 9 homeruns and 16 RBI.

[Hageneezz]

I am very sorry to tell to whoever is following my dynasty attempt that i again have to start all over,due to computer problems. My apologies for this,however,i will start the DPBL again when i am able.