In a game of which the score moved back and forth, the Dutch stayed at the right side of the score. The pitching struggled at times and gave away the lead in the sixth but eventually the Dutch bounced back to walk off the field with a 17-7 win.
The 17-7 may not reflect the whole game as it took the Dutch a long time to walk away from their opponent but in reality, the Dutch were the better offensive team by far as they outhit their opponent 17-3.
The French took a 2-0 lead as they scored a run in the first and in the second inning but in the third, the Dutch turned the tables as they scored thrice on a home run and three consecutive singles. After the Dutch scored six runs in the next three innings, the French inched closer in the bottom of the fifth as they scored once.
In the sixth inning, the French would turn the tables as they scored four. But those four runs didn’t come thanks to any base hit. The Dutch pitching struggled as it gave up three walks and an HBP and also threw a wild pitch followed by a throwing error.
But the French pitching struggled as well as the French pitchers threw ten (!) wild pitches and gave up fourteen walks. Next to the lack of control, they didn’t get the necessary defensive help from their infielders as they committed four errors that led to three unearned runs.
The lack of French control led to six runs in the ninth inning as the Dutch scored thanks to three walks, three wild pitches combined with a triple and three singles.
Dutch head coach Eric de Bruin used four pitchers today of which Daniël Vos earned the win, despite giving up five runs of which four were earned. In the 3.1 innings he stayed on the mound, he walked six and struck out five. Of the seventeen hits the Dutch collected, six were extra-base hits: two home runs, a triple and three doubles.
Three Dutch hitters hit .500 today: Tyler Boersma went 3 for 6 with a double, four RBI and two runs scored. Ruendrick Piternella went 2 for 4 with a home run, two RBI and two runs scored and Denzel Bryson went 2 for 4 with a run scored.
Thanks to this win the Dutch are 3-0 and have secured a spot in the semifinals. Tomorrow the Dutch will face Ukraine that is still without a win. With a win, the Dutch can finish as group winner. Who they will face in the semis will likely be decided tonight as Italy and Spain, both without a loss, will face each other.
Dutch Baseball Hangout 