Hoofddorp Pioniers is one of the clubs that has made a lot of moves in the annual transition period of Dutch baseball. In total the club saw seven players leave, while seven were added to the 2021 roster.
No doubt the club will be hit hard by the loss of pitchers Lars Huijer and Chris Pfau and the Draijer cousins.
Lars Huijer left the club near the end of last season to join the Heidenheim Heideköpfe with which he won the German championship. US pitcher Chris Pfau decided to call it quits.
The cousins Max Draijer and Victor Draijer decided to join HCAW from Bussum.
Other players that left Hoofddorp Pioniers are catcher Daan Kuit, who left for DSS/Kinheim, C/3B Damian Melis (Sparks Haarlem), OF Joey Eeman (hung up his spikes).
Pioniers added three new pitchers to the roster:
RHP John Michael Halley who comes from Silicon Storks. With Storks, Halley had four appearances in which he did not allow an earned run and kept his opponents to a .190 batting average.
Ryan Huntington is a LHP who is coming from Aruba, so not much is known about him.
LHP Lucas van der Schouw is coming from overgangsklasse club RCH-Pinguïns from Heemstede.
RHP Nick Winkel has also left Storks from The Hague to join Pioniers. In nine appearances (four starts), Nick posted a 0-4 record with a 13.32 ERA.
Next to these four pitchers, Pioniers acquired two position players and a DH.
Infielder Denzel Brooks is coming from Quick Amersfoort, outfielder Jeldwin Orman left DSS/Kinheim to join the ranks of Pioniers and DH Jair Bogaerts joins Pioniers after not having a club in 2020 as he did not play in the Minor Leagues due to COVID-19.
Where Pioniers managed to clinch a playoff spot in 2020, it remains to be seen if the club can repeat that feat. The loss of the aforementioned players must be a big blow. We have to see if the club can overcome this loss.
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