Today, June 26th, the Caribbean Cup will tee off. Originally, the tournament was scheduled for the Month of April but a spike in COVID-19 contaminations pushed back the starting date. Since former manager of the Cuban national team and chairman of the Cuban baseball federation, Higinio Velez passed away on May 13, the tournament will …
Baseball Shorts: Dugout Diplomacy
In today's episode of Baseball Shorts, we pay attention to the term Dugout Diplomacy. The term refers to baseball being used as a tool to bridge a gap between two countries. A good example of this was the 1999 series that was played between the Baltimore Orioles and the Cuban national team. Orioles' owner Peter Angelos lobbied …
Today in Baseball: The Netherlands World Champion
Today in 2011, the unthinkable happened. The Netherlands beat Cuba in the final of the last World Championship, sanctioned back then by the IBAF (now WBSC). From 2013 on, the World Baseball Classic would replace the official World Championship. As European champion, the Netherlands represented Europe together with Greece, Germany and Italy. That 2011 team had …
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U15 World Cup to take place in October/November
Today, the WBSC announced that the U15 World Cup Baseball will take place from October 30 through November 8. This is more positive news after a lot of cancellations due to the coronavirus. As the tournament will be played in Tijuana, Mexico, the place will be a baseball hotbed in October and November as the …
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Dutch tumble two spots in World Ranking
Just two months after the previous World Ranking, the WBSC unveiled the newest one. In this new ranking the Dutch drop two spots from the seventh place to the ninth. Only after two months, the WBSC comes with a new ranking for baseball and softball. Of course, it is rather odd that after just two …
Cuban players and human trafficking
I just read this article on Universo Beisbol, a Cuban online baseball magazine. It is an interesting article I want baseball fans to read. I will not copy the text or make an own version of it because the author of this article deserves all the credits. A must read IMHO. https://universobeisbol.mlblogs.com/cuban-players-human-trafficking-and-other-x-files-tales-70043bced0ab?fbclid=IwAR3hNmBrmNEsKjomcoTVja8CP9dnAwpnvlZm5FbPV0w6khpcjlJCbqL3Ie0
Haarlem Baseball Week 2018: Cubans still without a win
After Cuba fell to Germany, Japan and Italy, it also was beaten by the Netherlands tonight. Even though the score may indicate a close game, Cuba never really was dangerous. The Dutch won 6-4. After Cuba took a 1-0 lead in the first inning, the Kingdom of the Netherlands bounced back in the second inning. …
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Haarlem Baseball Week 2018: Surprising win by Germany
Tonight, the Germans, who fell to the Kingdom of the Netherlands yesterday, stunted vs Cuba, the 25-time world champion. In a seesaw game, the Germans eventually prevailed as they clinched the surprising 5-4 win. Germany took an early 1-0 lead in the first inning that lasted until the top of the second when the Cubans …
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Schedule of U-15 World Cup released
The World Baseball and Softball Confederation (WBSC for short) has released the schedule of the U-15 World Cup that will be played from August 10 through August 19 in Panama. The Kingdom of the Netherlands is in the tough group B together with Japan, the Dominican Republic, Cuba, Australia and South Africa. On day one, …
World Port Tournament 2017: Dutch win consolation game vs Cuba
In what was the last game for both teams, the Kingdom of the Netherlands bested Cuba 3-1. A three-run inning was all the Dutch needed to beat Cuba for the second time this week. Manager Sidney de Jong used four pitchers to keep the Cubans in check. Before the game, pitcher Rob Cordemans and infielder …
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World Port Tournament 2017: Easy victory for Dutch vs Cuba
A juvenile team Kingdom of the Netherlands beat Cuba in a surprisingly easy way. The Dutch pitching limited the Cubans to one run and seven hits in a 6-1 victory as the Dutch outhit them 12-7. After Gianison Boekhoudt doubled home Stijn van der Meer from second base, Cuba tied the game in the bottom …
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Remarkable selection of Dutch team for World Port Tournament
Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf posted an article on its website about the selection of team Kingdom of the Netherlands for the upcoming World Port Tournament in Rotterdam. The creation of the 24-man roster can be called remarkable, to put it mildly. This year the coaching staff will be led by Sydney de Jong. This is …
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WBC 2017: Cuba gives game away in eighth
Cuba let Japan work hard for its money. The Caribbean nation took the lead twice but eventually gave the game away in the eighth inning as it was beaten by Japan 8-5. Japan took an early lead in the bottom of the first on a solo homerun hit by Tetsuto Yamada. But Cuba fought back …
2017 WBC: Exciting games a real promotion
Yesterday's games were a real promotion for the World Baseball Classic. Exciting games in which the score went back and forth and the one of this morning with a perhaps unexpected outcome showed that this event is worth watching. Venezuela 11 - 10 Italy Yesterday, team Italy showed again that you cannot rule out the …
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Cuba beats Australia and advances to 2nd round, Italy stuns Mexico
In the decisive game between Cuba and Australia in group B, the Cubans stayed at the right side of the score. After trailing 4-1, the Aussies pushed and scored two runs but eventually, they fell short. For four innings not much happened. Both teams had runners in scoring position a few times but neither team …
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Ballparks around the world: Tokyo Dome
In Ballparks around the world another World Baseball Classic venue will be in the center of the attention. The Tokyo Dome in Japan will be host to the WBC for the fourth time since 2006. Next to hosting group B with Australia, China, Cuba and Japan, it will also host group E in the second …
Women’s World Cup Baseball: Dutch ladies lose nail biter
In the first game of the consolation round, the Dutch ladies took on Cuba. In what was a nail biter, the Dutch outhit the Cubans but could not take advantage of being better at bat and of the errors that Cuba made in the first four innings. Cuba kept the Dutch lineup in check for …
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Defectors may represent Cuba soon
For years the Cuban government outlawed baseball players that left the country for the greener baseball pastures in the USA, called MLB. These players were not allowed to represent Cuba any longer in any international tournament. The result was a Cuban team that deteriorated and that dropped to fifth place in the newly published WBSC …
Dutch Baseball Hangout 
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