Vladimir Ballentian returns to the Dutch baseball pick after five years. The 38-year-old Antilles is part of the group for the 30th edition of Harlem Baseball Week, July 8-15 at Pim Molier Stadium.
Ballentian last played for the so-called Kingdom team in 2017 during the World Baseball Classic (WBC). Then-national coach Hensley Mullins’ team reached the semi-finals of the prestigious WBC Unofficial World Cup.
Ballentine was then the star of the Orange team. The player from Willemstad will play for the first time on Dutch soil next month.
“Vladimir is one of the most successful hitters in the history of Team Kingdom. It is a great honor to add him to this list,” said Rick van den Hork, the new KNVB technical director.
National Coach Evert’s pick Jan Huyen has four first-time entrants: Dennis Burgersdyke, Ryan Huntington, Chris Stewart and Kevin Josefina. The national coach set the goal of reaching the final.
Harlem Baseball Week will be held again for the first time since 2018. In the previous edition won by Japan, the Dutch finished third. The van ‘t Hoen team opened the tournament against Italy and then plays against Cuba, Curaçao, the United States and Japan.
