Top baseball, softball leagues in Netherlands set to open from 18 July

Top baseball, softball leagues in Netherlands set to open from 18 July
01/07/2020
Netherlands is the top-ranked European country in both the WBSC Baseball World Rankings and WBSC Women's Softball World Rankings.

The top-flight baseball and softball leagues in the Netherlands have been given the green light to start their seasons, following the easing of COVID-19 lockdowns in the country.

The Honkbal Hoofdklasse, Dutch baseball's major league, will begin on 23 July. The Golden League, the Dutch premier softball competition, will begin on 18 July, a week before their baseball counterpart.

The Royal Dutch Baseball and Softball Federation (KNBSB) recently released their protocols and games schedules for the season.

The eight-team Hoofdklasse schedule includes a full competition round (21 games), with the top four finishers advancing to the playoffs, beginning on 10 September. The championship Holland Series remains a best-of-seven event and starts on Saturday, 3 October.

KNBSB General Director Stefaan Eskes said: “We’ve had a difficult period as a baseball and softball sport, but we are glad that our proposed easing [of restrictions for our sport] were implemented by the government this week. It is a huge relief for our associations and members that we can start again. Let's play ball!”

Many baseball and softball leagues across Europe have opened, including leagues in Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Israel, Lithuania and Switzerland. In addition to the Netherlands, leagues in Austria, Belgium, Italy and Ukraine are also set to open over the next few days and weeks.

Baseball and softball in all levels will also resume activities in the next weeks, with some competitions starting as early as 4 July.