Rogier van Zorn of the Dutch Honkbalsite published the preparation schedule of the Dutch National Team in front of the 2009 World Baseball Classic. The Netherlands, which are slotted in Pool D of the WBC with the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico and Panama, will play six exhibition games before the start of the tournament at the Hiram Bithorn Stadium in San Juan, Puerto Rico on March 7. Besides the already known dates with the three Major League teams Pirates, Twins and Reds, as well as the warm up against the South Florida University, they also have set up test matches versus Eckerd College and a Korean professional team, which will be in Florida in February.
Schedule for the Netherlands Road to the World Baseball Classic:
Tuesday, February 17: Departure from Amsterdam, Netherlands to Bradenton, Florida
Wednesday, February 18 to 20: 10am, 2pm, Practice at the Pittsburgh Pirates Facilities in Bradenton
Saturday, February 21: 6pm or 7pm, Netherlands versus Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, Florida
Sunday, February 22: 1.30pm, Netherlands versus Korean Pro Team in Bradenton
Monday, February 23: 10am, 2pm, Practice at the Pittsburgh Pirates Facilities in Bradenton
Tuesday, February 24: 6pm, Netherlands versus South Florida University in Tampa, Florida
Wednesday, February 25 to March 2: 10am, 2pm, Practice at the Pittsburgh Pirates Facilities in Bradenton
Tuesday, March 3: 1.05pm, Pittsburgh Pirates versus Netherlands in Bradenton
Wednesday, March 4: 6pm, Cincinnati Reds versus Netherlands in Sarasota, Florida
Thursday, March 5: 1.05pm, Minnesota Twins versus Netherlands in Fort Myers, Florida (after the conclusion of the game departure to San Juan, Puerto Rico)
Friday, March 6: Practice at the Hiram Bithorn Stadium in San Juan
Saturday, March 7: 11am, World Baseball Classic: Dominican Republic versus Netherlands
Photo: © Ron Wickert, www.eott.nl