Pitchers Brandon Herbold, Connor Prins, and Stijn van der Schaaf have signed contracts with MLB organizations, continuing the flow of talent, and pitchers in particular, from Europe’s ball fields to MLB training complexes.
Herbold, a southpaw whose father is the president of the Royal Dutch Baseball and Softball Federation, signed with the Kansas City Royals, with van der Schaaf inking a contract with the Boston Red Sox and Prins joining the Seattles Mariners organization.
Herbold and van der Schaaf both pitched for the Dutch squad that finished second at the 2022 U18 European Championship in Czechia and fifth, a month later, at the U18 World Cup in Florida, the country’s best ever finish on the global stage.
All three young hurlers were jointly developed by domestic clubs and the Dutch baseball academy in Amsterdam.