Tom Robin de Blok (born 8 May 1996) is a Dutch professional baseball pitcher for the Curaçao Neptunus of the Honkbal Hoofdklasse. He played for Team Netherlands in the 2019 European Baseball Championship, and at the Africa/Europe 2020 Olympic Qualification tournament in Italy in September 2019.
| Tom de Blok | |||||||||||||||
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| Curaçao Neptunus | |||||||||||||||
| Pitcher | |||||||||||||||
| Born: 8 May 1996 Amstelveen, Netherlands | |||||||||||||||
Bats: Right Throws: Right | |||||||||||||||
Medals
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Career
editSeattle Mariners
editOn 26 August 2013 de Blok signed a minor league contract with the Seattle Mariners organization. However, on 17 April 2014, de Blok retired from professional baseball without playing in a game for the organization.[1]
Mr. Cocker HCAW
editde Blok came out of retirement to join Mr. Cocker HCAW for the 2014 season, a team in the Honkbal Hoofdklasse, the top baseball league in the Netherlands, where he posted a 3.20 ERA in 17 appearances.
Amsterdam Pirates
editThe following season, de Blok joined the Amsterdam Pirates, where he posted a 4-0 record and 1.54 ERA in 20 games with the team.[2] After the season, de Blok was offered a tryout with the Rakuten Golden Eagles of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB), the top baseball league in Japan. After the tryout de Blok decided to return to the Pirates.[3] That season, he recorded a 5-0 record and 0.88 ERA with 43 strikeouts in 41.0 innings of work.
Detroit Tigers
editAfter a good performance in the 2017 World Baseball Classic, de Blok signed a four-year minor league deal with the Detroit Tigers organization on 10 April 2017.[4] He made his affiliated debut for the Low–A Connecticut Tigers, and after pitching 3+2⁄3 scoreless innings, was promoted to the Single–A West Michigan Whitecaps, where he spent the rest of the season, posting a 4-2 record and 2.87 ERA with a 1.02 WHIP in 82 innings pitched.[5] de Blok spent the 2019 season with the High–A Lakeland Flying Tigers, recording a 2-13 record and 4.04 ERA in 21 games. De Blok did not play in a game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the minor league season because of the COVID-19 pandemic.[6] On 2 November 2020 he elected free agency.[7]
Amsterdam Pirates (second stint)
editDe Blok returned to the Amsterdam Pirates following his stint with the Tigers organization after logging a 2.00 ERA in 5 games with the team in 2020. In 2021, de Blok posted a 3-2 record and 1.64 ERA in 6 games with the team. On 14 May 2021 de Blok threw the fourth perfect game in the history of the Dutch Major Leagues, defeating Corendon Kinheim 12-0 while striking out seven.[8]
Pericos de Puebla
editOn 27 June 2021 de Blok signed with the Pericos de Puebla of the Mexican League.[5] He made just one start before he was released on 8 July.[5]
Curaçao Neptunus
editOn 1 October 2022, de Blok signed with the Curaçao Neptunus of the Honkbal Hoofdklasse.[9]
International career
editde Blok was a member of the Netherlands national baseball team in the 2017 World Baseball Classic.[10]
He played for Team Netherlands in the 2019 European Baseball Championship, at the Africa/Europe 2020 Olympic Qualification tournament in Italy in September 2019.
He represented the Netherlands national baseball team at the 2023 World Baseball Classic.[11]
References
edit- ^ "Tom de Blok Stats, Fantasy & News". MLB.com.
- ^ L&D Amsterdam | Amsterdam pirates Archived 3 February 2015 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Tom de Blok stays with L&D Amsterdam Pirates - MOSAE SPORTS
- ^ "Tom de Blok signs deal with the Detroit Tigers". The Dutch Baseball Hangout. 3 April 2017. Retrieved 18 February 2018.
- ^ a b c "Tom de Blok Stats, Highlights, Bio - MiLB.com Stats - The Official Site of Minor League Baseball". MiLB.com. Retrieved 18 February 2018.
- ^ "2020 Minor League Season Canceled". 30 June 2020.
- ^ "Full List of 2020-2021 MiLB Free Agents". baseballamerica.com. Retrieved 21 September 2024.
- ^ "Tom de Blok throws fourth perfect game in Dutch baseball league history".
- ^ "Neptunus acquires pitchers Tom de Blok and Ryan Huntington". catcher.home.xs4all.nl. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
- ^ Teams release World Baseball Classic rosters | theScore.com
- ^ "Grote namen in voorselectie Koninkrijksteam voor World Baseball Classic – HonkbalSoftbal.nl". HonkbalSoftbal.nl (in Dutch). 10 January 2023. Retrieved 22 March 2023.
External links
edit- Career statistics from Baseball Reference (Minors)