THE NETHERLANDS – Two of the top teams in the Dutch Major League will be guided by new managers in 2009 as the busy offseason continues in one of Europe’s premier leagues.

Former DOOR Neptunus skipper Ben Thijssen, who steered Corendon Kinheim to a pair of Dutch Championships (2006-07) and European titles (2007-08), announced his retirement from coaching and will be replaced by Kinheim pitching coach Eelco Jansen. Also, the current Neptunus Head Coach, Eric De Bruin, has resigned after two seasons due to personal reasons.

Thijssen spent three seasons at the helm of Kinheim and advanced to the Holland Series in every year. L&D Amsterdam ended the Haarlem-based club’s two-year reign as league title-holders earlier this month.

Jansen spent 12 years in the Dutch League as a pitcher while being a key member of the Dutch National Team. The 39 year-old tossed three no-hitters – including a perfect game in 1997, and finished with 1,121 career strikeouts.

De Bruin led Neptunus to a pair of second-place finishes during the regular season the past two years. But the Rotterdam-based club were upset in the semi-finals each season. The 44 year-old, who hit .410 in 1992 to win the Dutch League batting title, stepped down to concentrate on his duties as a board member for the Dutch Division of AIG.

Source: Honkbalsite

Tags: Netherlands