Roel de Mon
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| Roel de Mon | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Pitcher | |
| Born: 5 November 1919 Haarlem, Netherlands | |
| Died: 2 November 1973 (aged 53) Haarlem, Netherlands | |
Batted: Unknown Threw: Right | |
| Member of the Netherlands | |
 Baseball Hall of Fame | |
| Induction | 1984 |
Roel de Mon (5 November 1919 – 2 November 1973) was a Dutch baseball player. He was claimed to be the fastest Dutch pitcher of all time. He played most of his career between 1940 and 1948, winning the Hoofdklasse national baseball championship four times with SC Haarlem and Schoten.[1]
Considered one of the most dominant pitchers of his era (along with Han Urbanus), Dutch baseball historian Chris Kabout observed that "when you managed to get a hit against [de Mon], you had a starting spot in the Dutch national team."[2]
World War II disrupted de Mon's international career. He played only two games internationally against Belgium and, right after the war, one against an American-Canadian Army team. An army officer who was a Major League manager in daily life invited de Mon to come and play baseball in the U.S. However, de Mon stayed in the Netherlands to help build up the country after the war. [citation needed]
