Final Update for Curacao Baseball

Submitted by Darrell Phipps on August 9, 2010 - 7:53am

My apologies for not sending updates the last couple of days.But
here's an extensive update.The 3rd and 4th game the USAAI team played
against the national team Senior League (age 15-16).The first game
USAAI won the game 5-3.The second game ended in a tie.Both games were
very well played on both sides.

The last two games the USAAI team had as their opponent a team of
players which are going to be playing for the first year (season 2011)
in the Senior League Division 915-16) and Big League Division (17-18)
of various organisations managed by me.The first game the USAAI lost
the game 5-2.But the second game,yesterday morning,the USAAI won 3-2,a
very electrifying game.

Scores from Curacao Friendship Baseball Game.

Submitted by Darrell Phipps on August 4, 2010 - 8:36am

Yesterday was the first game for the baseball group of
USAAI. Everything went well,unfortunately they lost 5-2 to the team
from Curacao.The local players were there on time and 2 of them has
done a great job ( one pitching and one with his bat ).After the game
one of the parents of the local guys with the USAAI-team told me that
her son has enjoyed it very much. He liked the discipline and the way
everybody in the dug-out was with him and the other local players. The
mother told me that as soon as the player got home he started to look
for a Curacao baseball shirt to exchange with one of the USAAI
players. Everybody got sufficient playing time,and everybody had
fun. That's the most important in these type of exchange games...to
have fun and share experiences.

Today is the second game against the same team as yesterday,we
backed-up the start of the game with 30 minutes. So instead of starting
05.30pm the game starts at 05.00pm. We are looking forward again to a
great game.Also between the coaches of both teams there was some
exchange of info regarding the game of baseball. It was really great.

Comments from a Dad traveling with the Robur Invitational Baseball team.

Submitted by Darrell Phipps on July 13, 2010 - 11:37am

I wanted to write to tell you what a great experience the past week in
Holland was...both for myself and my son, Jared.

The boys team and girls team were made up of quality kids...besides being
very competitive and ultimate winners of both of their groups. The boys
coach, Jon Martin, was an absolute joy to be around and a quality
individual...he and the boys team made me feel like an assistant coach and
not just a father accompanying his son. And the trip "coordinator," Fifi, did
an excellent job of taking care of the entire group and its needs...which is
never easy when dealing with 25+ personalities!

It was truly a rewarding 8 days...not just the competitive aspect but also
the cultural side....Anne Frank's House, the Heineken Brewery, the Canal
Cruise thru Amsterdam; the Palace in Apeldoorn, the Cheese Farm...ALL VERY
well done. The "only" site I wished we had a chance to experience was The
Hague, which due to time constraints and the change in the baseball schedule
precluded us from going there.

Overall, it was FABULOUS...I would highly recommend this experience...and I
know my son, Jared, is chomping at the bit to do it again. In addition, I
would love for my younger son, Bryan , to participate in this cultural/competitive experience too!

Thank you again for the opportunity of a lifetime...it was one of the best
trips of my life made even more special cause I had the chance to experience
it with my son, too!

Richard Baiman- Dad of USAAI baseball player Jared

Robur Update #3

Submitted by Darrell Phipps on July 8, 2010 - 8:49am

Yesterday the Robur group did visit a traditional Dutch Cheese farm where they have heard everything about the art of cheese making.
In the afternoon it was time to play some more games in the Robur tournament.
The USAAI girls did lose against team Robur 0:3, but therefore the boys did get the chance to play an exhibition game against the National Team of the Netherlands which they did win 9:1.

Today the girls did play another game in the Robur tournament against Sweden.
The results were 10:0 for the USA girls.

Let us keep our fingers crossed for the game of the boys later in the evening.

Robur '58 Baseball and Softball Update #2

Submitted by Darrell Phipps on July 7, 2010 - 7:44am

Yesterday was an exciting day for the Robur Series group - in every way.
After a relaxing morning where the group did get to see the world-renowned paintings of Vincent Van Gogh, the Robur Series group did travel to Apeldoorn.
There they were excitied to get ready for their first games in the Robur tournament.

In the after noon the girls did play an exhibition game against Jong Oranje (Young Orange) which they unfortunately have lost 6:1.
Afterwards the boys did play their first game of the tournament against Robur'58 which they also have lost 5:6.
In the evening the tables turned and when the girls did play their first game of the tournament where they did an amazing job when winning 9:0 against TeamiX.

After some thrilling games the group did get to experience the joy of the Dutch people when the Dutch National Soccer Team did win the game against Uruguay and did enter the finals of the FIFA World Cup in South Africa.
This was an amazing experience for the whole group.

Today the group will get to play some more games in the tournament.
Let us keep our fingers crossed for our teams.