HCAW (formerly known as Mr. Cocker HCAW ( sponsored name)), in full ''Honkbalclub Allen Weerbaar'', is a Dutch

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

and

softball Softball is a game similar to baseball played with a larger ball on a smaller field. Softball is played competitively at club levels, the college level, and the professional level. The game was first created in 1887 in Chicago by George Hanc ...

club from

Bussum Bussum () is a commuter town and former municipality in the Gooi region in the south east of the province of North Holland in the Netherlands near Hilversum. Since 2016, Bussum has been part of the new municipality of Gooise Meren. Bussum had a ...

. As of 2021 the club numbers about 400 members, including 270 players, making it one of the largest baseball and

clubs in the Netherlands. The club's top teams all play in their equivalent Dutch major league.

History

HCAW was established in 1957 as an independent baseball and softball club. Between 1949 and 1957 it operated as the baseball division of the Bussum sporting club Allen Weerbaar. The team played on a football field until 1958 when the city of Bussum agreed to build a baseball field for the club in Bussum Zuid. HCAW added a softball division in 1966. In the same year HCAW was promoted to the

Honkbal Hoofdklasse The Honkbal Hoofdklasse (Dutch for ''Major League Baseball'') is the highest level of professional baseball in the Netherlands. It is an eight-team league that plays a 42-game schedule and is overseen by the Royal Netherlands Baseball and Softball ...

for the first time. In 1970 the club moved to its current field in the Bussumse Sportvallei. In 1988 HCAW was demoted to the

Honkbal Overgangsklasse The Honkbal Overgangsklasse (Dutch language, Dutch for ''Baseball Transition League'') is the second highest level of professional baseball in the Baseball in the Netherlands, Netherlands. It is a twelve-team sports league, league that plays a 22 ...

. Following the degradation financial issues forced the club to fuse with the

Amstel Tijgers Amsterdam Tigers are an ice hockey team in Amsterdam, Netherlands, playing in the First Division. History The Tigers existed in various guises from their foundation in 1963 until 2010 when the professional team folded, leaving only the amateur an ...

, a baseball club based in

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

. The fusion team played in the Hoofdklasse under the name HCAW-Tijgers from 1989 to 1994. Since 1995 HCAW has played in the Hoofdklasse under its original name."Wie Zijn Wij? - Historie" ''HCAW Official Website'' Retrieved May 2, 2021. https://www.hcaw.nl/wie-zijn-wij/ (Dutch)

Notable players

* Jason Rees, professional baseball player *

Chicho Jesurun Arthur Benjamin "Chicho" Jesurun (10 July 1947 – 16 December 2006) was a Netherlands-Antillian baseball player, coach, manager, and scout. Biography During his playing career, Jesurun played for several teams. He started in Curaçao with the ...

, professional baseball player, coach, manager, and scout *

Iván Granados Iván Adam Granados (born September 30, 1985) is a Spanish-Venezuelan born professional baseball pitcher, who is currently a free agent. Granados played for the Arizona League team in the Oakland Athletics farm system in 2005 and 2006. He then jo ...

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...

Venezuelan Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...

professional pitcher *

Pavel Budský Pavel Budský (born 3 October 1975) is a Czech baseball first basemen for the Draci Brno of Baseball Extraliga. He previously played for the Kansas City Royals organization. He was selected for the Czech Republic national baseball team at the 19 ...

Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus' Places *Czech, ...

professional baseball player *

Sidney de Jong Sidney de Jong (born 14 April 1979) is a Dutch former baseball player. De Jong represented the Netherlands at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens where he and his team finished sixth. He also represented the Dutch at the 2009 World Baseball Clas ...

, professional baseball player * Patrick de Lange, professional baseball player * Nick Stuifbergen. professional pitcher *

Calvin Maduro Calvin Gregory Maduro (born September 5, 1974) is an Aruban former professional baseball player. He played five years in Major League Baseball between and . For most of the 2010s, he was a scout for the Baltimore Orioles. Playing career Madur ...

, professional baseball player *

Ralph Milliard Ralph Gregory Milliard (born 30 December 1973 in Willemstad, Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles) is a former Dutch baseball player and current baseball coach. Milliard represented the Netherlands at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney where he and his ...

, professional baseball player and coach *

Dave Draijer Dorotheus Wilhelmus "Dave" Draijer (born 30 September 1973 in Heemstede) is a Dutch baseball player. Draijer represented the Netherlands at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens where he and his team became sixth. Originally he was not se ...

, professional baseball player *

Kenny Berkenbosch Kenneth Berkenbosch (born March 17, 1985) is a Dutch professional baseball player for L&D Amsterdam of the Honkbal Hoofdklasse. Career Berkenbosch was signed at age 17 by the Florida Marlins and pitched in their system for several years. In 200 ...

, professional baseball player

2011 roster

References

External links

Official site of HCAW (Dutch)
Softball teams Baseball teams in the Netherlands Sports clubs in Gooise Meren {{Europe-baseball-stub