When you think of baseball, the country of the Netherlands isn’t necessarily the first place that comes to mind.
Baseball is growing in popularity though, and Corné Hogeveen is living proof. Corné and I crossed paths on the various Mets group pages we frequent on Facebook. He’s very well informed and a great baseball mind. When I saw that he published a book on the Mets, I made it my business to try and talk to him.
Without further ado, Corné Hogeveen.
90 Percent Mets: First things first. Tell us a little bit about yourself.
Corné Hogeveen: I’m Corné Hogeveen a 27 year old Mets fan that grew up in the Netherlands. I live in the north west part of the country. I was born in Utrecht and grew up close to the city. In my younger years, I was a huge fan of the Utrecht soccer club called FC Utrecht. That all changed when I became interested in baseball, particularly the Mets.90PM: How did you become a Mets fan growing up in the Netherlands?
CH: My uncle used to live close to New York and when we visited him in 2006 he brought us to a Mets game. I loved every minute of it. The atmosphere from the crowd, and the game itself made me want to learn more about baseball. I started to follow the team the rest of the season on the internet, but since the middle of 2007 I’ve been watching the Mets via the MLB.tv account. Now, Mets baseball is a huge part of my life.90PM: Would you say baseball in the Netherlands is on the rise since the success the Dutch team had in the World Baseball classic?
CH: Baseball still isn’t a big sport in the Netherlands, but the success of the Kingdom of the Netherlands team in the World Baseball Classic surely is giving the sport more attention across the country.90PM: Tell us about your book “The Year After Our Tears of Joy.”
CH: I wrote the book with my good friend Gem Oguz. The book is all about the 2016 Mets season. In this book, we recap every game the Mets played that year. The season ended with our second postseason trip in a row, but there were a lot of ups and downs along the way. It was a joy to relive that season.
You can buy “The Year After Our Tears of Joy” right here.
90PM: Tell us about Fastball magazine?
CH: Fastball Magazine is the only Dutch magazine about the beautiful game of Baseball. We focus mainly on the Dutch league, but we also provide great stories about the MLB. I just started writing for Fastball Magazine and already did a very cool interview with Dallas Braden, which will be featured in the upcoming edition.
You can visit the Fastball Magazine website here.90PM: Favorite Mets Moment?
CH: There are so many to choose from. I saw a couple of memorable games in person. I was there for the RA Dickey one hitter in 2010, and a Johan Santana complete game shutout in 2010. I saw a ten run Mets inning in 2015, and watched Noah Syndergaard notch his first mlb win. Those were all memorable moments in games I attended. The Johan Santana no-hitter and play off wins in 2015 were also special even though I watched those from home. The no-hitter I was asleep and someone messaged me to wake up and watch the game. I watched it from the seventh inning on. If I had to choose, I would pick the no-hitter for sure.90PM: Favorite Mets player of all time?
CH: I have a couple. Johan Santana was a favorite of mine even before he got to the Mets. I was thrilled he became a Met and love how he pitched. Can’t miss with David Wright. Don’t think I need to explain myself there. One of my favorites that might surprise you is Angel Pagan. He hit the first Mets homerun I saw in person.90PM: Can you give Mets fans a prediction for 2018?
CH: I’m an optimistic fan so I see the Mets reaching the playoffs via the wild card. With this pitching staff anything is possible in the playoffs.
Thank you!
That was awesome. I truly believe that baseball is America’s greatest invention. It’s such a unique and beautiful game. I know it’s not a popular opinion, but I absolutely love the World Baseball Classic. Watching different cultures around the world embrace the game is phenomenal.
I think it’s fantastic that Mr. Hogeveen discovered the game of baseball. He has published a book, and now writes for a website discussing the game. I wouldn’t say becoming a Mets fan is the best idea, but the Amazins have brought me a lot of joy over the years.
You can find Corne on Twitter. @CorneHogeveen
LGM