Greg Halman
Encyclopedia
Gregory Anthony "Greg" Halman (August 26, 1987 – November 21, 2011) was a Dutch
professional baseball
outfielder
. He played with the Seattle Mariners
of Major League Baseball
during the and seasons. He also played internationally with the Dutch national team, playing in the 2009 World Baseball Classic
.
in 2003. Like his father, Eddy, and his younger brother, Jason, Greg played on the Dutch national baseball team. His sister, Naomi, is a college basketball player in the United States.
Halman played for the Netherlands in the 2009 World Baseball Classic
by the Seattle Mariners
on June 26, 2004. He participated in the 2004 Mariners Arizona Instructional League playing for the Peoria Javelinas
.
He began his professional career in by playing 26 games with the rookie-level Arizona League Mariners. He played all three outfield positions. He recorded a season-high three RBIs on July 9 against the Arizona League Royals
. He went 4 for 5 with a run and first career home run on July 10 against the Arizona League Giants. Halman hit .438 against lefties, compared to .219 against right-handed pitchers. He participated in the 2005 Arizona Instructional League.
In 2006, he hit
.259 with 5 home run
s and 15 RBI
in 28 games for the Low-A Everett AquaSox
. He finished 3rd on the team with 10 stolen bases. He hit safely in 21 of 28 games. He recorded a season-high 12-game hit streak, batting .309 from June 21 to July 4. He had eight multi-hit games, including a season-high three hits on July 19. He was placed on the disabled list on July 22 through the remainder of the season with a fractured right hand.
In , Halman showed his power potential by hitting 20 home runs combined for Everett and Single-A Wisconsin
. He was named to the Short-Season A and Northwest League
All-Star teams and was also named the Short-Season A Player of the Year. For , he was promoted to High-A High Desert
to start the season. After batting .268 with 19 home runs and 53 RBI in 67 games, he was promoted in 2009 to Double-A West Tennessee where he hit 10 more home runs. He ended the season with 29 total home runs and 31 stolen bases
, which led him to be named the Mariners' Minor League Player of the Year.
On September 22, 2010, Halman was called up by the Seattle Mariners along with four other players following the conclusion of the Tacoma Rainiers
season.
On June 3, 2011, Halman was called up to replace struggling outfielder Michael Saunders
, who was optioned to Triple-A Tacoma
. Halman hit his first home run in the big leagues on June 15 in a 3-1 victory over the Los Angeles Angels.
, English
, Spanish
, and Papiamento
. He grew up speaking Dutch and English and learned Spanish in 2005, his first year in the United States. He graduated from Mendel College in North Holland
in June 2004.
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
professional baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
outfielder
Outfielder
Outfielder is a generic term applied to each of the people playing in the three defensive positions in baseball farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder...
. He played with the Seattle Mariners
Seattle Mariners
The Seattle Mariners are a professional baseball team based in Seattle, Washington. Enfranchised in , the Mariners are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League. Safeco Field has been the Mariners' home ballpark since July...
of Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
during the and seasons. He also played internationally with the Dutch national team, playing in the 2009 World Baseball Classic
2009 World Baseball Classic
The 2009 World Baseball Classic was an international baseball competition. It is the only international baseball tournament to feature a large number of players from the major leagues of North America and Asia. It began on March 5, 2009, and finished March 23, 2009.Japan emerged victorious for the...
.
Netherlands
Halman made his debut at sixteen years of age at the Dutch major league team of Corendon Kinheim in HaarlemHaarlem
Haarlem is a municipality and a city in the Netherlands. It is the capital of the province of North Holland, the northern half of Holland, which at one time was the most powerful of the seven provinces of the Dutch Republic...
in 2003. Like his father, Eddy, and his younger brother, Jason, Greg played on the Dutch national baseball team. His sister, Naomi, is a college basketball player in the United States.
Halman played for the Netherlands in the 2009 World Baseball Classic
2009 World Baseball Classic
The 2009 World Baseball Classic was an international baseball competition. It is the only international baseball tournament to feature a large number of players from the major leagues of North America and Asia. It began on March 5, 2009, and finished March 23, 2009.Japan emerged victorious for the...
Seattle Mariners
Halman was signed as a non-drafted free agentFree agent
In professional sports, a free agent is a player whose contract with a team has expired and who is thus eligible to sign with another club or franchise....
by the Seattle Mariners
Seattle Mariners
The Seattle Mariners are a professional baseball team based in Seattle, Washington. Enfranchised in , the Mariners are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League. Safeco Field has been the Mariners' home ballpark since July...
on June 26, 2004. He participated in the 2004 Mariners Arizona Instructional League playing for the Peoria Javelinas
Peoria Javelinas
The Peoria Javelinas, established in 1992, are a baseball team that plays in the West Division of the Arizona Fall League. The Javelinas play their home games in the Peoria Sports Complex in Peoria, Arizona, which is a spring training site for both the San Diego Padres and the Seattle Mariners.For...
.
He began his professional career in by playing 26 games with the rookie-level Arizona League Mariners. He played all three outfield positions. He recorded a season-high three RBIs on July 9 against the Arizona League Royals
Arizona League Royals
The Arizona League Royals are a minor league baseball team in Surprise, Arizona, USA. They are a Class R team in the Arizona League and have been a farm team of the Kansas City Royals since 2003. The Royals play home games at Surprise Stadium. Opened in 2002, Surprise Stadium seats 10,500...
. He went 4 for 5 with a run and first career home run on July 10 against the Arizona League Giants. Halman hit .438 against lefties, compared to .219 against right-handed pitchers. He participated in the 2005 Arizona Instructional League.
In 2006, he hit
Batting average
Batting average is a statistic in both cricket and baseball that measures the performance of cricket batsmen and baseball hitters. The two statistics are related in that baseball averages are directly descended from the concept of cricket averages.- Cricket :...
.259 with 5 home run
Home run
In baseball, a home run is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to reach home safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team in the process...
s and 15 RBI
Run batted in
Runs batted in or RBIs is a statistic used in baseball and softball to credit a batter when the outcome of his at-bat results in a run being scored, except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play. The first team to track RBI was the Buffalo Bisons.Common nicknames for an RBI...
in 28 games for the Low-A Everett AquaSox
Everett AquaSox
The Everett AquaSox are a minor league baseball team in Everett, Washington, USA. They are a Short-Season A classification team in the Northwest League, of which they are the current defending champions...
. He finished 3rd on the team with 10 stolen bases. He hit safely in 21 of 28 games. He recorded a season-high 12-game hit streak, batting .309 from June 21 to July 4. He had eight multi-hit games, including a season-high three hits on July 19. He was placed on the disabled list on July 22 through the remainder of the season with a fractured right hand.
In , Halman showed his power potential by hitting 20 home runs combined for Everett and Single-A Wisconsin
Wisconsin Timber Rattlers
The Wisconsin Timber Rattlers are a minor league baseball team of the Midwest League, and the Class A affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers. They are located in Grand Chute, Wisconsin, and are named for timber rattlesnakes. The team plays its home games at Time Warner Cable Field at Fox Cities Stadium...
. He was named to the Short-Season A and Northwest League
Northwest League
The Northwest League of Professional Baseball is a Class A-Short Season minor baseball league. The league is the descendant of the Western International League which ran as a class B league from 1937-1951 and class A from 1952-1954...
All-Star teams and was also named the Short-Season A Player of the Year. For , he was promoted to High-A High Desert
High Desert Mavericks
The High Desert Mavericks are a minor league baseball team in Adelanto, California, USA. Their Major League parent club is the Seattle Mariners. They are a Class A - Advanced team in the California League and had been a farm team of the Kansas City Royals since 2005 before the switch...
to start the season. After batting .268 with 19 home runs and 53 RBI in 67 games, he was promoted in 2009 to Double-A West Tennessee where he hit 10 more home runs. He ended the season with 29 total home runs and 31 stolen bases
Stolen base
In baseball, a stolen base occurs when a baserunner successfully advances to the next base while the pitcher is delivering the ball to home plate...
, which led him to be named the Mariners' Minor League Player of the Year.
On September 22, 2010, Halman was called up by the Seattle Mariners along with four other players following the conclusion of the Tacoma Rainiers
Tacoma Rainiers
The Tacoma Rainiers are a minor league baseball team that plays in the Pacific Coast League , and are the Triple-A affiliate of the Seattle Mariners...
season.
On June 3, 2011, Halman was called up to replace struggling outfielder Michael Saunders
Michael Saunders
Michael Edward Saunders is a Canadian Major League Baseball left fielder for the Seattle Mariners. He is a left-handed hitting, right-handed throwing outfielder...
, who was optioned to Triple-A Tacoma
Tacoma Rainiers
The Tacoma Rainiers are a minor league baseball team that plays in the Pacific Coast League , and are the Triple-A affiliate of the Seattle Mariners...
. Halman hit his first home run in the big leagues on June 15 in a 3-1 victory over the Los Angeles Angels.
Personal life
Halman spoke four languages, DutchDutch language
Dutch is a West Germanic language and the native language of the majority of the population of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, the three member states of the Dutch Language Union. Most speakers live in the European Union, where it is a first language for about 23 million and a second...
, English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
, and Papiamento
Papiamento
Papiamento is the most widely spoken language on the Caribbean ABC islands, having the official status on the islands of Aruba and Curaçao. The language is also recognized on Bonaire by the Dutch government....
. He grew up speaking Dutch and English and learned Spanish in 2005, his first year in the United States. He graduated from Mendel College in North Holland
North Holland
North Holland |West Frisian]]: Noard-Holland) is a province situated on the North Sea in the northwest part of the Netherlands. The provincial capital is Haarlem and its largest city is Amsterdam.-Geography:...
in June 2004.