Leon Boyd (born August 30, 1983) is a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

-born

Dutch Dutch or Nederlands commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands ** Dutch people as an ethnic group () ** Dutch nationality law, history and regulations of Dutch citizenship () ** Dutch language () * In specific terms, i ...

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

player currently playing for

Corendon Kinheim Kinheim is a baseball and softball club based in Haarlem, the Netherlands. Kinheim's top baseball team plays in the Honkbal Hoofdklasse, the top level of professional baseball in the Netherlands. The club's most successful period was in the ...

in 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 overseen by the Royal Netherlands Baseball and Softball Federation (KNBSB). Games are pl ...

. He is most often recognized for his accomplishments for the Dutch national team at the

2009 World Baseball Classic The 2009 World Baseball Classic (WBC) was an International Baseball Federation, international baseball competition. It began on March 5 and finished March 23. Unlike in 2006 World Baseball Classic, 2006, when the Round-robin tournament, round- ...

Baseball career

B.C. Premier Baseball League

Boyd was a starting pitcher for the White Rock Tritons of the

British Columbia Premier Baseball League The British Columbia Premier Baseball League, commonly referred to as the BCPBL or the PBL, is a competitive youth baseball league consisting of 13 teams located throughout British Columbia, Canada. Over the years, the BCPBL has served as a tal ...

for three seasons.

College career

Boyd began his

college baseball College baseball is baseball that is played by Student athlete, student-athletes at institutions of higher education. In the United States, college baseball is sanctioned mainly by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA); in Japan, ...

career playing for the

Treasure Valley Community College Treasure Valley Community College is a Public college, public community college in Ontario, Oregon, at the western edge of the Treasure Valley. Its service area is sections of Malheur County, Oregon, Malheur and Baker County, Oregon, Baker co ...

Ontario, Oregon Ontario is the largest city in Malheur County, Oregon, Malheur County, Oregon, United States. It lies along the Snake River at the Idaho border. The population was 11,645 at the 2020 censusThe city is the largest community in the region of far ea ...

, during the season. He played only one season for the Chukars before transferring to Seminole State Community College in

Oklahoma Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

for the season. He would transfer again in , this time to play for the

Armstrong Atlantic State University Armstrong may refer to: Places * Armstrong Creek (disambiguation), various places * Armstrong River (disambiguation), various rivers Antarctica * Armstrong Reef, Biscoe Islands Argentina * Armstrong, Santa Fe Australia * Armstrong, Victori ...

Pirates. He played two seasons for the Pirates in 2004 and where he was used exclusively as a relief pitcher. Over these two seasons, he appeared in 34 games and compiled a 3.44

ERA An era is a span of time. Era or ERA may also refer to: * Era (geology), a subdivision of geologic time * Calendar era Education * Academy of European Law (German: '), an international law school * ERA School, in Melbourne, Australia * E ...

with 104

strikeouts In baseball or softball, a strikeout (or strike-out) occurs when a batter accumulates three strikes during a time at bat. It means the batter is out, unless the third strike is not caught by the catcher and the batter reaches first base safe ...

in 115

innings pitched In baseball, the statistic innings pitched (IP) is the number of innings a pitcher has completed, measured by the number of Batter (baseball), batters and baserunners that have been put out while the pitcher is on the Baseball field#Pitcher's mou ...

2006: Hoboken Pioneers

Despite his Dutch family ties and a strong desire to play baseball in the Netherlands, Boyd was not pursued by any Hoofdklasse clubs, even after numerous attempts to contact them after his college career was over. Instead, he went on to play for the

Hoboken Pioneers Hoboken ( ; ) is a city in Hudson County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Hoboken is part of the New York metropolitan area and is the site of Hoboken Terminal, a major transportation hub. As of the 2020 United States census, the city's popula ...

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

where he had an extremely successful season. Not only did he accumulate an 11–1 win–loss record with a 0.84 ERA and 156 strikeouts in just 96 innings pitched, but he also hit .421 with 2 home runs in 38 at bats for the Pioneers, who finished the season as the national runner up. Following his strong season in Belgium, Boyd was picked up by the Dutch national team to play in the

2006 Intercontinental Cup The 2006 IBAF Intercontinental Cup was held in Taichung, Taiwan from November 9 through the 19th. Eight countries contested the tournament, which was played at Taichung Baseball Field and the newly built Taichung Intercontinental Baseball Stadium ...

Taichung Taichung (, Wade–Giles: '), officially Taichung City, is a special municipality (Taiwan), special municipality in central Taiwan. Taichung is Taiwan's second-largest city, with more than 2.85 million residents, making it the largest city in Ce ...

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...

. Despite his 0–2 record, Boyd had a 2.63 ERA and led the Nethalnds in innings pitched. Against

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

, he took the loss in a 3–2 defeat where he allowed four hits and one run in IP of relief after replacing

Rob Cordemans Rob "Robbie" Cordemans (born October 31, 1974) is a Dutch former baseball player. He batted and threw righthanded. Cordemans is best known for representing the Dutch national team at the Olympics and other international competitions. He pitched ...

. Three days later, he allowed just one run in six innings against

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

but again lost as the Dutch were shut out. His final appearance of the tournament came against

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

, where he struck out 7 and allowed one run in six innings in a no-decision as the Netherlands won 4–3.

2007: DOOR Neptunus

After being scouted by and in contract talks with several hoofdklasse teams, Boyd signed with Neptunus. He made a debut during the

2007 2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year. Events January * January 1 **Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...

regular season when he posted a 9–0 record with no home runs allowed in over 66 innings. His statistical totals in wins (9, tied with tied Vaughan Harris and Diego Markwell for second-most), ERA (1.22, behind only relievers Duko Jansen and

Chris Ryan Colin Armstrong, (born 1961), usually known by the pen-name Chris Ryan, is a British author, television presenter, security consultant and former Special Air Service sergeant. After the publication of fellow patrol member Andy McNab's '' Brav ...

) and strikeouts (61, tied with former major leaguer Eddie Oropesa for sixth overall) were among the league leaders. He was a finalist for the Pitcher of the Year Award, but lost to David Bergman in part due to missing a month of the season with a back muscle strain. Despite his initial success, Boyd suffered two losses during the first round of the playoffs as Neptunus was upset by the

Pioniers Pioniers is a baseball and softball team based in Hoofddorp, the Netherlands. The club is currently sponsored by ''Worldwide Pharma Logistics,'' and the team is officially called Worldwide Pharma Logistics Hoofddorp Pioniers. Under previous spons ...

. In the

2007 World Port Tournament The 2007 World Port Tournament was an international baseball competition held at the DOOR Neptunus Familiestadion in Rotterdam, the Netherlands from August 2–12, 2007. It was the 11th edition of the tournament and featured teams from Chinese Ta ...

, Boyd earned the World Port Tournament Best Pitcher award, allowing only five hits in 15 IP and won twice, including a complete-game shutout of the Chinese Taipei National team facing only 28 batters. He was 2–0 with a 0.93 ERA in the 2007 European Baseball Championship, helping the Netherlands win Gold. He was with the team for the

2007 Baseball World Cup The 2007 Baseball World Cup (BWC) was the 37th international Men's amateur baseball tournament. The tournament was sanctioned by the International Baseball Federation, which titled it the Amateur World Series from the 1938 tournament through th ...

, going 1–1 with a 2.55 ERA and a team-high 14 strikeouts for the 4th-place squad. He had a solid game but received a no-decision against the Australian national team when closer

Michiel van Kampen Michiel van Kampen (born January 23, 1976) is a Dutch former baseball player who played for Kinheim and the Dutch national team. He was a relief pitcher in the Hoofdklasse who once set the appearances record and was MVP of the 2007 Holland Se ...

couldn't hold a 3–2 lead in the ninth. He had another appearance allowing one run in six innings in a crucial win over the South Korean national team and matched Tadashi Settsu (the eventual pitcher of the tournament) with five scoreless frames in the bronze medal game before allowing 2 runs in the 6th, and being shut out 5–0 by the Japanese.

2008: Beijing Olympics

On June 12, 2008, Boyd threw a no-hitter against the

Amsterdam Pirates SV Amsterdam Pirates, commonly referred to as Amsterdam Pirates, is a Dutch baseball and softball organization based in Amsterdam that plays in the Honkbal Hoofdklasse. It was founded as an expansion of the football club SV Rap on 17 February 1 ...

. He allowed two runs, one unearned, thanks to 3 walks, 2 hit batsmen and 3 errors by his team. Shortly thereafter, Boyd had a 4.50 ERA in the 2008 European Baseball Cup in

Regensburg Regensburg (historically known in English as Ratisbon) is a city in eastern Bavaria, at the confluence of the rivers Danube, Naab and Regen (river), Regen, Danube's northernmost point. It is the capital of the Upper Palatinate subregion of the ...

. He was knocked out early in a win against the host Buchbinder Legionäre and did not get a decision in the Cup. Head coach

Robert Eenhoorn Robert Franciscus Eenhoorn (born February 9, 1968) is a Dutch former professional baseball player and manager. He played four seasons of Major League Baseball as a utility infielder for the New York Yankees and California/Anaheim Angels. On S ...

selected Boyd to pitch for the Netherlands at the

2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and officially branded as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes fro ...

Beijing Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...

. In their second game of the tournament against the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, Boyd entered the game during the 8th inning with the bases loaded and one out after Dave Draijer was struck by a batted ball on the right forearm. He induced two groundouts, resulting in only a single run for the United States. He returned to pitch the top of the 9th inning, and after yielding a leadoff single to

Terry Tiffee Terry Ronald Tiffee (born April 21, 1979) is an American former professional baseball infielder. He played in Major League Baseball for the Minnesota Twins and Los Angeles Dodgers. Career Tiffee graduated from Sylvan Hills High School in and ...

, Boyd retired the next three batters, including Matt LaPorta by strikeout. However, a two-hour rain delay forced the game to be called during the Dutch half of the 9th inning. As a result Boyd's statistics during the 9th inning are unofficial, as the score reverted to the last completed inning. Boyd made his second appearance of the tournament on August 16, 2008, when he was the starting pitcher against

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

. He struck out six batters in six innings, yielding only six hits and two runs in the process. The win was the only victory the Dutch earned all tournament.

2009

World Baseball Classic

Boyd was selected once again to represent the Dutch national team at the

. Although he has primarily been a starter throughout his career, Boyd was asked by head coach Rod Delmonico to serve as the

closer Closer or Closers may refer to: Film and television * ''Closer'' (2000 film), a documentary by Tina Gharavi * ''Closer'' (2004 film), a 2004 adaptation of Patrick Marber's play (see below), directed by Mike Nichols * ''The Closer'', a 1990 mo ...

for the Netherlands. During the first round of the tournament held at

Hiram Bithorn Stadium Hiram Bithorn Stadium (Spanish: Estadio Hiram Bithorn) is a baseball park in San Juan, Puerto Rico, built in 1962 and designed by Puerto Rican architect Pedro Miranda. The stadium is home to the Cangrejeros de Santurce of the Puerto Rican Baseb ...

San Juan San Juan, Spanish for Saint John (disambiguation), Saint John, most commonly refers to: * San Juan, Puerto Rico * San Juan, Argentina * San Juan, Metro Manila, a highly urbanized city in the Philippines San Juan may also refer to: Places Arge ...

Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...

, Boyd entered three separate games during tense, late-inning pressure situations, including two of which he ended up as the

pitcher of record In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("Pitch (baseball), pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, ...

. In the Netherlands' first game of the tournament on March 7, 2009, against the heavily favored

Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles of the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean. It shares a Maritime boundary, maritime border with Puerto Rico to the east and ...

, Boyd pitched the 9th inning and earned the save with a game-ending strikeout of

José Bautista José Antonio Bautista Santos (born October 19, 1980), nicknamed "Joey Bats", is a Dominican former professional baseball right fielder and third baseman who played 15 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB), primarily for the Toronto Blue Jays. ...

. Two days later, he entered a game against

with the bases loaded and only one out in the 8th inning, only to give up a two-run double to

Yadier Molina Yadier Benjamín Molina (; born July 13, 1982) is a Puerto Rican professional baseball Manager (baseball), manager and former catcher who is the manager of the Águilas Cibaeñas of the Dominican Professional Baseball League. He played his entir ...

and an RBI-single to Jesus Feliciano. The very next day, Boyd rebounded to earn the win in a 2–1 extra-innings Dutch victory that eliminated the Dominicans from the tournament. Although the Dutch advanced to play in

Round 2 Round 2 may refer to: * ''Round 2'' (J. Holiday album), 2009 * ''Round 2'' (The Stylistics album), 1972 * Round 2 (company), a toy company based in Indiana, United States {{disambiguation ...

of the tournament at

Dolphin Stadium Hard Rock Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in the Southeastern United States, located in Miami Gardens, Florida. The stadium is the home field for the Miami Dolphins of the National Football League (NFL) and the Miami Hurricanes, the Universit ...

Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

, Boyd would not make his fourth appearance of the tournament until the 6th inning of an elimination game against the

. Despite giving up a home run to

Adam Dunn Adam Troy Dunn (born November 9, 1979), nicknamed "Big Donkey", is an American former professional baseball left fielder and first baseman. He played 14 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB), primarily for the Cincinnati Reds. A two-time Major L ...

, Boyd struck out both

David Wright David Allen Wright (born December 20, 1982) is an American former professional baseball third baseman who spent his entire 14-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career with the New York Mets. Chosen by the Mets in the 2001 Major League Baseball dr ...

and

Ryan Braun Ryan Joseph Braun (born November 17, 1983) is an American former professional baseball left fielder who played his entire career for the Milwaukee Brewers of Major League Baseball (MLB) from 2007 to 2020. Braun also played right fielder, right ...

in his one inning of relief.

New Hampshire Fisher Cats

Following his strong pitching performance in the tournament, Boyd was signed by the

Toronto Blue Jays The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Since 1989, the team has p ...

to a

minor-league Minor leagues are professional sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. Minor league teams tend to play in smaller, less elaborate venues, often competing in smaller cities/markets. This term is used in Nort ...

contract A contract is an agreement that specifies certain legally enforceable rights and obligations pertaining to two or more parties. A contract typically involves consent to transfer of goods, services, money, or promise to transfer any of thos ...

. Although he was temporarily reassigned to the

Dunedin Blue Jays The Dunedin Blue Jays are a Minor League Baseball team of the Florida State League and are the Single-A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays Major League Baseball club. They are located in Dunedin, Florida, and play their home games at TD Ballpark, ...

of the

Florida State League The Florida State League (FSL) is a Minor League Baseball league based in the state of Florida. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 until its demotion to Single-A following ...

for an 8-game appearance early in the year, Boyd played the bulk of the 2009 season as a member of the Jays AA-affiliate, the

New Hampshire Fisher Cats The New Hampshire Fisher Cats are a Minor League Baseball team based in Manchester, New Hampshire. The team, which plays in the Eastern League (1938–present), Eastern League, is the Double-A (baseball), Double-A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Ja ...

. He finished the year with a 1–6 win–loss record, a 4.76 ERA, 51 strikeouts and 6 saves in over 64 innings for the two clubs.

2010

The Blue Jays released Boyd in March 2010 and subsequently re-signed with Neptunus. According to Boyd, his release was affected by his high walk count and the Jays' trading of

Roy Halladay Harry Leroy Halladay III (May 14, 1977 – November 7, 2017) was an American professional baseball pitcher who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Toronto Blue Jays and Philadelphia Phillies between 1998 and 2013. His nickname, "Doc ...

to the

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. The Phillies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. Since 2004, the team's home stadium has ...

in December 2009. With the release of Roy Halladay the Blue Jays brought in many potential bottom rotation, triple A caliber potential big league replacements.

2013

He joined the Dutch National team for the

2013 World Baseball Classic The 2013 World Baseball Classic (WBC) was an international professional baseball competition, held from March 2 to 19, 2013. This was the third iteration of the WBC, following the two previous tournaments, held in 2006 and 2009. Unlike the tw ...

Personal life

Growing up, Boyd attended high school at

Earl Marriott Secondary School Earl Marriott Secondary (EMS) is a public high school in the Vancouver suburb of Surrey, British Columbia, Canada and is part of School District 36 Surrey. It is referred to as the 'Home of the Mariners'. It is located on the edge of city limits, ...

South Surrey South Surrey is a community within the City of Surrey, British Columbia, located on the Semiahmoo peninsula in the southern portion of the City of Surrey, sharing a border with the City of White Rock. Neighbourhoods of South Surrey include Cresc ...

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

. Although he was born in Canada, Leon received his Dutch passport in December, 2005, as a result of his mother being born and raised in the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

. Boyd's father, Sean, played ice hockey in the Netherlands from 1971 to 1974 and met Leon's mother, Wilma, there. Boyd married American

softball Softball is a Variations of baseball, variation of baseball, the difference being that it is played with a larger ball, on a smaller field, and with only underhand pitches (where the ball is released while the hand is primarily below the ball) ...

player Jeana Short on March 8, 2008. He has an older sister, Nadine.

References

External links

Boyd's profile at honkbalsite.com

Globe and Mail articleMinor League Baseball
{{DEFAULTSORT:Boyd, Leon 1983 births Living people Baseball people from Vancouver Baseball players at the 2008 Summer Olympics Canadian people of Dutch descent Canadian expatriate baseball players in the United States Dunedin Blue Jays players Dutch expatriate baseball players in the United States New Hampshire Fisher Cats players Olympic baseball players for the Netherlands 2007 European Baseball Championship players 2009 World Baseball Classic players 2010 European Baseball Championship players 2013 World Baseball Classic players Corendon Kinheim players DOOR Neptunus players Treasure Valley Chukars baseball players Seminole State Trojans baseball players Armstrong State Pirates baseball players Naturalised citizens of the Netherlands