Greg Halman
From BR Bullpen
Gregory A. Halman
- Bats Right, Throws Right
- Height 6' 4", Weight 192 lb.
- High School Mendel College
- Born August 26, 1987 in Haarlem The Netherlands
Greg Halman was the Hoofdklasse MVP in 2004 and the Seattle Mariners minor league MVP in 2008. He is the son of Eddy Halman and the brother of Jason Halman.
Gregory speaks four languages (Dutch, Spanish, English, Papiamento), but had some trouble getting passing grades in school as his attention was focused on baseball.
Halman debuted professionally at age 16, making a splash. Playing for Kinheim, he led Hoofdklasse Honkbal with six triples. He was signed by the Minnesota Twins but the contract was dissolved at his request.
The next year, he was even better, almost winning a Triple Crown. He hit .3576, .0034 behind leader Sidney de Jong and also trailing Dirk van 't Klooster by .0008 and Brian Larmonie by .002. He was 6th in runs (28), second in hits (54, three behind van 't Klooster), tied four others for the triple lead (4), tied Bryan Engelhardt for the home run lead (4) and drove in 41, 3 more than runner-up Dè Flanegin. For his efforts, the first baseman won the MVP Award. He also won the Ron Fraser Award. He hit for the cycle as well, against Sparta/Feyenoord on May 15. Seven MLB teams bid for his services and he chose the Seattle Mariners, who offered a 7-year deal.
Halman debuted in Organized Baseball in 2005, hitting .258/.350/.404 for the AZL Mariners. At age 19, he batted .258/.295/.509 for the Everett AquaSox with half of his 30 hits going for extra bases (6 doubles, 4 triples, 5 HR) in 28 games. He fractured his right hand in late July and missed the rest of the year.
Gregory has struggled in his first full-season minor league in the USA. Through June 12, he was hitting .182/.234/.273 for the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers with 8 walks and 77 strikeouts in 187 AB. He had stolen 15 bases in 22 tries to tie him for 8th in the MWL but he was third in strikeouts, two away from the lead. When short-season play began, he was sent back to Everett. He hit .307/.371/.597 with 16 homers in 62 games for Everett, though he struck out 82 times in 238 AB. He led the Northwest League in slugging, was second in strikeouts and homers (one behind leader Ian Gac), tied for 6th in stolen bases (16 in 24 tries) and was 8th in average. The next-closest player in slugging percentage was 52 points behind. He also led NWL outfielders with a .990 fielding percentage. He made the league All-Star team. Halman finished tied for 4th in the affiliated minors with 162 strikeouts, tying Chris Dickerson. Baseball America rated him as the #8 prospect in the Northwest League that season.
In the 2007 European Championship, Halman batted .357/.438/.429 for the Gold Medal Dutch team that qualified for the 2008 Olympics with their title. Halman hit .214/.353/.286 for the Netherlands in the 2007 Baseball World Cup and struggled in the field with two errors in 16 chances. He had two other miscues that went for a double and a triple, one because he was not wearing sunglasses during a day game. He did help out by doubling in the winning run in the 11th inning against the host Taiwan national team in the quarterfinals.
Halman split 2008 between the High Desert Mavericks (.268/.320/.572, 19 HR, 52 R, 53 RBI in 67 G) and the West Tenn Diamond Jaxx (.277/.332/.481, 10 HR in 61 G). He had 10 outfield assists and stole 31 bases in 38 tries. He led all Mariners farmhands in home runs and was named the organization's minor league MVP. Baseball America rated him as the #13 prospect in the California League. In the Arizona Fall League, he struggled, hitting .217/.244/.410 with 37 K in 83 AB.
Greg split center field duties for the Dutch team in the 2009 World Baseball Classic with Eugène Kingsale. Halman struggled in the event, going just 1 for 11 with a run, a double play ball and 9 strikeouts as the worst hitter on the Dutch squad. Greg tied Yurendell de Caster for third in the tourney in strikeouts, one behind Adam Dunn and Michihiro Ogasawara. Greg scored the only Dutch run in their 3-1 loss to Puerto Rico, doubling off Ian Snell and scoring on a hit by de Caster.
Sources: Honkbalsite.com, MILB.com, 2007 Mariners Press Guide, Marco Stoovelaar's website, AquaSox article on Halman, Mister Baseball European Baseball news site, IBAF site, World Baseball Classic, 2009 Baseball Almanac
