Arij Fransen

Arij Fransen

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 4", Weight 215 lb.

• Born May 20, 2001 in Deventer, Overijssel Netherlands

BR register page

Biographical Information

Arij Fransen has pitched for the Dutch national team.

Fransen was 1-0 with a 2.25 ERA in the 2018 U18 European Championship, helping the Netherlands win; he got the victory over Czechia. He made his Hoofdklasse debut in 2019, going 1-1 with four saves and a 4.91 ERA for HCAW. He tied Berry van Driel for 5th in the Hoofdklasse in saves. That year, he was signed by Cincinnati Reds scouts Evert-Jan 't Hoen and Trey Hendricks.

In the 2019 U-18 Baseball World Cup, he pitched 2 2/3 shutout innings (1 H, 0 BB), saving Luuk ter Beek's win over Nicaragua and Chris Stuart's win over Australia. He tied Chien Yu and Kieren Hall for the event lead in saves. The 2020 minor league season was wiped out by the COVID-19 pandemic, but Fransen did get to play back in the Netherlands, where the season was shortened. He allowed four hits and one run in nine innings, going 1-0 with four saves. He was second in the 2020 Hoofdklasse in saves, one behind Gio de Graauw (his teammate in the 2019 U-18 Baseball World Cup).

The right-hander was a late addition to the Dutch team for the 2021 Final Olympic Qualifier after Orlando Yntema got hurt. He was the event's youngest player; Julio Rodríguez and Sean Mendoza were next, having been born in 2000. Arij got into one game, relieving former major leaguer Shairon Martis with a 7-1 deficit in the 9th against Venezuela, the bases loaded and one out. He did better than the ex-big leaguer. After hitting Cristian Pérez to force in a run, he got Alexi Amarista on a sacrifice fly and retired veteran major leaguer Hernán Pérez.