Fred van Groningen Schinkel

Fred van Groningen Schinkel was an umpire for 46 years in Hoofdklasse (1972-2018), a record. He won the first CEB Umpire of the Year Award, in 2007. He has umpired 78 international competitions from 1973 through early 2008, including in the 1996 Olympics and 2004 Olympics as well as four Baseball World Cups and the 2006 World Baseball Classic. He has also been an umpire in 9 European Championships, 3 Intercontinental Cups, 15 Haarlem Baseball Weeks, 11 World Port Tournaments and more than 20 European Cups. In June 2006, van Groningen Schinkel became the first umpire to call 1,000 games in Hoofdklasse, topping 1,200. His son Stenar van Groningen Schinkel has also umpired in the Hoofdklasse. He was inducted into the Dutch Baseball and Softball Hall of Fame in a class with Robert Eenhoorn in 2018. He was the 4th inductee chosen primarily for their umpiring and first since Piet Schijvenaar in 1989.