Sim Ruts

Sim Ruts

• Bats Right, Throws Right

• Born January 20, 1987

Sim Ruts has been both an outfielder and pitcher in the Belgian First Division.

Ruts debuted with the 2003 Mortsel Stars at age 16, hitting .239/.280/.282. In 2004, he batted .206/.324/.333 for Mortsel and was 0-3 with 3 saves and a 8.24 ERA, walking 27 in 19 2/3 IP. In 2004, he hit .308/.384/.369, starting to catch up to the league's older players. During '05, Ruts improved to 3-0 with a save and a 1.84 ERA despite 26 walks in 29 1/3 IP (he fanned 33) after a year of not pitching; he hit .212/.323/.282.

In 2006, Sim went 2-3 with 3 saves and a 6.67 ERA with 36 walks in 28 1/3 IP. He batted .327/.413/.404. The next year, he was strictly a position player, hitting .358/.412/.453. During 2008, Ruts batted .298/.424/.404 and was 0-1 with two runs in 5 2/3 IP.

Ruts played for the Belgian national team in the 2008 European Championship Qualifiers. The 21-year-old was 2 for 10 with a double, 3 runs and 3 RBI. He also pitched a shutout inning of relief for a save against Austria after replacing Terrence Antonacci on the hill.

Moving to the Brasschaat Braves in 2009, Ruts hit .312/.367/.344 with 10 steals in 11 tries and allowed six runs in 11 2/3 IP.

Sources

• First Division statistics
• CEB website