Tom Janssen

• Born September 19, 1980

Biographical Information

Tom Janssen played for the Belgian national team, as did his father Marc Janssen.

Tom debuted in the First Division as a teenager, going 0-1 with a 8.44 ERA for the Antwerp Royal Greys and going 1 for 7 at the plate in 1996. He was 1-2 with a 4.50 ERA in 1997 and went 6 for 15 with a double. In 1998, he hit .446/.493/.602 while posting a 2-5, 9.22 record. His 20 wild pitches were third in the league. He fell to .260/.372/.325 on offense in 1999 and 1-1, 12.33 on the hill. In 2000, he moved to the Brasschaat Braves and had his best two-way campaign, hitting .404/.491/.563 and going 2-0 with a 1.73 ERA. His 40 runs tied Steven De Lannoy for 6th in the league.

Janssen batted .283/.358/.391 for the 2001 Braves and was 3-1 with a 7.17 ERA. Brasschaat won the title, his lone time on a championship team in the First Division. He also made Belgium's squad for the 2001 European Championship. His lone game came against powerhouse Italy. He lasted 3 2/3 IP and allowed 9 hits, 4 walks, 3 wild pitches, a hit batsmen and 10 runs (6 earned) while striking out one before Thierry Parduyns relieved. Only Johnny Peerens (another second-generation Belgian national team member) had a higher ERA for the team.

Moving to the Borgerhout Squirrels for 2002, he hit .315/.455/.315 and was 6-2 with a 3.77 ERA. He was 5th in the league in ERA and tied for 8th in wins. He was 2-0 with a 3.71 ERA for the 2003 Squirrels but walked 17 in 17 innings; he hit .242/.390/.323. He did not play in 2004-2006, returned to Brasschaat in 2007 (.140/.259/.180; 0-1, 3.44) and then resurfaced briefly in 2009 (2 for 15, 2 BB).