The Blue Jays may have found their next catcher

While much of the Blue Jays' international free-agent attention has been on shortstop Christopher Polanco, Keegan Pieternella might just be their most intriguing signing.

The young catcher from Curaçao Neptunus in Rotterdam signed with the Blue Jays earlier this week, adding another promising prospect to the pipeline.

Neptunus is the most successful team in the Netherlands' Honkbal Hoofdklasse , the top level of professional baseball in the country. Pieternella trained at their youth academy and made his debut at just 16 years old. He also played for the U18 Kingdom of the Netherlands team, which finished sixth in the 2023 World Cup.

While Neptunus has Curaçao in its name due to a sponsorship arrangement, the team is actually based in Rotterdam, the second-largest city in the Netherlands, located in the province of South Holland.

Pieternella was one of four youth players signed from the Kingdom of the Netherlands this year. Two Arubans-outfielder Djean Macares and shortstop Kaden Hernandez-signed with the Giants and Padres, respectively. San Francisco also signed pitcher Jeremiah Jones from Sint Maarten.

Pieternella is not the first Dutch player to be signed by the Blue Jays. Recent additions from the Kingdom include Diegomar Markwell, Jiorgeny Casimiri, and Sem Robberse.

The Kingdom of the Netherlands has a rich baseball history, thanks in large part to its Caribbean territories. Curaçao alone has produced major leaguers like Andruw Jones, Ozzie Albies, Kenley Jansen, and Jurickson Profar, while Aruba is home to Xander Bogaerts.

The Netherlands itself boasts Win Remmerswaal, the first European-trained player to reach the majors, and Bert Blyleven, the first Dutch-born player inducted into the Hall of Fame.

Pieternella is one of five international free-agent catchers the Blue Jays signed this year, and his development will be one to watch closely.

SOURCE - Honkbal Softball