Baseball is filled with traditional powerhouses like the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Venezuela, Japan, and the United States. Yet one of the most surprising success stories in the game comes from Curaçao, a small Caribbean island that is part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Despite having a population of only about 150,000, Curaçao has sent fewer than 20 players to Major League Baseball. What makes this remarkable is that several of those players did not just make rosters, they became stars who shaped the game.
The island’s rise in baseball is not simply about statistics. It reflects a mix of culture, passion, and resilience. From its first trailblazers to today’s generation of standouts, Curaçao has built a reputation that continues to capture attention across the world of sports. A reddit thread looked upon it with fans filling in with what Curaçao has given to baseball till date.
From Hensley Meulens to Andruw Jones
The roots of Curaçao’s baseball rise go back to Hensley “Bam Bam” Meulens, the first major leaguer from the island. As one fan recalled, “He was signed as a teenager by a scout who went to school with his godfather. The godfather convinced the scout to look at Meulens, and he signed him.”
Meulens did not become a superstar, but he opened the door. Scouts kept coming back and soon discovered Andruw Jones. His success in the 1990s changed everything as baseball participation exploded from around 200 kids in 1993 to more than 1,000 during Jones’s rookie year. Curaçao’s youth teams quickly became contenders at the Little League World Series. The island’s Pabao Little League in Willemstad quickly became a powerhouse and from 2003 to 2009, Pabao made seven straight trips to the LLWS, winning the Caribbean regional championship year after year.
Many of the players who reached the LLWS during Curaçao’s incredible run in the 2000s were part of that Jones-inspired wave. One person wrote, “In the 90s the oldtimers were saying that Andruw and Willie Mays were close competition for best defensive CF ever.”
The New Generation: Profar, Albies, and Simmons
Today, Curaçao continues to send stars to the majors. Jurickson Profar, once considered the number one prospect in baseball, was an All-Star starter in 2024. One said, “A kid who wins the little league series has to dream that one day they’ll make it to the show. He does, as the number 1 prospect. Grinds and hustles but never quite put it all together until now. All starfar.”
Alongside Profar are stars like Ozzie Albies, one of the most popular players in the game today, and Andrelton Simmons, widely regarded as perhaps the best defensive shortstop of his generation. And then there is Kenley Jansen, the longtime closer who may one day reach the Hall of Fame. While fans debated if he deserves the title of greatest closer ever, most agree his consistency has been remarkable. “He’s literally never had a 4 ERA season in his career,” one commenter pointed out.
More Than Baseball: Pride, Culture, and Connection
What makes Curaçao special is not just the talent, but the pride people feel for their players. Fans share personal stories that show how much baseball is part of the island’s identity. One traveler remembered stepping off a plane in 2002 and being told he looked like Sidney Ponson. “They had a mural of Andruw Jones in the airport too. Beautiful country, beautiful people,” he recalled.
Another fan who honeymooned there said, “Their main stadium is right in the middle of downtown Willemstad. Highly recommend it to anyone considering it, one of the friendliest places I’ve ever been and really safe.”
Even beyond sports, Curaçao fascinates visitors with its culture and history. Someone noted how the island supplies most of its water through a desalinization system built years ago and how it blends Caribbean charm with Dutch influence. At the same time, Curaçao’s baseball story carries weight in the larger world of international competition. As one person reminded, “This is why you don’t sleep on the Netherlands in the WBC.”
