| Hensley Meulens | |
|---|---|
 Meulens in 2011 | |
| Outfielder /Coach | |
| Born: (1967-06-23)June 23, 1967 (age 58) Willemstad,Curaçao | |
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
| Professional debut | |
| MLB: August 23, 1989, for the New York Yankees | |
| NPB: April 9, 1994, for the Chiba Lotte Marines | |
| KBO: 2000, for the SK Wyverns | |
| Last appearance | |
| NPB: October 2, 1996, for the Yakult Swallows | |
| MLB: May 14, 1998, for the Arizona Diamondbacks | |
| KBO: 2000, for the SK Wyverns | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .220 |
| Home runs | 15 |
| Runs batted in | 53 |
| NPB statistics | |
| Batting average | .246 |
| Home runs | 77 |
| Runs batted in | 216 |
| KBO statistics | |
| Batting average | .196 |
| Home runs | 1 |
| Runs batted in | 3 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
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| Career highlights and awards | |
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Hensley Filemon Acasio Meulens (Papiamento pronunciation:[ˈhɛnsliˈmʏiləns]; born June 23, 1967), nicknamed "Bam Bam", is aCuraçaoan professionalbaseballcoach and former player. He most recently was the hitting coach for theColorado Rockies ofMajor League Baseball (MLB).[1] Meulens was also the longtime manager of theNetherlands national baseball team, from 2013 to 2023.[2]
A native ofCuraçao, he played from1989 to2000 in MLB,Nippon Professional Baseball, and theKBO League. He was the first Curaçaoan to play in both MLB and theDominican Professional Baseball League.[3]
Hitting home runs left-handed while playing softball as a teenager earned Meulens the nickname "Bam Bam" when his friends compared his power to theFlintstones cartoon character.[4]
Hensley Meulens was signed by the Yankees as an undrafted free agent in 1985. After struggling in his first professional season in 1986 with theGulf Coast Yankees, Meulens made a splash in 1987 with Single-APrince William, hitting .300 with 28 HR and 103 RBI, also being named to theCarolina League All-Star team. His hitting cooled somewhat in 1988 and 1989 as he split time between the Double-AAlbany-Colonie Yankees of the Eastern League and the Triple-AColumbus Clippers of theInternational League.
His bat rebounded in 1990 for Columbus as he helped lead the team to the 1990International League championships (where they ultimately lost toRochester), hitting .285 with 26 HR and 96 RBI, and was named the 1990 International League MVP. Meulens' impressive 1990 season earned him a spot on the Yankees roster in 1991,[5] but he was back in Columbus in 1992 to help lead the Clippers to theGovernors' Cup Championship.
Meulens made his major league debut with theNew York Yankees on August 23, 1989. Meulens never attained a permanent spot on the New York lineup, despite spending the entire 1991 season on the Yankees roster. Averaging a strike-out every three at bats, Meulensplatooned in left field withMel Hall. He saw limited action with the Yankees in late-season call-ups in 1992 and 1993.
In November 1993, the Yankees sold Meulens' contract to theChiba Lotte Marines ofNippon Professional Baseball,[6] where he spent the 1994 season, hitting 23home runs, driving in 69 runs, while accumulating 135strikeouts to go with a .248 AVG. The following season, Meulens signed with theYakult Swallows, helping lead them to the1995 Japan Series championship after hitting 29 home runs and totaling 80 RBI. He was back again in 1996 hitting 25 homers to go with 67 RBI.
He returned to North America in 1997, and after an unsuccessful tryout with theAtlanta Braves,[7][8] he reached the Majors again briefly playing with theMontreal Expos (while having a good season for the Expos' AAA affiliateOttawa Lynx) andArizona Diamondbacks.
Unable to secure a contract with a major league team in 1999, Meulens signed with theNewark Bears of the independentAtlantic League.[9] He made one last stop in Asia, playing 14 games with theSK Wyverns of theKBO League, batting only .196, before heading his professional playing career to theMexican League with theSaraperos de Saltillo in 2001 and finally retiring, in 2002, after a mid-season injury while playing with thePericos de Puebla.
Meulens represented theNetherlands at the2000 Summer Olympics inSydney, Australia. His 4th-inning double gave the Cuban team their first Olympic loss in 21 games.[10] Ultimately, the Netherlands took fifth place in the final standings.
Meulens also played for the Dutch team in the2001 Baseball World Cup inTaichung, Taiwan and 2002 Intercontinental Cup inHavana, Cuba.
Meulens began his coaching career with theBluefield Orioles for the 2003 and 2004 seasons. From2005-2008, he was the hitting coach of theIndianapolis Indians, the Triple-A affiliate of thePittsburgh Pirates,[11][12] also coaching in theArizona Fall League for thePeoria Saguaros in 2005 and theHawaii Winter Baseball league for theHonolulu Sharks in the 2006 off-season. In 2009, Meulens served as hitting coach for theFresno Grizzlies, the Triple–A affiliate of theSan Francisco Giants of thePacific Coast League.[13]
Meulens reached theMajor League ranks as batting coach in 2010, serving as hitting coach for theSan Francisco Giants following the firing of previous hitting coachCarney Lansford.[14] He helped the Giants win a World Series in three of his first five years. In November 2017, Meulens became one of six candidates interviewed by theNew York Yankees for their vacant manager position, following the decision not to renew the contract ofJoe Girardi. The other candidates wereCarlos Beltran,Aaron Boone,Rob Thomson,Eric Wedge andChris Woodward.
Meulens also runs the Dutch Antilles Baseball Academy inCuraçao.[15]He is reportedly interested in starting a baseball league in Curaçao in association with Major League Baseball's RBI Program.
Meulens was named bench coach of theNew York Mets on December 8, 2019, for the 2020 season.[16] Meulens was fired after the season and was replaced byDave Jauss.[17]
Meulens returned to theNetherlands national team as a coach for the2004 Summer Olympics and the2009 World Baseball Classic. Meulens was named to serve as manager for the team during the2013 World Baseball Classic.[18] Meulens managed the Netherlands in the2020 Olympic Baseball Qualifier, where the Dutch team failed to qualify to the Olympics.[19] After a disappointing showing at the2023 World Baseball Classic, Meulens was dismissed as the Netherlands manager in December 2023.[2]
On February 28, 2022, theNew York Yankees announced that Meulens would serve as assistant hitting coach.[20]
On November 7, 2022, theColorado Rockies announced that they had hired Meulens as their hitting coach starting with the 2023 season.[21] The Rockies fired him on April 17, 2025.[22]
Meulens is married to Gyselle Meulens Petronia and has four daughters, 2 from a previous marriage—Marilise Aimee Meulens-Pasquaretta, Danielle Marie Antonia Meulens-Ebecilio, Mia Valentina Turya, and Evangelina Cristina Vuri. In addition to the two daughters he has with his wife, Gyselle, he also has a son, Elijah Gabriel Ludwig.
Meulens speaks five languages:English,Spanish,Dutch,Papiamento andJapanese.[23]
On April 27, 2012, Meulens was awarded the order of Knight in theOrder of Orange-Nassau byQueen Beatrix. A ceremony was held atAT&T Park on July 13, 2012, where he was introduced as 'Sir' Hensley Meulens. The award ceremony highlighted his role in victory by The Netherlands in the2011 Baseball World Cup.
In April 2024, an investigation was launched by theFederal Aviation Administration for unauthorized entry to thecockpit of aUnited Airlines flightchartered by theColorado Rockies en route toToronto on April 10. Meulens had posted (and later deleted) a video onInstagram in which he was shown in a pilot's seat while the plane was onautopilot, and included a caption thanking the captain and first officer.[24] Meulens later issued an apology to the Rockies organization and to United Airlines.[25]
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