Hensley Meulens, also known as ‘BamBam’, is the first baseball player from Curaçao to play in Major League Baseball. At the age of 18, he started his international career and has gained the admiration and respect of Curaçao ever since. For 10 years he was the batting coach of San Francisco Giants and won three World Series championships with his team. Definitely a milestone! We had an enjoyable interview with Hensley, who is living on the island for the time being. We talked about the start of his baseball career, the memorable experiences and his future projects. All we can say is, Hensley does not stand still and is ready to provide his island with educational and entertaining projects.
“By the time I reached my teenage years, baseball was a big part of my life. I used to play in the Santa Rosa team and at the age of 15, I already got scouted for the first time. Dick Groch, who was working as a New York Yankees’ scout, visited my games three years in a row. When I reached the age of 18 in 1989, it was time to sign for the Yankees and leave the island,” Hensley says at the beginning of the interview.
Nowadays we can notice different young baseball players from Curaçao being offered a deal in an international baseball team. Our island definitely has the magical touch to produce so many Major League Baseball players. “Back then it was completely different. If I compare the situation nowadays and my experience, I can definitely conclude that I am a late bloomer. They waited till my 18th to sign, nowadays the guys receive a contract at the age of 16” he continues.
Despite a population of just 160,000 Curaçao has sent 16 players to the big leagues since the year 1989, the most per capita of any country. Nowadays the island has several active big leaguers; Ozzie Albies, Kenley Jansen, Didi Gregorius, Jonathan Schoop, JuricksonProfar and Andrelton Simmons. “In spite of the circumstances, we made it far in the baseball industry. We need to stand still to the fact that the coaching procedure is not ideal on our island. Being a baseball coach here means having a voluntary job. Unfortunately, it is not a professional task. This is also the reason we started 9 years ago with the Curaçao Baseball Week. Kids that are part of a baseball team can participate at different clinics and they also have the opportunity to learn from our baseball legends. We give these kids the best tools so they can improve their techniques and there are dedicated coach seminars especially for our local baseball coaches. This is how we want to give back to our country and every year it has been a huge success! The kids are excited, the players are thrilled and the coaches are enthusiastic. This gives us the boost to continue working on this project and to make it bigger every year. Because of the pandemic, we had to skip this year but in January 2022 we will be ready to battle! I cannot divulge more information, but the next Baseball Week will be something extraordinary!” he says with a huge smile.
Inhabitants of Curaçao admire and respect Hensley for not only being the 1st MLB player from the island, but also for winning 3 World Series championships with the San Francisco Giants. “I am very serious-minded. It is definitely a great deal being the first, but I was focused on doing my job. When I am on the field, I do not think about being the first nor being a champion, I focus on my abilities and on having a great game.”
In 35 years Hensley has built a significant name in the baseball industry. He played for 17 years and he worked as a coach for 18 years. In 2009 he spent the year at the SF Giants triple A team in Fresno then reached the Major League ranks as batting coach in 2010. He spent 8 years with the San Francisco Giants as batting coach and 2 years as bench coach. He also worked 1 year with the New York Mets. For 11 years he worked as a MLB coach, which is something unique in the baseball scene!
After being past over for the Giants managerial position, he accepted to be the bench coach for Mets manager Carlos Beltran. However the Mets fired Beltran before the season started. Hensley stuck out the 2020 season under manager Luis Rojas but was not invited to return in 2021. For this reason, he is living in Curaçao at this moment, creating new and exciting projects for the community. “Next to Baseball Week, my team and I are working in constructing a sports entertainment center in a local shopping mall. Not only the baseball players, but also the sports fanatics of our island can learn the newest techniques in a modern and sophisticated location. It is our goal to promote innovation by helping the athletes to get better results and also promoting participation in sports. Besides that, we are focusing on the field in Santa Rosa. Because of the pandemic, there has been a delay in the license procedure, but hopefully soon we can present this project to the community. All boys and girls will have the opportunity to play baseball and softball on the field. Schools and neighborhood centers of the island can also make use of it. This field is for our community. These are the projects that are in the pipeline at this moment. We are working hard and we are taking our time to present a master plan.”
When we look back on Hensley’s journey, he chooses three unforgettable moments in his career. The first one is making it to the Major League Baseball in 1989. The second one is participating in the Olympics; in 2000 as a player and in 2004 as a coach. Another proud moment was winning the World Series three times and being in the International League Hall of Fame (Triple-A).He has definitely a great and meaningful curriculum to look back on. We are proud of his achievements and for always carrying Curaçao with so much pride and enthusiasm. Now he will start writing a new chapter on the island, new projects are on the horizon and Curaçao is ready to support him in this one too.
