Meet Loek van Mil, the tallest professional baseball player in the world
On Tuesday, the Netherlands defeated Korea, 5-0, in a Pool A Game in the World Baseball Classic. Sure, they did this with the help of players we all know, like Andrelton Simmons, Didi Gregorius and Xander Bogaerts. But who closed the game out, pitching a scoreless ninth inning? That's right -- the world's tallest professional baseball player, Loek van Mil.
The Dutchman is 7-foot-1, a little more than a foot and a half taller than
Want another height comparison? Back in 2008, when van Mil was in the Twins Minor League system, he posed with the then-shortest player in baseball, 5-foot-3 Chris Cates:
Even Randy Johnson, whose nickname was the Big Unit, is shorter than van Mil: The Netherlands reliever has three inches on him. Looks like that makes him … the Biggest Unit. (OK, we'll work on our nicknaming skills.)
