Chinese Taipei-Australia to open XXXI WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup in Taipei City
The XXXI WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup is set to open at Tianmu Stadium in Taipei City on Thursday, 31 August, at 6:30 pm local time when the hosts and World No. 5 Chinese Taipei take on No. 9 Australia after the opening ceremony.
Chinese Taipei finished second last year in the XXX U-18 Baseball World Cup, while Australia finished ninth.
"We are probably ahead this year in our preparation," commented Australian manager Andrew Kyle, a former player and the manager of the Perth Heat in the Australian Baseball League.
Kyle is aware of the fact the atmosphere at the Tianmu Stadium won't be close to anything his players have experienced so far. "We spoke about that atmosphere numerous times. It's going to be electric and loud. We tried to prepare them the best we could. It's tough to simulate, obviously. There's a little bit of unknown there. We told them to embrace the moment rather than being worried about the moment."
The Australian roster features pitcher and infielder Blake Barlow, the most recent MVP of the Under 18 National Championship. Right-handed pitcher Adam Bates, catcher Joshua Davies, and infielder Jayden Kim were on the 2022 roster. Catcher Declan Speir is the only professional player on the roster after signing with the Philadelphia Phillies of Major League Baseball (MLB).
"Chinese Taipei and Korea are powerhouses," said Kyle. "Also, Mexico and Puerto Rico can be very tough. We must be consistent and play at our best every day to reach the Super Round."
Chinese Taipei manager Po-Hung Wu is the head coach of the Taoyuan Ping-Chen Senior High School. He has been a National Team coach since 2011 and was on the U-18 National Team coaching staff when the Chinese Taipei Baseball Association hosted the WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup in Taichung in 2013. Chinese Taipei finished fourth that time, and the expectations are now different.
"We are ready to play," said Wu during a press conference on Wednesday. "We opened camp in June, and I feel we continue improving in hitting, defence, and pitching. Our players come from all over the place (schools). We need time to get used to each other."
Wu respects Australia. "They've got some great pitchers, and we will provide as much information as possible to our players before the game. However, I think their offence is not as strong as other teams. I do believe that we have an advantage here. I would trust my pitchers to fare well against them."
Chinese Taipei will hand the ball to Yi-Lei Sun, the vice-captain."He's the one who has both stuff and experience"" commented Wu. "He is the best candidate for us to start the tournament""
Sun said he was ready for the task. "I plan to keep the pitches low and throw them off balance. Since there will be pitch limits, I hope to be efficient and go as many innings as possible to help the team."
The starter was impressed by what he saw from Australia in an exhibition game against the Netherlands. "The middle of their order is a big threat. [Catcher] Josh Nati hit a home run against the Netherlands. I will be cautious when I face them."
Chinese Taipei captain Nien-Hao Wang is a first-round draft pick by the Fubon Guardians of the Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL). He will play third and bat cleanup.
"The fact that I got more attention can transcend to the force to help me to become a better player. I'd look at this U-18 as my final enjoyable tournament during high school years."
The opening game of the XXXI WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup will be live on GameTime, the WBSC OTT Platform.
Chinese Taipei and Australia compete in Group A and will face No. 3 Mexico, No. 4 Korea, No. 13 Puerto Rico and No. 15 Czechia. The rest of the Group A games are scheduled in Taichung.
