III WBSC U-23 Baseball World Cup to open on 23 September

III WBSC U-23 Baseball World Cup to open on 23 September
21/09/2021
A look at the roster of the 12 participating National Teams ahead of the start of the first Baseball World Cup played since 2019.

The III WBSC Baseball World Cup in the state of Sonora, Mexico, will open on Thursday, 23 September, with a couple of morning games. In Group A, Germany will face Chinese Taipei in Ciudad Obregon. In Group B Panama will play Colombia in Hermosillo. Host Mexico will play the Czech Republic after the opening ceremony in Group A. The night game in Group B will see the Netherlands face Venezuela.

Mexico -- the current world No. 5 and defending U-23 World Champion -- looks like the team to beat in Group A. Experienced manager Jose Reyes Garcia, known in Mexican baseball as El Che, will count on an experienced roster. Most of the players are competing in the national league.

World No. 6 Dominican Republic and No. 11 Cuba also bring experienced rosters.
Dominican manager Ramon Genao will count on arms such as left-hander Juan Diaz, who has started professionally since 2017, and right-handed closer Enmanuel Mejia. They are both 23 years old.

Former Olympic gold medal-winning catcher Eriel Diaz will manage the very first Cuban National Baseball Team to compete in the U-23 World Cup. Outfielder Loidel Chapelli, 19, is a veteran of WBSC competitions and earned MVP honours at the U-15 World Cup 2016.

Former Olympic silver medalist Shi-Hsin Wu will manage world No. 3 Chinese Taipei, a squad primarily made of collegiate players and that reportedly has its strength in the pitching staff.

The European nations will likely have to really take care of the ball in order to secure a spot in the Super Round. While the favorites in the tournament are from Asia and the Americas, the European squads have some exciting players to watch.
Infielder Wojtech Mensik is the star on the roster of world No. 16 Czech Republic. He made a trip to the College World Series as the starting third baseman for the University of North Carolina. Marco Cardoso, the second baseman for No. 18 Germany, is one of the best players in the German BundesLiga. He played for Germany in the U-15 World Cup 2014.

The competition looks exciting in Group B, with all six participants aiming for a spot in the Super Round.

World No. 14 Nicaragua, managed by former National Team star Sandor Guido, will count on several Major League Baseball (MLB) prospects. Shortstop Freddy Zamora, 22, is listed as the Milwaukee Brewers' No. 11 prospect.

No. 8 Netherlands, No. 10 Venezuela, No. 13 Panama and No. 15 Colombia all have rosters filled with Minor League Baseball (MiLB) players. Panama's Julio Gonzalez will play in his fourth WBSC Baseball World Cup after having competed at the U-12, U-15 and U-18 levels.

No. 3 Korea is fielding a very young team, with only one player born in 1998. The roster features 10 players under contract with Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) teams and future top draft picks such as pitchers Seung-woo Ju, Tae-hyeon Yun, Won-tae Cho, Dong-ju Moon and infielder Do-yeong Kim.