Premier12 Replay Series | Watch Japan, Venezuela open Group B action in Taiwan
Chinese Taipei, Japan, Puerto Rico and Venezuela battled in Group B for two spots in the Super Round.
The top-ranked nation in the WBSC Baseball Rankings, Japan, and then No. 9 Venezuela opened Group B of 2019 WBSC Premier12® at Taoyuan International Stadium on November 5th. Japan and Venezuela shared Group B with host Chinese Taipei and Puerto Rico.
Japan welcomed back six members of their Premier12 2015 roster, including Hayato Sakamoto, who was named the Outstanding Defensive Player in 2015. Catcher Juan Apodaca was the only returning player from Venezuela’s 2015 national team. The 33-year-old catcher was one of Venezuela’s best four years ago, going 7-for-14 with two home runs.
Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) 2019 leader in wins (15-4, 2.91 ERA in Central League) Shun Yamaguchi from Yomiuri Giants started for Japan, while Venezuela countered with former Chicago Cub Felix Antonio (8-6, 4.58 ERA in the Mexico Baseball League).
Japan edged Venezuela, 6-5, in the opening round of the 2015 WBSC Premier12, with slugger Sho Nakata powering the come-from-behind win.
The game between Japan and Venezuela will be available for free on Thursday, 5 November, at 9 am Eastern US Standard Time (11 pm Japan Standard Time, 3 pm Central European Time) at www.youtube.com/wbsc; and 9 pm Eastern US Standard Time (6 November at 11 am Japan Standard Time, 3 am Central European Time) at www.facebook.com/wbsc.
The WBSC's GameTime.Sport OTT platform will also publish additional content such as behind-the-scenes material and other fan-focused content.
The Premier12 Replay Series continues Friday, 6 November, with Group C’s opener between Canada and Cuba from Seoul, Korea.
