U-23 Baseball World Cup – Group A Preview: Colombia, Mexico, Japan aiming to ‘win it all’

Three of the six teams competing in group A of the WBSC U-23 World Cup make no mistery: they came to win. Statements by managers Atsunori Inaba (Japan), Jair Fernandez (Colombia) and Juan Enrique Reyes (Mexico) were the highlights of the group presentation press conference in Barranquilla, Colombia.

“We won it all in 2016” said through an interpreter Atsunori Inaba “We want to do it again”.
The skipper praised his pitching staff, in particular starters Atsuki Tameichi (Chiba Lotte Marines) and Hiroki Kondo (Rakuten Golden Eagles), who have already made their debut at the Big League (NPB) level.
Japan’s squad features 19 professional players, while five performed in the Industrial Leagues.

To make sure he made his point, Jair Fernandez said both in Spanish and English that Colombia wants to win on home turf.
“We worked hard to select a team that can make this country proud” said the former Minor League catcher.

His catcher Jair Camargo (born 1999, he plays in the Los Angeles Dodgers organization) added: “Even if you play professional, it’s a great honour to be called to represent your country. I was born here in Barranquilla and I can’t wait to play in front of my family”.

Juan Enrique Reyes proved aware of the fact competition is going to be hard: “Baseball is growing fast all over the world. At this level, any team is pretty strong”.
Nonetheless, he wouldn’t be satisfied with a spot in the super round: “We are here to show how good baseball is in Mexico. I think we can win it all.”

From left: Atsunori Inaba, Jair Camargo, Jair Fernandez, Chung I Lin (Juan Pablo Mercado)

Chinese Taipei manager Chun I Lin believes his team could challenge one of the three favourites for a spot in the super round.
“In 2016 we finished seventh, so that would be an improvement. But we aim to a spot in the finals” said the skipper through an interpreter.
Chun I Lin is confident about the talent of his pitching staff, mostly made by College and Industrial League players. Wu Chen Yu (Kainan University) is the most touted prospect.

The Netherlands and South Africa may well look like the underdogs.
The Champions of Europe couldn’t participate to the press conference due to late arrival of their flight.
South Africa’s manager Neil Adonis made clear that his team “is here to compete against everybody.”
He added: “We have a very young team, but we worked together for the last six months. We are ready.”

Team captain Victor Ngoepe is the only professional on the roster. He played the 2018 season at the Rookie level for the Pittsburgh Pirates. His brother Gift, who now plays for the Toronto Blue Jays, made history as he became the first African born player to perform at the MLB level.
“Baseball keeps growing in South Africa. I remember that I was very happy when my brother signed. I was only 11, but I had played baseball since I was four. His success has attracted a lot of kids to baseball. I know it’s a long process, but I really hope I can be the next.”

The press conference was introduced by Jorge Luis Alvarez, who represented the Mayor of Barranquilla Alex Char.

The President of the Federation of Colombia Jimmy Char said that “there is a lot of enthusiasm in Barranquilla, this is the most important baseball tournament that the city has ever hosted. We had to get ready in a very short time, only two and a half months, but I believe it will be a success.”

The President of the Baseball Federation of Colombia Jimmy Char