After rain delay, 37th Baseball World Cup starts in Taiwan
After being delayed for one day by rain, the 37th Baseball World Cup kicked off in Taiwan Wednesday with 14 teams competing for wins on the opening day.Why bring up the World Cup? Well, there is this about a Rattler Alum...
Six teams in Group A were scheduled to compete on Wednesday afternoon and evening, at two stadiums in Taichung, central Taiwan - Spain vs Panama, South Africa vs Japan, Mexico vs US.
At the Tienmu and Shinchuang stadiums in Taipei, northern Taiwan, eight teams in Group B will challenge each other - Cuba vs Australia, the Netherlands vs Thailand, South Korea vs Canada, Germany vs Venezuela.
The World Cup was scheduled to open at the Tienmu Studium, with the opening game between Taiwan and Italy, Tuesday evening, but the organisers had to cancel the opening ceremony and postpone the Taiwan-Italy match until November 12.
Mike Saunders and Canadian team have Olympic dreams at IBAF World Cup
Mike Saunders has spent a lot of time dreaming about the Olympics, imagining what it would be like to join other Canadian athletes in Beijing next summer and play for baseball gold with the Maple Leaf on his chest.
The 20-year-old outfielder, a Seattle Mariners prospect from Victoria, and the rest of the national team begin the road toward a run at the 2008 Games on Wednesday when they play their opener at the IBAF World Cup in Taiwan.
Baseball Canada is using the 16-team competition as a final evaluation tool before selecting the players it will use in the final Olympic qualifier in Taiwan next March 7-14, when three berths are up for grabs. Just like his teammates, Saunders is determined to make it happen.
"I think we have a very good chance of going to the Olympics and if we do it's going to be one of the best moments of my life," he said in a recent interview. "Once you pull on your jersey with our country's name across the chest, it's a form of pride.
What are the odds?
Whether or not Saunders and others get the chance to play in the qualifier is a big question. The timing of the event conflicts with Major League Baseball's spring training and many teams will be reluctant to release players, particularly pitchers, during that time.
Canada, along with Australia and Mexico, has been fighting for a date change but IBAF president Harvey Schiller says the timing must stand due to contractual obligations. Those three countries will be dependent on the understanding of big-league clubs to secure their best talent.
Any player not on a big-league team's 25-man roster is eligible to play.
"We're going to wait and see what the final outcome is," said Greg Hunter, Seattle's director of minor-league operations. "We'll take it on an individual player basis, what the player wants to do and what we want to do."
A lot more at that link about Saunders.
I can never remember if the games are being played right now, if they were played while I was watching The FBI Files at 2am, or if they are going to be played next Tuesday. I'll update the progress of Saunders and any other Rattler alums when there are updates to pass along.
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