The Philippine men’s national baseball team faces South Korea on Friday to kick off the Super Round of the BFA XIII U18 Asian Baseball Championship at the Taipei Tianmu Baseball Stadium in Chinese Taipei.
Game time is at 1:30 p.m. (Manila time) with the Filipinos participating in this phase of the competition for the first time ever where they will face powerhouse teams like Japan, Chinese Taipei and South Korea.
They made it to the super round after beating Sri Lanka, 10-0, and Hong Kong, 4-2, in Group B before getting stomped by the Japanese, 0-13, in the final game of the elimination.
The team’s delegation head Raymond Tolentino told DAILY TRIBUNE that they decided to field their bench players against the mighty Japanese knowing that they have already clinched a spot in the Super Round.
Tolentino said they need to improve their batting to get more hits and fill up the bases more often against the Koreans.
“We need to have the kids experience the speed of Japan, which is the number one team,” Tolentino said.
“We will really need to just improve on our own base and crowd the plate and that’s the most that we can do on these top three teams.”
After the Koreans, the Filipinos will face host Chinese Taipei on Saturday at the same venue at 6:30 p.m.
Tolentino said their goal is to finish within the top three to qualify for the WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup 2025.
Regardless of the result, Philippine Amateur Baseball Association president Chito Loyzaga already lauded his boys for making it this far in the competition.
“This is the first time our team will play in the Super Round. This is a big deal for the players as they will be able to showcase their skills against the best in the region,” Loyzaga, a former Philippine Sports commissioner and current auditor of the Philippine Olympic Committee, said.
“Japan is a five-time champion here, so it’s a good experience and exposure for them.”
Loyzaga said competing in the Super Round is also the perfect time for head coach Oscar Marcelino to select the best players who will move to the senior national squad.
“It’s also an eye-opener for our coaching staff headed by Oscar Marcelino. We will know what we need to improve on to get closer to the level of other countries in terms of competitiveness,” Loyzaga said.
“We saw what they are capable of and some of them are ready to join the national senior squad in future tournaments.”