OSAKA, Japan-After an eight-game series against the Australian U-18 National Team on the Gold Coast and two practice days in Osaka, the Junior National Team can now focus on the WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup that will get underway on Friday when they take on Chinese Taipei at Nanko Chuo Stadium (12:30pm JST/11:30pm EDT 08/27).
Canada will play five round robin games as part of Group B with the top three teams advancing to the second round of play that is known as the Super Round. After the Super Round, the top two seeds will play for gold, while the third and fourth best records will meet for bronze.
First baseman and Miami Marlins first round draft choice, Josh Naylor (Mississauga, ON) joined Team Canada on Wednesday and is excited to wear the red and white one final time as a member of the Junior National Team program.
“It’s tremendous being a part of this team and this program,” said Naylor who set to become the first Canadian to participate in three world championships at the U-18 level. “I get to battle with my best friends one more time for a world championship. I’m excited to be here.”
Following the game against Chinese Taipei, Canada will face South Korea, Italy and Cuba before concluding round robin action against South Africa.
Schedule:
*All games at Nanko Chuo Stadium and Maishima Stadium will be live streamed via the WBSC USTREAM channels:
Maishima: http://www.ustream.tv/wbsc
Nanko Chuo: http://www.ustream.tv/wbsc2
**Live scoring for all tournament games will be available by visiting the official tournament website:
Website/Live Scoring – WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup
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