*This content was translated by AI.
Taiwan, which desperately needed to win, collapsed under the ambush Australia, turning on a red light to pass the 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC) group stage. In particular, right-hander Chen Po-yu (25, minor under the Pittsburgh Pirates), who was likely to take the mound in the against South Korea / vs. Korea, took the mound, but was completely defeated.
Taiwan lost 0-3 in the first Group C match of the '2026 WBC (World Baseball Classic)' against Australia at Tokyo Dome in Tokyo, Japan on the 5th. He was blocked by the solidity of the Australian mound and knelt down without scoring a point.
As a result, Taiwan was completely misstructured from the beginning. The defeat against Australia, which was the most important match for tickets to the quarterfinals, which will be given up to the second place in the group, seems to have had a huge impact on the Taiwanese baseball community. On the contrary, Australia won one precious victory, giving the green light to the quarterfinals for the second consecutive time following the 2023 WBC.
On this day, Australia formed a lineup of Travis Bazana (second baseman), Curtis Maed (third baseman), Aaron Whitefield-Alex Hall (designated hitter), Jarrod Rail (striker), Rixon Wingrove (first baseman), Robbie Perkins (catcher), Chris Burkey (left fielder), and Tim Kennelly (right fielder).
Against this, Taiwan formed the batting order in the order of Steward Fairchild (middle-field), An Corinne (designated hitter), Chen Jixian (right wing), Yu Chaeng (third baseman), Nianting Wu (first baseman), Chieng County Wei (striker), Lin Zhiwei (second baseman), and Xiao Hongcheng (catcher).
The game was a fierce pitching competition. "Fire bowler" Shurashi (26, Fukoka Softbank Hawks), dubbed "Taiwan's Moon Dong-ju," blocked four scoreless innings. Australian starter Alexander Wells (29) also pitched well against this. Alexander is a player whose twin brother is LG Twins foreign pitcher Lachlan Wells.
The tight zero balance was broken in the bottom of the fifth inning. Taiwan posted its second pitcher, right-hander Chen Po-yu. Here, Taiwan faced a crisis by dedicating a hit ball to Australian leadoff hitter Rickson Wingrove. Here, Chen Po-yu threw a fastball of 91.4 miles per hour (about 147 kilometers) in the middle with a ball-1 strike, but Robbie Perkins hit it as it was to create a two-run home run over the right fence.
In the top of the sixth inning, Taiwan immediately created a chance. After two outs, An Corinne hit a hit to the right, and the follow-up hitter Chen Jeshen got on base with a hit ball. The opportunity to score with two outs and runners on the first and second bases came, but Yoo Chae-young only made a ground ball to the third base.
In the bottom of the sixth inning, Australia also had a chance to score again with first and second bases with Jarrod Dale's walk and Rickson Wingrove's hit after two outs. Even Perkins, who hit a home run in the fifth inning, calmly picked out the ball. However, Chris Bucky stepped down as a bum and maintained a two-point lead.
After one out in the bottom of the seventh inning, Australia's first batter, Bajana, hit the first pitch (94 miles, fastball) thrown by Taiwan's fourth pitcher, Zhang Yi, to create a superior solo shot. The two-point lead turned into a three-point lead.
Taiwan tried to create chances for first and second base after one out in the top of the ninth inning, but failed to score. There was no timely hit, and he ended the game with 0 points, tied up with three hits.
The most painful part is the failure of pitcher management. Initially, Taiwan was planning to win against Australia early and save "Ace" Chen Po-yu on the against South Korea / vs. Korea. However, as the game did not go as planned due to the persistent offensive of the Australian lineup, the Taiwanese bench eventually made a strong move to put Chen Po-yu early with a feeling of brinkmanship.
Chen Po-yu, who was considered a tricky type by Korean hitters and was likely to be a "targeted starter for against South Korea / vs. Korea," but he took the mound at a time when the atmosphere was already over, but he only silenced the Australian batting line and did not prevent the team's defeat. As a result, Taiwan had the worst handshake of "giving up Gyeonggi-do and even consuming against South Korea / vs. Korea must-win cards."
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*This content was translated by AI.
