{"id":205215,"date":"2015-06-26T06:00:24","date_gmt":"2015-06-25T20:00:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/?p=205215"},"modified":"2015-06-26T06:00:24","modified_gmt":"2015-06-25T20:00:24","slug":"visiting-teams-express-mixed-views-on-chances","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/visiting-teams-express-mixed-views-on-chances\/","title":{"rendered":"Visiting teams express mixed views on chances"},"content":{"rendered":"

Members of the coaching staff of Australia, Guam, and the Philippines had different ways of assessing their respective teams\u2019 chances in the 2015 Asia Pacific Junior, Senior, and Big League Baseball Tournament.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/a>
A Hong Kong Junior League player picks up the ball during their practice session at the Francisco M. \u201cTan Ko\u201d Palacios Baseball Field.
(Jon Perez)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The weeklong tournament starts today with host CNMI taking on Guam in the lone game after the 3pm opening rites at the Francisco M. \u201cTan Ko\u201d Palacios Baseball Field.<\/p>\n

Australia will be competing for the first time in the Junior League and manager Wayne Sheldon is confident that his wards could pull off some surprises against the five other squads in their division.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe team has a good combination of players that has speed, power, good pitching, batting, and running. That I think would be our strongest point against the other teams,\u201d said Sheldon in an interview with the Saipan Tribune.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe only thing that I always remind my players is to talk more inside the field. Communication is also a key factor in every game,\u201d added Sheldon, whose team was formed in November and had a longer time preparing for the tournament compared to other squads.<\/p>\n

He ranked Chinese-Taipei as the team to beat in their division, but he doesn\u2019t want to underestimate the other teams.<\/p>\n

\u201cEspecially, the Philippines. They are our first game on Sunday and I have no idea how they play. I watched Chinese-Taipei in last year\u2019s finals but the Philippines, I don\u2019t know anything about them and I\u2019ve never had the chance to see them play,\u201d ended Sheldon.<\/p>\n

Guam Junior League manager Vic Fernandez, meanwhile, played safe knowing that the regional tournament is a level higher compared to the regular season they played in their own district.<\/p>\n

\u201cPlaying in the regionals has always been tough and very competitive. You are going up against the best teams in the region. You don\u2019t have to take the other teams lightly,\u201d said Fernandez. \u201cWe\u2019re just going to do our best.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fernandez said they have only less than one month to practice as a team after their baseball season ended.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut we\u2019re ready and I\u2019m confident with my team. We\u2019re working to improve on certain areas like how would they react if we chose to move them in different positions,\u201d Fernandez said.<\/p>\n

Guam\u2019s Junior leaguers will play against the CNMI on Saturday at 9am.<\/p>\n

Kelly Culubong, the Seniors League division coach of the Philippines said he likes their chances after seeing how their players performed in tune-up matches against collegiate squads and the PH national team.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re confident since they even beat some collegiate teams and played well against the national team. We concentrated on practicing our hitting. That was the key when we played against Tanauan City in the finals. Defense has always been there since these are already Senior League players. We\u2019ll see everything on game day,\u201d said Culubong, who arrived on Saipan early Thursday morning.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe only need to limit our errors. You can\u2019t play a perfect game but as much as possible, we need to have less errors,\u201d added the former Alabang Tigers assistant manager in the Baseball Philippines.<\/p>\n

The Philippines will take on Hong Kong at 3pm on Saturday in the Senior League division, while the Big leaguers battle reigning champion Chinese-Taipei at 5pm.<\/p>\n

Philippines Big League manager Edmund Salinas welcomed the challenge of facing the Asia Pacific World Series representatives.<\/p>\n

\u201cI know there\u2019s a huge pressure, but it is also a good thing since it will test how my boys will react against them and how far the team can go in this tournament,\u201d said Salinas.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re facing the strongest teams in the region, but I know that we can compete against them. I know this group will rise to the challenge. It will give us more time to assess our side and adjust against the other teams.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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