An offensive explosion in the opening inning combined with a solid start from Dushan Ruzic lead Team Australia to a 9-5 victory in the opening game of Honkbalweek Haarlem, at Pim Mulier Stadion.
After a leadoff single from Logan Wade and Trent Oeltjen was hit by an errant pitch, Luke Hughes dispatched the first pitch he saw deep over the left field fence, and in the blink of an eye, Team Australia lead 3-0.
Using his experience after playing in the Honkbal Hoofdklasse for four years, Dushan Ruzic gave Australia a fantastic start on the mound, only giving up two earned runs and not conceding a walk in 5.2 innings pitched.
Team Australia Manager Jon Deeble was impressed with Ruzic’s performance.
“Ruzic was outstanding today,” Deeble said.
“He threw the ball really well, got ahead of hitters and set us up perfectly for the rest of the game.”
A pair of errors from Chinese Taipei in the fifth set the table for David Kandilas, who delivered, driving Luke Hughes in from second to start another onslaught from the Australian bats. A perfectly executed hit and run play saw Darryl George claim his first hit in national colours, and in turn, extended Australia’s lead to five. Not to be outdone, Andrew Campbell also claimed his inaugural hit in Australian colours, driving in Australia’s sixth run of the ballgame.
The Chinese Taipei bats came to lift in the sixth, with a double from Chang and a single from Tsao putting some pressure on the Australian defence. Chinese Taipei tacked on three runs thanks to an RBI sac fly, a blooper to right field and an infield single, but Matt Williams struck out Lee to end an eventful inning.
Jon Deeble praised his team’s effort and execution after the opening win of the tournament.
“We got on base early which set us up nicely,” Deeble said.
“We’re swinging the bat really well, and even though we’ve got a few things to tidy up defensively, it’s a good first effort from the guys.”
Tzu-Hsien Chan nailed a solo shot to cut the Australian lead to two in the eighth, but after some quality at bats from Brisbane Bandits pair Logan Wade and Ryan Battaglia, a wild pitch and back-to-back balks scored three runs, putting the result beyond doubt for Australia.
Australia’s next game will take place at 3am AEST (7pm local time) tomorrow vs. Japan.
Team Australia Manager Jon Deeble is wary of the Japanese side.
“They’re going to be tough,” Deeble said.
“Japan has a great team with good arms and solid defence. We’re going to have to be on top of our game to beat them.”
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