BUENOS DÍAS - AUSSIES ‘STAND UP’ AGAINST MEXICO

BUENOS DÍAS - AUSSIES ‘STAND UP’ AGAINST MEXICO

Guaranteed of best ever World Cup finish.

Australia 7 def. Mexico 1

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Taipei, Nov. 17 – The Australian Baseball Team are guaranteed of their best ever finish at a World Cup thanks to a comprehensive victory over Mexico in Taipei on Saturday.

The Aussies showed their true fighting spirit - bouncing back from yesterday’s demoralising loss to Japan, to win an emotion filled contest that almost got out of control in the top of the seventh inning.

With the score already 7-1, Mexican pitcher David Dominguez fired a fastball into the centre of centerfielder Trent Oeltjen’s back – making him the second Australia to be hit in as many innings.

Feeling the ‘beaning’ was deliberate and eager to show that he was not deterred by the blow, Oeltjen stole second the very next pitch – a move that upset the Mexican defence.

So much so that when Oejten was picked off at second on the next play of the game, the Latin infielders made their feelings clear to Oeltjen in no uncertain terms.

The normally passive outfielder promptly returned fire - calling the Mexican’s attention to the scoreboard – and setting off a chain reaction that soon had both teams spilling out of the dugout and on the infield.

After the game Oeltjen did not wish to comment on exactly what was said in the sledging match, but was clear in the message he was trying to send his opponents.

“There’s no way we are going to allow them to throw at us and get away with it…we aren’t going to be disrespected by anyone,” Oeltjen said.

“In the end, they weren’t throwing hard enough to hurt anybody anyway,” he said.

Directly following the bench clearing incident, Australia relief pitcher Josh Hill was ejected from the game after his fist pitch of the next inning hit leadoff batter Humberto Lopez – a move the home plate umpire felt was in direct in retaliation for the Oeltjen fracas.

While the seventh inning fireworks were the focus for many after the game, the real story came much earlier as Australia scored six runs in the first three frames and jumped out to a virtually unassailable lead.

The run feast started in the bottom of the second when 3^rd Baseman Glenn Williams deposited a fastball into the right-field bleachers, giving his side a 1-0 advantage with his second home run for the tournament.

One inning later the flood gates opened as the Aussies sent ten men to the plate, scoring five times and pounding out three extra-base hits to pad the lead to 6-0.

The offence was inspiring from top to bottom with everybody able to contribute in some fashion.

Australia’s pitching was similarly effective, with starter Adam Blackley able limit Mexico to a single run during his six innings of work despite a less than perfect performance.

“I was inconsistent with my fastball and really had to battle all day,” Blackley said in his post game press conference.

“I guess I was a little lucky in the fact that they (the Mexican hitters) managed to get themselves out most of the time.”

The win now matches Australia against Korea in the battle for fifth place, a scenario that will give the Aussies their best finish at the World Cup irrespective of the result.

Australia’s previous best had been seventh at the 1998 World Cup in Italy, and despite the assurance of best-ever finish, Head Coach Jon Deeble is eager to close out the tournament with a win on Sunday.

“If we win tomorrow, we will have confirmed our place as one of the best teams in the World…no doubt about it,” Deeble said.

“Obviously we’d love to be playing off for a medal, but that’s tournament baseball, it only takes one bad game to knock you out of contention.”

Australia’s final game of the 2007 World Cup is scheduled for 4:00pm AEST and will be broadcast LIVE at www.stadeo.tv

Be sure to log onto www.baseball.com for play-by-play updates from the game and more news about Australia’s upcoming exhibition series in Fukuoka where they will face off against the Japanese Olympic squad.