Australia finished its exhibition schedule prior to the 2013 World Baseball Classic on Thursday with a 3-3 record. The team from Down Under defeated a Military All-Star team in Taichung 6-1. Manager Jon Deeble sent his squad into warm-ups with Cuba, Japan and a couple of All-Star University selections. Australia is going to open the 2013 World Baseball Classic with a contest against host Chinese Taipei on Saturday. The Netherlands and Korea also will be opponents in their first-round group.
Meanwhile before their last warm-up game the Netherlands welcomed the full roster for the first time. Shairon Martis (who started this game) and Jonathan Schoop were the last two players to join the team in Taiwan. Martis still is the only pitcher to throw a no-hitter in World Baseball Classic history (back in 2006). Dwayne Kemp, who has been with the team since the start of training camp, has left the delegation after Schoop’s arrival. The player from DOOR Neptunus has been a reserve player. The Dutch team will face Korea in their first-round opener.