Li'l Razcals open bid vs Singaporeans

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine Pony baseball team hopes to shrug off the biting cold as it kicks off its title campaign in the Asia Pacific Zone Mustang (9-10 years old) Division Championships against Singapore at the Vinh Yen Stadium in Vinh Phuc Province in Vietnam today.

Weather has dipped to 7 degrees, forcing team members to use three to four shirts with jacket to boot when they took their turn on the practice mound yesterday.

All participating teams were only given an hour to practise but the Filipino batters arrived at the Astro-turf tournament field early to have an extended three-hour session and at the same time get acquainted with the layout.

“I actually wore four shirts and my uniform but it was still cold,” said starting pitcher John Fritz Natanauan in Filipino.

The Little Razcals, handled by coaches Enrico Gesmundo and Christian Cinco, are eyeing no less than the championship in the four-day nation tournament where the winner will earn a slot to the World Series.

“The balls were a bit fast and bounced higher but aside from that we’re all okay. It’s nice to play on a softer ground,” said team skipper Dax Fabella.

The team arrived Tuesday and was met by representatives of Ambassador Jerryl Santos from the Philippine Embassy who are trying to organize a Filipino delegation to cheer for the Little Razcals, made up mostly of kids from Tanauan, Batangas.

The Phl will then take on the Vietnamese at 10:30 a.m. on Friday before taking Indonesia at 8 a.m. on Saturday.

The winner will earn the right to represent the region in the annual Pony Baseball Mustang World Series in Burleson, Texas, according to Phl Pony Baseball president and Pony Southeast Asian representative Boy Tingzon.

The World Series cast will include the other winners in the different zones of Pony Baseball, including those in the USA, the Caribbean and Asia.

The other members of the Phl team are Ezequiel Cyros Agojo, Nathan Joseph Carpio, Carl Christopher Castaneda, Charles Joshua Castillo, Lloyd Christian Cinco, Zian Javiel Eleria, Jose Mari Javier Limpo, Robert Emmanuel Manaig, Efril Ian Mercado, Lorenzo Montemayor, Vincent Joshua Noprado, Marty Alonso Ranada and Javier Jesus Sale.