The Philippines’ Filipina batters may have missed out on the Women’s Baseball World Cup Finals, but they proved unquestionably they’re cut out for the world stage. Wins against Cuba and Great Britain put the Filipinas on the doorstep of the finals, only for the team to lose steam against the fifth‑ and sixth‑ranked squads in the world—Chinese Taipei and Venezuela.
Even so, beating world No. 7 Cuba and No. 15 Great Britain is no small feat, and it’s something the Filipinas are raring to build on moving forward.
“Mas lalo namin pagpupursigihan ‘yung training kasi alam namin na kayang‑kaya talaga sumabay sa mga top‑caliber teams sa World Cup. Hopefully mag‑qualify tayo sa finals sa susunod,” team captain Veronica Velasco told reporters at the PSA Forum on Tuesday.
Filipinas Know What to Work On
As Velasco and company look to put in the work to get better, they now have a clearer idea of what to focus on in training. That, according to first baseman Martine Francisco, is one of the biggest lessons the team learned in their first stint at the WBSC Women’s Baseball World Cup.
“I think it was a good gauge of where we are and where we are skills‑wise,” Francisco pointed out. “So, moving forward, we know where we have to improve, what we have to work on, and how much further we have to go.”
Head coach Isaac Bacarisas was more specific in his assessment, already pinpointing the areas of improvement the Filipinas will have to focus on as they look to keep their momentum going.
“Sa ngayon, sa mga member natin ng national team sa babae, nandoon na lahat ng depensa. Ang kailangan namin talaga ‘yung opensa at sa pitching side,” Bacarisas said.
He’s right. Against Chinese Taipei and Venezuela, the Philippines’ offense completely stalled, going scoreless against the former and putting up just a couple of runs against the latter. The pitching crumbled in both games, too, as the Filipinas surrendered a combined 18 runs in two outings.
Philippines Need More Exposure
Of course, none of that work will matter if the Philippines don’t get to play in high‑level tournaments like the WBSC Women’s Baseball World Cup. That, according to Bacarisas, is a big problem that needs to be addressed, especially with the team’s level rising to at least the Asian mark.
“Ang competition level naman dito sa Asia, like Japan and Chinese Taipei, nakikita namin na kayang‑kaya pa namin sabayan ‘yung mga iyon. Kulang lang talaga sa exposure,” he said.
But after showing they’re good enough to compete against the world’s best, maybe that will change for the Filipina batters.
