Pitcher Lachlan Wells of Australia throws in the bottom of the fifth inning during the World Baseball Classic Pool B Game Five between Australia and Cuba at the Tokyo Dome on March 10, 2017 in Tokyo, Japan. (Photo by Matt Roberts/Getty Images)
The Australia National Team will play the Hanwha Eagles of the Korean Baseball Organization in a two-game exhibition series on Saturday, Feb. 17, and Sunday, Feb. 18, at Melbourne Ballpark in Laverton, Victoria, Australia.
Melbourne Ballpark is home to the Melbourne Aces of the Australian Baseball League.
The upcoming exhibition series is called the International Baseball Showdown, with professional players from the KBO’s Hanwha Eagles taking on a roster of Australia’s best professional baseball players. The last time the Australia National Team played an exhibition series against a club team was in February 2020 against the KBO’s Doosan Bears at Geelong Baseball Park in Geelong, Victoria, Australia.
“Having Team Australia play meaningful games on home soil is always special,” Baseball Australia CEO Glenn Williams told Melbourneaces.com. “We’re thrilled to take on a KBO superpower in Hanwha in Melbourne. We can’t wait to have the team perform in front of the home fans in Melbourne in February 2024.”
“On behalf of the Hanwha Eagles organization, we are pleased and excited to host Spring Training 2024 in Melbourne, one of the most representative cities of Australia,” Hanwha Eagles GM Son Hyuk told Melbourneaces.com. “We look forward to Melbourne’s good weather conditions and the short time difference compared to Korea.
We believe these factors can increase the quality of our organization’s preparation, which would positively impact the upcoming 2024 KBO season.”
Players to Watch
Lachlan Wells, LHP, Australia – Wells was one of the best-starting pitchers this past Australian Baseball League season with the Adelaide Giants and signed a minor league contract with the Philadelphia Phillies on Jan. 7.
He went 6-0 with a 0.94 ERA in nine starts during the ABL season for the Giants and represented Australia in the 2017 World Baseball Classic.
Warwick Saupold, RHP, Australia – Saupold, 34, has 82 games of MLB experience from 2016-18 with the Detroit Tigers as a reliever. Although he had a rather unimpressive 4.98 ERA and 5.9 strikeouts per nine innings, Saupold has enjoyed improved numbers since, increasing his strikeouts per nine innings to 7.8 last ABL season and posted a 3.51 ERA in 31 starts for the Hanwha Eagles in 2019.
