WBC / Taiwan beats SoftBank Hawks' farm team 5-1 in final WBC warm-up

Miyazaki/Taipei, March 3 (CNA) Taiwan defeated the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks' farm team 5-1 on Tuesday in its final warm-up game ahead of the 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC) Pool C opener.

Taiwan's bullpen utilized an unconventional rotation, with seven pitchers throwing one inning each.

Together, they combined for eight strikeouts while allowing only four hits. The lone run surrendered came in the bottom of the eighth inning after a pitcher from Japan's independent league took the mound.

The pitching strategy was designed to preserve the arms of the Taiwanese staff ahead of their matchup against Australia at the Tokyo Dome on Thursday morning.

Offensively, Stuart Fairchild, who qualifies for Taiwan through his mother, shone in his international debut.

Batting leadoff, the Seattle native reached base in all four plate appearances with two hits, a walk and an RBI.

Lin An-ko (林安可) also had two hits.

Tuesday's contest represented Taiwan's first and only opportunity to adjust in a live-game setting with a full roster, following the cancellation of Monday's scheduled match.

"It's a shame we only had one game to play together," national team captain Chen Chieh-hsien (陳傑憲) said after the game. "It feels different from when we played in Taiwan."

While Chen noted that additional game time for the full roster would have been ideal, he emphasized that "the overall team atmosphere is great."

The team is scheduled to hold a practice session at the Tokyo Dome on Wednesday for just under two hours.