(WBC) Netherlands manager says team 'ready to play' for championship

By Yoo Jee-ho

SEOUL, March 6 (Yonhap) -- After making a surprising run to the semifinals at the 2013 World Baseball Classic (WBC), the Netherlands wants to take it a step further this time around, its manager said Monday.

Hensley Meulens is back as the Dutch skipper for the second straight tournament, and he said his players are a confident bunch.

"We're very sure of ourselves," he said. "Our goal is to win the championship, and the guys are focused on that. We have some confident guys in the locker room."

South Korean manager Kim In-sik has said earlier he feels the Netherlands will be the toughest opponent for his team. And Meulens' team boasts an infield stacked with proven major league stars, including Xander Bogaerts of the Boston Red Sox, Andrelton Simmons of the Los Angeles Angels and Jonathan Schoop of the Baltimore Orioles.

And with the Netherlands scheduled to open its tournament against South Korea at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Meulens said he as "no concerns" about his team.

"The guys have prepared well," he said, noting that his national team ran three separate camps in the Netherlands, Aruba and Curacao -- the latter two being constituent countries of the Netherlands -- starting in December.

"Baseball is a funny game; you can have the best team on paper, but if the guys don't perform well, it doesn't matter," Meulens added. "Every manager can feel that way. But I have faith that they're going to come out and play the way they can."

The Netherlands shut out South Korea 5-0 to start the first round at the 2013 WBC, as it reached the semifinals while South Korea didn't get past the opening stage. At the time, Meulens worked on a detailed scouting report on South Korea provided to him by Ryan Sadowski, former Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) pitcher who shared San Francisco Giants ties with Meulens.

The Dutch manager said he won't have to rely on a similar report this time, since he has his own scouts who have been watching South Korea closely.

"They have a really, really good team, and we have to bring our 'A-game' to beat them," Meulens said. "(The win at the previous WBC) was four years ago. We can't live on those victories from so long ago."

jeeho@yna.co.kr
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