BASEBALL

BY BLAKE METCALF-HOLT

 

ON the world stage representing Traralgon.

Blake Townsend was thrusted into the consciousness of international baseball fans in his second appearance for Australia at the World Baseball Classic recently.

Playing out of Pool C, Australia was faced with the tough task, being matched up against top countries, Japan and Korea.

To open the tournament, the 24-year-old pitcher missed out in Australia’s 3-nil win over Chinese Taipei (Taiwan), and then managed his first strikeout against Czech Republic, where they won 5-1.

It was in Australia’s surprise performance against Japan that really turned heads for both the national team and Townsend himself.

Townsend arrived at the mound to face undoubtably the greatest player on the planet – Los Angeles Dodgers’ Shohei Ohtani.

The boy from Traralgon was suddenly up against a four-time MLB MVP and back-to-back World Series champion in a pivotal moment of the game.

With bases loaded, Townsend got Ohtani to a 2-2 count, which forced a decision from the Japanese superstar on the last pitch, leading to a second plate exit for Ohtani’s teammate Shugo Maki to end the innings.

Australia would ultimately lose 4-3 to Japan, but Townsend impressed against the very best during his one innings pitched, which included a strikeout and a walk.

Overall, it was a disappointing outcome for Australia, and after succumbing to Korea, 7-2, did not advance to the quarterfinals after doing so in 2023.

That previous tournament was the then 21-year-old Townsend’s debut for Australia, where the Southern Thunder fell to Cuba, 4-3 in first round of knockouts.

His latest performance was so impressive that it is believed Townsend could eventually be elevated to the major leagues sometime this season.

In late January, Townsend agreed to a minor league contract with the Texas Rangers, after parting with Pittsburgh Pirates at the end of last season.

Townsend played AAA, AA and A+ baseball for the Pirates affiliate teams across 2025, while also playing for Adelaide Giants in the Australian Baseball League.

Prior to that, Townsend was signed to his first professional contract at the age of 17, when Seattle Mariners’ scouts arrived into Traralgon to put pen to paper.

The 2026 World Baseball Classic ran from March 5 to 17 across the United States, Puerto Rico and Japan.