CANADA – The Thunder Bay International Baseball Association (TBIBA) and International Baseball Federation (IBAF) today announced the official schedule for the 2010 IBAF World Junior Baseball Championship.

The schedule outlines the forty-six games that will ultimately determine the World Champion. The participants are the world’s best 18U international teams from 12 different nations. Korea will be looking for their third straight world title, but will have strong competition from Cuba and the United States. As for Canada, they will be looking to make an impact on home soil in their quest to win their first junior gold medal since 1991

The best 18U baseball talent from around the world will converge on Thunder Bay, which is illustrated by the number of high profile MLB stars that got their start at the World Junior Baseball Championship. Current MLB players such as; Joe Mauer (USA), Kendry Morales and Yunieski Betancourt (Cuba) Shin-Soo Choo (Korea), and recent Canadian first round draft picks; Phillippe Aumont, Brett Lawrie and Adam Loewen all took part in the IBAF World Junior Baseball Championship throughout the years.

“The release of the schedule brings a reality to the planning process” said TBIBA President Larry Hebert. “The City of Thunder Bay can start to get excited, and get ready to support their teams”, stated Hebert. “It is always exciting to see the schedule announced, it allows for a greater sense of anticipation as teams start to think about matchup’s and strategy, and fans can plan what games to go to,” stated IBAF President Ricardo Fraccari from Rome, Italy.

The tournament will take place in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada, with the first pitch being thrown at Port Arthur Stadium on Friday, July 23rd, 2010 at 10:00 a.m. (EDT) in a game between Panama and Cuba. The gold medal game will take place on Sunday, August 1st, at 4:30 p.m. (EDT).

Photo courtesy of All-American Baseball Aademy

Source: International Baseball Federation (IBAF)

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