After an impressive performance in last year's WBSC Women's Baseball World Cup Group A presented by CARNEXT, Canada manager Anthony Pluta said his team can get better and be in contention for a first Women's Baseball World Cup title when the WBSC Women's Baseball World Cup Finals 2024 presented by CARNEXT starts on home soil in Thunder Bay on Sunday.
"It is fair to say that the team that wins gold will be the team that commits the least amount of errors, has the least number of walks and has the most number of runs," Pluta told the WBSC. "For us last year, If you take away the poor game we played against the US, it would be hard to say [his team needs more consistency to compete for a World Title] about our defence and ERA.
"At an international stage like this, a few mistakes (walks, hits and errors) can cause a game to get out of hand and stats to become skewed. I believe the team is more connected now than they were last year, and we will make fewer mistakes."
World No. 7 Canada, who have two WBSC Women's Baseball World Cup silver medals and four bronze medals to their name, slugged their way to second place behind USA in Group A in Thunder Bay last year and into this year's Finals, hitting .371. Ten Canadian pitchers allowed a 5.31 earned run average (ERA), and the defence committed eight errors.
And even if six-time defending World Champions Japan have lost their best pitcher Onodera, Pluta said the No.1 side in the world is still the team to beat.
"Anytime a team loses a key piece, it creates more possibilities for others to compete in the tournament," Pluta said. "Japan has been the world champion for the last six years. They will have a very strong team even without Onodera. Nobody should take them for granted."
Pluta announced Canada's 20-player roster for the Finals earlier this month, which includes three new players from the side, which finished second in Group A last year, along with some key experienced players.
"Liz Gilder and Mia Valcke were both on the team in 2018 and won [Women's Baseball World Cup] bronze, and Sophy Gagne was with the team in 2019 when we again won bronze [at the COPABE World Cup Qualifier]," Pluta said. "The three new players, Andreanne Leblanc, Michelle Roche and Cassie Matlock, bring something different to the team. Andreanne is a power-hitting switch hitter who adds to our team's power numbers. Michelle is a younger pitcher who throws strikes with multiple pitches and can start or relieve. Cassie brings tons of energy to the team and will be helping in the outfield."
The roster also includes Zoe Hicks, who last week helped Canada to a WBSC Women's Softball World Cup bronze medal.
Pluta, who will turn 42 in October, is a former Minor League Baseball (MiLB) pitcher who appeared in 270 games, 82 as a starter, over 11 seasons through 2012. He started coaching the Women's National Team in 2019.
He has high hopes for the future of women's baseball, especially with the game gaining more exposure in the global media.
"I am hopeful that the documentary See Her Be Her will have a huge impact around the world for the growth of the game," Pluta said. "Women's baseball is on the rise worldwide. People are starting to realise that women can and do play baseball.
"Baseball is a different game than softball, and there needs to be an arena for these women to compete in a game they love and are amazing at. Without the proper awareness and funding, women's baseball will not grow to the height it could.
"I would love to see women's baseball be in the Olympics. I would love to see the women compete at the same time as the World Baseball Classic and be promoted the same. I would love to see women have the opportunity to play baseball in college on all-women teams. I think all of those things are possible, and it starts with people watching and appreciating the women's game."
Canada completed the preparation for the Women's Baseball World Cup Finals with a friendly game against the United States.
Baseball Canada hosts a Women's National Championship and the Girls' U-16 and U-21 National Championships. Provinces send teams to compete for the National Title.
Baseball Canada confirmed that in 2023 the participation numbers counted 26,905 players, 2,515 coaches and 476 umpires.
