Underrated Rangers offseason signing showcased talent for Australia vs. Japan in WBC

Team Australia nearly shocked the world but ultimately fell short against Team Japan in a Pool C World Baseball Classic matchup by a score of 4-3 at the Tokyo Dome in Japan this morning. Despite Australia's loss, Texas Rangers offseason minor-league signee Blake Townsend, a lefty pitcher, showcased his talent for Australia, hurling 1 1/3 scoreless innings.

Townsend, 24, entered the game in as high a pressure situation as it gets in the fourth inning, as the bases were loaded with two outs and four-time MVP Shohei Ohtani was at the plate. The lefty got Ohtani to a 2-2 count before Australia catcher Robbie Perkins picked off Shugo Maki at second base to end the inning.

Townsend's performance in the fifth inning wasn't pretty, but he still got the job done. Ohtani lined out to right field for the first out of the inning, and Chicago Cubs outfielder Seiya Suzuki followed with a walk on a full count. However, two of Townsend's balls to Suzuki appeared to be in the strike zone.

Townsend induced a flyout from Kensuke Kondoh for the second out of the inning, then struck out Red Sox outfielder Masataka Yoshida, who later hit a go-ahead two-run homer in the seventh inning, to end the frame.

Blake Townsend's outs of Shohei Ohtani, Seiya Suzuki, others encouraging sign for Rangers

It was encouraging to see Townsend get big-leaguers Ohtani, Suzuki and Yoshida out. Townsend likely won't make the Rangers' Opening Day roster, but he could be an impact bullpen arm later in the season.

Townsend has yet to reach the majors, but he dominated opponents in the minor leagues over the last two seasons. In 92 innings across 34 appearances (12 starts) in the Pittsburgh Pirates system last season, Townsend posted a 1.76 ERA (3.50 FIP) with 81 strikeouts, 23 walks and a 42.5% ground-ball rate. He spent most of the season in Double-A and High-A and had one outing in Triple-A.

Townsend didn't collect a lot of strikeouts last season, and he doesn't throw hard, but he did a good job limiting base runners and runs. Given his dominant results in the minors, Townsend could be a key impact arm for the Rangers' bullpen next season.

Townsend had signed with the Pirates in August 2024. Before that, he pitched in the Seattle Mariners system from 2019 through part of the 2024 season. He had a 2.45 ERA in 29 1/3 innings over 28 outings for the Mariners' High-A team during the 2024 season. Overall, the lefty sports a career 2.84 ERA with 243 strikeouts and 88 walks in 228 1/3 minor-league innings.

The Rangers lefty underwent Tommy John surgery during his first season (2019) in the Mariners organization. He then missed the 2020 campaign due to the COVID-19 pandemic before returning to professional action in 2021.

Despite Australia's loss to Japan, the team has a good chance of reaching the quarterfinals. It's safe to assume that Japan will defeat the Czech Republic on Tuesday and win Pool C with a 4-0 record.

Australia controls its destiny. A win against Korea on Tuesday would give the nation a quarterfinal berth. Australia could also advance to the quarterfinals with a loss to Korea, depending on the final score.