Australia Catcher Explains Viral Handshake Snub of Czechia Batter at WBC

World Baseball Classic game got off to an interesting start.

Australia is locked in at the WBC, improving to 2-0 in the tournament after downing Czechia. | FS1

Australia is out to a 2-0 start in the World Baseball Classic after defeating Czechia, 5-1, at the Tokyo Dome on Friday.

Curtis Mead provided some thunder from down under as he blasted a three-run homer in the third inning, which was all the Aussie pitching staff needed. Six hurlers combined for a second straight gem, following on the heels of shutting out Chinese Taipei in the WBC opener.

MORE WBC: Team USA’s Complete Schedule

The schedule is about to get harder for Australia as Japan and Korea loom, but up to this point the Australians have taken care of business and put themselves into position to advance through pool play and into quarterfinals action for a second consecutive tournament.

One moment from the win is being dissected more than others, though, and it required some explanation.

At the outset of the game Czechia leadoff man Milan Prokhop tried to shake Aussie catcher Robbie Perkins's hand but was rebuffed.

Here's that odd moment.

Any lip readers out there?

pic.twitter.com/t7vNabkRxc

— Ben Verlander (@BenVerlander) March 6, 2026

If ever there were catnip destined to spread far and wide it's perceived international beef. But it turns out that there's no bad blood involved.

The Athletic's Sam Blum asked Perkins about the incident and got the following explanation. Essentially, it's not personal, it's just business.

Talked to Aussie catcher Robbie Perkins about this.

He said it’s just a competitive thing, and nothing personal. If he sees the Czech team at the hotel he’ll check in.

“There’s absolutely no malice.” https://t.co/Z8No8K6aXE

— Sam Blum (@SamBlum3) March 6, 2026

Those who have Perkins on their Australian Baseball League fantasy team know that he was assigned to the Brisbane Bandits last November after previously plying his talents for Canberra Calvary. It's clear that he is very locked in on the task at hand in Tokyo and isn't about to let someone else's extended hand distract him from that goal.

Catchers have a pretty decent built-in excuse to not be shaking hands with opposing hitters as the pine tar and other tacky substances could rub off and give them less than ideal grip situations. Or maybe it's a reason to shake hands. That's something that can be litigated later.

What's important here is that Australia is 2-0 and has done exactly what they need to do in order to put themselves in position to earn a trip to Miami with a split in their next two games. The second tiebreaker in the WBC is runs allowed and their staff has surrendered all of one through 18 innings.

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