Ripken Stadium will celebrate another "first" tonight when the USA Baseball national team and the Japanese Collegiate All-Stars clash at 7 p.m. in the series opener of their 31st annual series.

The five-game, five-site tour against Japan is the first step for the American team en route to the FISU World Championships in Messina, Italy, beginning on Aug. 3.

Currently composed of collegiate freshmen and sophomores, the USA squad served as the nation's representative in the Olympic Games until 2000 when manager Tom Lasorda added minor-league pros to a roster that won the gold medal in Sydney, Australia.

Thirty-five players endured five days of tryouts in Arizona before the team was trimmed to the final 22 by manager Lelo Prado (University of Louisville) and a staff that includes Maryland coach Terry Rupp.

"You're fortunate to be picked and then you have to undergo grueling workouts to make the team," said Stanford outfielder Carlos Quentin, a sophomore who also played on the 2001 squad that went to Japan. 'There are a lot of other people who could be here."

Prado said the American squad is blessed with "real good athletes. Most of them will be high draftees. But we don't have a whole lot of guys [22] and we're lucky that a number of them can move around and play several positions."

The manager has chosen right-hander Brad Sullivan (Houston) to start the opener and will follow with 6-foot-9, 262-pound left-hander Kyle Bakker (Georgia Tech).

Japan's representative is known for its fundamental soundness and "supposedly, this team has really good pitching," said Prado. 'These five games will let us know where we stand internationally."

'They make a whole lot of adjustments. They're not the biggest guys but they all work real hard," added Quentin of the Japanese. 'The competition last year was very good."

Ripken Stadium made a favorable impression on the Americans when both teams worked out there yesterday.

"It's a very nice arena to be in," Quentin said. "We get to play in some of the best."

"If you don't get inspired to play in this kind of atmosphere, you can't play," said Prado. "These minor-leaguers sure have it good these days."