WBSC U-15 Baseball World Cup 2024 - Day 6: Down to the last out Chinese Taipei win against Japan; Puerto Rico defeat Nicaragua; Colombia over Mexico for first Super Round win
The six teams of the Super Round are all within one game in the standings. Japan, Chinese Taipei and Puerto Rico are tied with a 2-1 record; while Colombia, Mexico and Nicaragua have the same 1-2 record. There are no undefeated teams in the tournament.
The WBSC U-15 Baseball World Cup 2024 Super Round started on Thursday in Barranquilla with two exciting games. Puerto Rico beat Nicaragua, 3-1, in a hotly contested game while Chinese Taipei recovered from a four-run deficit in the last inning to come from behind in the seventh inning and clinch a key win, 6-5, over Japan. Mexico and Colombia closed out the day with the hosts prevailing 6-2.
The six teams of the Super Round are all within one game in the standings. Japan, Chinese Taipei and Puerto Rico are tied with a 2-1 record; while Colombia, Mexico and Nicaragua have the same 1-2 record. There are no undefeated teams in the tournament.
In the Placement Round, South Africa defeated Guam, 9-8, in an eight-inning thriller; Italy downed Netherlands 8-4 in a European classic and Dominican Republic edged Venezuela, 5-4. Dominican Republic is on top with a 3-0 record, followed by Italy and Venezuela (2-1); Netherlands and South Africa (1-2) and Guam (0-3).
A good outing by starting pitcher Hanley Rosa lifted Puerto Rico over Nicacargua, 3-1, in the first game of the Super Round. Puerto Rico is now 2-1 in the Super Round standings, in good position for a spot to reach Sunday's medal games.
Rosa pitched 4.1 innings, giving up four hits and two walks, while striking out five. Puerto Rico's bullpen was magnificent in 2.2 scoreless innings, allowing one hit and one walk, with two strikeouts.
A bad defensive inning in the top of the third costed Nicaragua the game. A dropped fly ball and a mental mistake on a sac bunt play put two runners on for Puerto Rico, who scored on an RBI single by Adniel Quiles and a sac fly by Anthony Badillo. The Caribbean squad added one on a sac fly in the fourth.
Nicaragua's only run of the game was scored in the bottom of the fifth, on an RBI single by Jean Catin.
Puerto Rico moved to 2-1 in the standings and will face Chinese Taipei at 10:30 on Friday; while Nicaragua, 1-2, will play Colombia at 7 pm.
A two-out bases-clearing triple by Li-Ya Yu in the top of the seventh inning completed Chinese Taipei's comeback today against Japan, in their first game of the Super Round. Chinese Taipei recovered from a four-run deficit in the last inning to claim a key win.
A costly error by the second baseman Ryoto Suna allowed Chinese Taipei's second run of the game, and more important left the inning alive. An RBI single by Wei Lin made it a one-run ballgame, and finally Li,Ya Yu hit a bases clearing double to give Chinese Taipei the lead in the game. Yu collected four RBIs in the game.
Chinese Taipei used five pitchers to complete the game, with Yao-Cheng Yang grabbing the win, in spite of giving up one run on one hit, while Nien-Hsiao Yu saved the game.
With this result, there are no more undefeated teams in the tournament, and both Japan and Chinese Taipei hold a 2-1 record in the Super Round standings.
Adrian Niño hit a full-count, two-run triple to the right field in the bottom of the fifth inning to give Colombia a 4-2 lead in the game, fuelling a 6-2 victory against Mexico in the last game of the day. Colombia featured some clutch hitting in the game, scoring their six runs with two outs in the scoreboard. Niño and Sebastian Solano had two RBIs each in the game.
Colombia used two pitchers in the game, including a masterful performance in relief by Javier Ramos, who gave up only one hit and one walk in three innings of work. He was the winner of the game.
Some sloppy defence costed Mexico the game, committing five mistakes and allowing six unearned runs in the game.
In Mexico's lineup Francisco del Campo had two of his team's four hits in the game, going 2-for-2 with an RBI and a walk.
With this result, both teams are tied in the standings with 1-2.
South Africa claimed their first win of the tournament in dramatic fashion. The African squad topped Guam, 9-8, in extra inning and moved to 1-2 in the Placement Round standings.
South Africa entered the bottom of the seventh down by four runs, but tied the game with two hits and two errors.
Guam scored three in the top of the eighth, but South Africa mounted again a four-run rally to walk off the game.
A five-run fourth inning proved to be the key in Italy's 8-4 win against arch-rivals Netherlands, in the second game of the Placement Round. Mattia Angelucci went 2-for-4, with an RBI and a run scored, and was the only Italian player with a multi-hit game.
Ivan Larice pitched great in relief, working 3.2 innings with no hits. He walked four opponents and surrendered one run.
For the Netherlands, Fran-Jean Haseth had two of the four hits of his team.
Alfredo Sena went 2-for-4 with two runs scored and one RBI to lead Dominican Republic to a narrow 5-4 victory against Venezuela, closing the Placement Round day in Cartagena. The Dominicans are the only team wit 3-0 record in the 7th to 12th Placement Round.
Venezuela got the lead twice in the game, 1-0 in the bottom of the first, and a 3-2 in the bottom of the third. However the Dominicans took the lead in the top of the fourth with a throwing error by shortstop Andres Triana. They added an insurance run in the fifth on an RBI single by Euniel De la Cruz to score Sena.
Venezuela scored once in the bottom of the seventh on a wild pitch, and put the potential tying run on third base, but a grounder by Erinyer Barcelo ended the game.
Bottom 6th - Colombia produce again with two outs. With two outs, Eber Miranda walked and was caught in a rundown but reached second thanks to a throwing error. From there, he scored on a double by Sebastian Cervantes, who also crossed the plate on a single by Ander Elorriaga. The game is now 6-2.
Bottom 5th - Colombia answer to re-take the lead in the game. A fielding error and a walk put two runners on with no outs, and advanced on a sac bunt. Santiago Blanco grounded to first base and Sebastian Cervantes was tagged out at home plate for the second out. Adrian Niño stepped into the plate and delivered a full-count, two-run triple to the right field to give Colombia a 4-2 lead.
Top 5th - Adrian Villela walked, advanced on a sac bunt to third base and to third on a wild pitch. He then scored on a grounder to shortstop. It's a new ballgame.
Top 4th - Joel Vargas and Alejandro Gonzalez opened the inning with consecutive hits for Mexico, and one out later Francisco del Campo plated Vargas with a single to left field. Colombia's starter Enrique Sanchez ended the threat with a strikeout (his fourth of the game) and a grounder. The game is now 2-1 for Colombia.
Bottom 3rd - Colombia extend the lead to 2-0 with an RBI single by Sebastián Solano. Sebastian Cervantes worked a one-out walk, moved to third on an error, and scored with Solano's single. Colombia lead now 2-0.
Top 3rd - Again Sanchez faced only three batters in the inning. Adrian Villela reached on an errant throw by shortstop Sebastian Cervantes but was thrown out at second base trying to advance in the same play,. Pedro Salas grounded and Luciano Colado struck out to end the inning.
Bottom 2nd - Adrian Niño walked and one out later Omar Marrugo singled, leaving runners in the corners. However, Marrugo was caught stealing and Alan Peña flied flied to second base to close the inning.
Top 2nd - Sanchez faced the minimum again in the second inning. Mexico put their first runner on base on a Francisco Del Campo walk, but he was retired in a perfectly executed double play to end the inning.
Bottom 1st - Colombia go ahead in the game with an opposite field RBI single by Sebastian Solano. Sebastian Solano, who had singled with one out to get on base, scored for the hosts. Colombia leading 1-0.
Top 1st - Colombia's starter Enrique Sanchez retired the side in the top of the first inning, using 14 pitchers including a strikeout to Alex Tolosa to end the frame. Colombia come for their first at bat.
Game 35 - 19:00, Edgar Renteria Stadium, Barranquilla.
MEX - #19- Diego Roldán RHP
COL - #14- Enrique José Sánchez Gómez RHP
Preview - The last game in Barranquilla will see Colombia taking on Mexico. Lead by Adner Elorriaga, who is the best hitter of the tournament with .636, the hosts carry a two-win streak and aim to keep their momentum going into the Super Round. Mexico secured their ticket in the last game of the Opening Round, lifted by a great performance by Diego Serna, who is leading the tournament with 12 strikeouts.
Bottom 7th - Yuga Arai reached and moved to second on a throwing error, and scored on an RBI single by Kei Kawakami. With one out and a runner on second, Narushi Nakashima flied to left field and Ryoto Suna struck out.
Top 7th - Down to the last out, Chinese Taipei rally to take the lead! With two outs and a runner on, Shih-Yao Huang doubled to put two runners in scoring position, and Yu-Chia Ma was hit by a pitch. A costly error by the second baseman allowed Chinese Taipei's second run, and more important left the inning alive. An RBI single by Wei Lin made it a one-run ballgame, and finally Li,Ya Yu hit a bases clearing double to give Chinese Taipei the lead in the game. Chinese Taipei is leading 6-4 and is three outs away from a great victory.
Top 6th - Chinese Taipei score one in the top of the sixth on a bases loaded hit by pitch. They put three runners on with an error, a hit by pitch and a single; and then Li-Ya Yu was hit by a 3-2 pitch to produce the first run of the game for Chinese Taipei.
Bottom 5th - Japan double their lead. Yuga Arai and Kei Kawakami singled to start the inning, they both scored on a defensive error and a grounder to short stop. Japan lead now 4-0.
Top 5th - Shoki Hayashi was pulled after 4.2 innings. He was replaced by Tessho Taniguchi, who walked the first batter he faced but then struck out Shih-Cheng Lo to finish the inning. Hayashi allowed only two hits and a walk, against three strikeouts.
Bottom 4th - With one out on the scoreboard, Japan loaded the bases with a pair of singles and a base on balls, but they couldn't cash in. Chih-Hao Yang struck out Ryota Okada and forced Soya Kokubo to a fly to center field to escape unscathed. The game is still 2-0 for Japan.
Top 4th - Consecutive hit by pitches put two runners on with no outs. However, Shoki Hayashi recovered with a strikeout and forced Wei Lin to ground into a 6-4-3 double play. The game is still 2-0.
Bottom 3rd - With one out in the scoreboard, Ryota Oda hit a comebacker to the pitcher for an infield single, and Soya Kokubo hi a single to left field, leaving runners on first and second with one out. Chinese Taipei starter Jen-Yu Liu was replaced by Chih-Hao Yang. With the bases loaded, he forced Yuga Arai to a grounder to second base, good for double play, but an errant throw by shortstop Li-Ya Yu allowed Japan to score twice to take the lead.
Bottom 2nd - Sora Nakajima and Narushi Nakashima hit back to back singles to open the inning, but then Ryoto Suna hit into double play and Naru Fukui, with a runner on third, struck out looking for the third out of the inning.
Top 2nd - Yu-Chia Ma and Ren-Ruei Wu hit back to back singles with two outs, but Wei Lin flied to center field for the last out of the inning.
Both teams retired in order in the first inning of the game. Japan's Shoki Hayashi retired the first tow outs on a fly ball, followed by a grounder. Chinese Taipei's Jen-Yu Liu struck out the leadoff hitter and forced back to back grounders.
Game 33 - 15:00, Edgar Renteria Stadium, Barranquilla.
TPE - #42- Jen-Yu Liu LHP
JPN - #10- Shoki Hayashi RHP
Preview - The 3 pm game will see a new edition of the Japan vs Chinese Taipei rivalry. Japan, who posted a .305 batting average as a team during the Opening Round, is the only undefeated team in the Super Round with 2-0 and a win in this game will put them at the door of the medal games. Chinese Taipei, who's batting average is .328 as a team, need a win to stay in the hunt for a spot in the World Championship Game. The last time they met in this event was in 2022, also on day 1 of the Super Round. Chinese Taipei defeated Japan, 6-4.
Top 7th - Rivera retire in line to end the inning. Puerto Rico defeat Nicaragua, 3-1, and improved their record to 2-1 in the Super Round.
Bottom 6th - Jomar Rivera takes the ball for Puerto Rico, and hung the zero with a strikeout and a pair of fly balls.
Top 6th - Another pitching change in Nicaragua. After one out, Valentin Carrasquillo singled and Gean Carlos Lopez replaced Rodriguez. Lopez used only four pitches to end the inning, forcing Arnaldo to a double play grounder. The game is still 3-1.
Bottom 5th - Puerto Rico's starter Hanley Rosa struck out Wilfredo Chavez for the first out of the inning, but then served a single to Ludell Espinoza and walked Johan Saravia. He was pulled by the manager Jose San Miguel. Roldiel Maysonet got the ball, retired the next batter on a grounder but couldn't avoid an RBI single by Jean Catin. In the same play, Johan Saravia was tagged out at third, after a video review. Rosa's line was 4.1 innings pitched, giving up four hits and two walks, while striking out five.
Top 5th - Adniel Quiles, who was hitting .563 at the beginning of the day, hit his second hit of the game, and Anthony Badillo drew a one-out full-count walk to put two runners on. Diedrich Rodriguez replaced Kelvin Diaz in the mound for Nicaragua and the reliever retired the last two outs of the inning on a grounder and a strikeout. Diaz pitched 1.1 innings, giving up one hit and two walks.
Bottom 4th - Berman Moreno hit a one-out double for Nicaragua, but he was stranded there. Puerto Rico's starter Rosa, who has 61 pitches in the game, forced the next two batters to back to back fly balls to keep Nicaragua from scoring. The game still is 3-0.
Top 4th - A dropped fly ball in right field harmed Nicaragua again. Jean Rosa whit an easy fly ball but the ball dropped between three Nicaragua players. Then Josue Ramos walked and it was all for the Nicaraguan starter, who was replaced by Kelvin Diaz on the mound. Diaz couldn't avoid the third run on a sac fly to left field by Valentin Carrasquillo. Ramos pitched 3+ innings, giving up three runs and two hits, while striking out three. None of the runs were earned.
Bottom 3rd - A quick inning for Puerto Rico's Hanley Rosa, who used only nine pitches to retire the side.
Top 3rd - Puerto Rico take the lead in the game. Arnaldo Rodriguez hit a line-drive fly ball to left field that was not gloved by Berman Moreno, opening the door to the first runs of the game. Sebastian Cruz bunted to move the runner, but a mental lapse allowed him to reach first since nobody was covering first base. Then an RBI single by Adniel Quiles and a sac fly by Anthony Badillo led to two runs for Puerto Rico.
Bottom 2nd - Nicaragua loaded the bases with no outs but they couldn't cash in. Eddy Coronado worked a five-pitch walk, Berman Moreno followed with a single and Johacner Gutierrez reached with a perfectly located bunt to third base. However, Hanley Rosa escaped the jam with a strikeout, a short fly to left field and a fly to third base in foul territory. The game is 0-0.
Top 2nd - Nicaragua's left handed pitcher Josue Ramos has struck out three batters in the first two innings. He used 32 pitches, 20 for strikes, to retire the first six outs of the game. He only allwoed a runner on a hit by pitch. The game remains scoreless.
Game 31 - 10:30, Edgar Renteria Stadium, Barranquilla.
PUR - #26- Hanley Rosa RHP
NCA - #54- Josué Ramos LHP
Preview - The first game of the Super Round will see Puerto Rico and Nicaragua going head to head at Edgar Renteria stadium. With both teams holding a 1-1 record, the winner of this game will put themselves in great position in the hunt for a spot in the medal games. This will be the first time they face each other in the history of this tournament. Adniel Quiles and Anthony Badillo have led the way for Puerto Rico, posting a .563 batting average in the Opening Round. For Nicaragua, Luis Garcia will open the Super Round with a .538 average, the best hitter of the team. First pitch is scheduled at 10:30.
