24/08/2024 9 Minute Read

WBSC U-15 Baseball World Cup 2024 - Day 8: Puerto Rico vs Japan for the Title of World Champion; Nicaragua vs Chinese Taipei for the bronze medal

Puerto Rico and Japan will play the World Championship Final. Puerto Rico secured their spot in Sunday's big game with a 11-7 win against Mexico, while Japan proved too good for Nicaragua, winning 7-2. Chinese Taipei defeated Colombia, 4-0, and set up the bronze medal game against Nicaragua.

Puerto Rico and Japan will play the WBSC U-15 Baseball World Cup 2024 World Championship Final on Sunday at 7 pm local time after both teams claimed important victories on the final day of the Super Round on Saturday.

World No. 12 Puerto Rico secured their spot in the final with a 11-7 win against No. 2 Mexico, while No. 1 Japan proved too good for No. 20 Nicaragua, winning 7-2. No. 5 Chinese Taipei defeated No. 13 Colombia in the last game of the day, 4-0, and set up the Bronze Medal Game against Nicaragua at 2 pm on Sunday.

Puerto Rico (4-1) and Japan (4-1) will meet in the final. This is the first time that these two countries meet in a WBSC Baseball World Cup gold medal game across all age categories. Puerto Rico only have one World Champion title to their name - WBSC Baseball World Cup winners in 1951 in Mexico City - and will play in their eighth final across all WBSC Baseball World Cup age categories (all in the WBSC Baseball World Cup) and World Baseball Classics since the WBC offered the world champion title since 2013.

Their last final in a WBSC Baseball World Cup was in 1976 in Cartagena, which saw them lose to Korea while Puerto Rico have also contested two World Baseball Classic finals since, losing to USA in 2017 and Dominican Republic in 2013.

Puerto Rico will finish on the podium for the first time at a WBSC U-15 Baseball World Cup while Japan return to the WBSC U-15 Baseball World Cup final after eight years. Their last appearance in the World Championship game was in 2016, when they lost to Cuba, 9-4.

Nicaragua (2-3) and Chinese Taipei (3-2) will play for bronze, in another unprecedented game for a medal in a WBSC Baseball World Cup. Nicaragua are hoping to claim only their second WBSC Baseball World Cup bronze medal after finishing third at the WBSC U-12 Baseball World Cup in 2015. Chinese Taipei are aiming for their 17th WBSC Baseball World Cup bronze medal across all age categories and their fifth in this age group.

Nicaragua is looking for their first-ever medal in this competition, while Chinese Taipei will try to win their 11th medal. They have won the bronze medal in the last two editions of this event.

Colombia and Mexico have been eliminated from the medal games.

Meanwhile, the positions 7-12 were confirmed after the final day of the Placement Round on Saturday with the Dominican Republic, Venezuela and Italy finishing seventh, eighth and ninth respectively with the Netherlands, South Africa and Guam in 10th, 11th and 12th.

Italy just missed out on their best ever finish in the WBSC U-15 Baseball World Cup after losing 10-9 to Venezuela. They equalled their previous best result of ninth in 1996 and 1998.

The Dominican Republic beat Italy 16-2 and the Netherlands proved too good for Guam, winning 10-0.

Key Links

Puerto Rico became the first qualified team for the World Championship Final with an 11-7 victory against Mexico on the last day of Super Round play. A late-game rally allowed the Caribbean squad to secure the win.

Adniel Quiles went 3-for-4 with a triple, an RBI and two runs scored to command the Puerto Rican lineup; while Jean Rosa drove in three, going 1-for-3.

Jomar Rivera won the game working 2.2 innings in relief, giving up one hit and two walks with two strikeouts.

With the win, Puerto Rico finished the Super Round 4-1, and secured one of the two top spots in the standings. With this result, they have secured a U-15 Baseball World Cup medal for the first time in the programme's history and on Sunday, at 7 pm, will try to win the Title of World Champions.

Mexico has been eliminated from the medal games, finishing the Super Round 1-4. They lost all three games of the second stage.

Ren Ota pitched 5.2 scoreless innings in relief, and Kei Kawakami went 3-for-4 with one RBI and two runs scored, to lead Japan to a 7-2 win over Nicaragua to clinch a spot in the World Championship Final. Japan finished on top of the Super Round standings with a 4-1 record, and will face Puerto Rico in the final match.

Ota took the mound in the second inning with one out, and tossed extremely well allowing three hits and one walk while striking out five. He was the winning pitcher. He finished with a 1.11 ERA in 12.1 innings pitched and lead the tournament with three wins.

For Nicaragua, Johan Saravia had two of Nicaragua's three hits, with an RBI.

The team from Central America must wait the result of the next game between Colombia and Chinese Taipei to see if they make the Bronze Medal Game.

Left-handed Jen-Yu Liu pitched a 6.2-inning masterpiece to lead Chinese Taipei to a 4-0 win over hosts Colombia, and clinch a spot in Sunday's Bronze Medal Game. This is the third consecutive time Chinese Taipei play for bronze in the WBSC U-15 Baseball World Cup, and fifth time in the previous six editions of this event. They've finished third four times.

Jen-Yu Liu pitched 6-2 innings, allowing only two hits and two walks. The left handed pitcher struck out 10 opponents. He didn't allow a run in 12.1 innings of work in the tournament, leading the field with 15 strikeouts (tied with Victor Gomez, Colombia's starter today).

Offensively, Yu-Chia Ma hit 2-for-3 with three RBIs, while Zi-Jin Su went 2-for-2.

Chinese Taipei finished the Super Round in third place, with a 3-2 mark, while Colombia is eliminated with a 1-4 record. They will finish in fifth place. This result allowed Nicaragua to qualify for the Bronze Medal Game, at 2 pm on Sunday, against Chinese Taipei.

In Cartagena de Indias, for the Placement Round, Venezuela outlasted Italy, 10-9 in nine innings, to claim their second win of the Placement Round. Venezuela recovered from a four-run deficit in the fourth inning to tie the game, send the game to extra innings and win it in the ninth with a 10-pitch bases-loaded walk by Camilo Gutierrez.

In the top half of the eighth inning, Italy scored three runs to take the lead again in the game. But Venezuela tied the game again with their own three-run rally. Italy failed to score in their ninth at bat, and Venezuela clinched the win.

With this result, Venezuela claimed the eighth place in the final standings, closing the Placement Round with a 4-1 mark. Italy will finish ninth with a 3-2 record.

The Dominican Republic scored 16 runs on six hits to claim an easy five-inning win over South Africa, 16-2, to close their participation in the tournament in seventh place.

Angel Nuñez collected five RBIs and scored three runs, while Wandy Asigen had three RBIs and scored twice, leading the Dominican lineup.

Ronny Herrera tossed four innings, giving up two hits and two runs, while striking out three. Justin Burgos retired the last three outs, two of them via strikes.

South Africa closed the tournament in the 11th place.

The Netherlands closed their participation in this World Cup with a 10-0 win against Guam in five innings. With this game, played in Cartagena de Indias, the Netherlands finished the tournament in 10th position.

Javier Chance went 3-for-4 from the lead-off spot, while Fran-Jean Haseth, Raishelnon Ogenia and Jeadyon Chirino had two hits each.

Neo Van der Westen pitched four innings while striking out six to get the win. He allowed two hits and one walk.

Guam finished the tournament in 12th place.

Key News

Colombia 0 - 4 Chinese Taipei - Boxscore

Top 6th - Jen-Yu Liu has pitched a gem. He's tossed six scoreless innings with eight strikeouts, while giving up two hits and two walks. Let's see if he gets the mound in the seventh inning.

Bottom 5th - A two-run single by Yu-Chia Ma to center field doubled Chinese Taipei lead. The Asian champions are leading now, 4-0.

Bottom 3rd - Zi-Jin Su hit a triple down the right field line, and scored on a single by Shih-Yao Huang. Chinese TAipei is leading now 2-0.

Top 2nd - Jen-Yu Liu struck out the side for the second inning in a row. He's used 40 pitches to collect six strikeouts. He walked two in the first inning.

Bottom 1st - Chinese Taipei take the early lead in the game. Three hits and a walk, including an RBI single by Yu-Chia Ma, allowed them to score once in the inning and jump ahead. With the bases loaded, Victor Gomez forced Ren-Ruei Wu to hit a fly ball to first base to end the inning. Chinese Taipei is leading, 1-0.

Colombia's Victor Gomez has collected two wins in the tournament, pitching 8.1 innings while giving up two hits five walks and one earned run, good for a 0.84 ERA. Gomez has averaged 81 MPH with the fastball, used the 75% of the time. He topped 86 MPH with his heater. His secondary pitch has been the slider, at 73.3 MPH average.

Chinese Taipei starter will be Jen-Yu Liu, who has pitched 5.2 innings in two starts. He has surrendered six hits and two runs, with five strikeouts. According to data provided by Synergy, he's used four pitches: an 87.2 MPH average fastball (67% of his pitches); a 75.8 MPH slider (20%), a changeup at 75.3 MPH (7%) and a curveball (6% at 71 MPH).

Game 47 - 19:00, Edgar Renteria Stadium, Barranquilla.
COL - #10 - Victor Gomez RHP
TPE - #42 - Jen-Yu Liu LHP

Preview - In the last game of the day, Colombia and Chinese Taipei will lock horns in Barranquilla in a contest that will define the qualified teams for the medal games. This is a must-win game for hosts Colombia to keep alive their hopes of a medal in this World Cup. For Chinese Taipei, a win will secure their presence in tomorrow's medal games, with chances to be in the 2 pm Bronze Medal Game or the 7 pm World Championship Final. Colombia is looking for their first ever medal, while Chinese Taipei own one world title and 10 total medals (counting the previous World Youth Baseball Championships).

Nicaragua 2 - 7 Japan - Boxscore

Bottom 4th - Japan add thee runs, increasing their lead to 7-2. RBI singles by Kei Kawakami and Ryota Okada.

Bottom 3rd - Kei Kawakami tripled with one out and then scored on a grounder by Narushi Nakashima. It's the eighth RBI for him in the tournament.

Bottom 2nd - Japan get back two runs and take the lead again. A two-run double by Kakeru Omiya drove in Narushi Nakashima and Naru Fuku.

Top 2nd - Nicaragua take the lead in the game. Ishige had problems to find his command, hitting Johacner Gutierrez with a pitch, and walking two before being pulled from the mound. Before that, Gutierrez tied the game on a wild pitch. Ren Ota replaced Ishige, and immediately gave up an RBI single to Johan Saravia.

Bottom 1st - Japan take the lead. Soya Kokubo walked to lead off the game, and later scored on a wild pitch. However, Japan made a few running mistales, recording the three outs of the frame on the basepaths.

Shinjiro Ishige is starting for Japan. The left-hander appeared only once, against Italy, pitching 4.1 innings while giving up two hits and six walks, against five strikeouts. According to WBSC partner Synergy, he used his fastball 75% of the time, relying on his curveball for the remaining 25%. He struggled a bit with his command in his first outing, throwing only the 48% of his fastballs in strike zone.

On the other side, Evan Da Souza will get the ball for Nicaragua. This tournament he's had three short appearances, pitching 1.1 innings in total. He walked eight against four walks, and surrendered two runs. He has used his heater 94% of the time, averaging 82.8 MPH, clocking 90 MPH once against South Africa.

Game 45 - 15:00, Edgar Renteria Stadium, Barranquilla.
NCA - #26 - Evan Da Souza RHP
JPN - #17 - Shinjiro Ishige LHP

Preview - In the second game of the day, Nicaragua and Japan will play their last Super Round game at 3 pm. Japan, 3-1 in the standings, have secured a place in the medal games tomorrow. With a win today, they will clinch a spot in the Final, their second in history counting the U-15 age bracket. Nicaragua is aiming to win their first-ever medal in this event. The game will start at 3 pm.

Mexico 7 - 11 Puerto Rico - Boxscore

Top 5th - Mexico send 10 hitters to mount a four-run rally and tie the game. Mexico used four hits to score four runs in the frame and tie the ballgame at seven. RBI knocks by Pedro Salas, Joel Vargas and Francisco Coronado, and sac fly from Adrian Villela. This is a new ballgame.

Bottom 4th - Puerto Rico extend the lead with two runs in the bottom of the inning. Three walks loaded the bases and then an RBI single by Edward Pineiro and a sac fly by Bradley Rodriguez. Puerto Rico leading 7-3.

Top 4th - After the rain delay, Yosniel Rosario is pitching for Puerto Rico. He's relied 92% of the time in his fastball (69%) and curveball (23%), averaging 78.3 MPH and 68.8 MPH respectively.

After two quick outs, Rosario gets into trouble with a pair of walks and an RBI single by Francisco Coronado. An Alejandro Gonzalez walk loaded the bases and Emilio Solivan, who replaced Rosario in the mound, struck out Alexander Huerta for the final out of the inning. The game is now 5-3 for Puerto Rico.

15:00 - We're playing again. Bottom of the 4th and one out, Mexico has changed the pitcher. Alexander Ibarra gets the ball. This is his third appearance in the tournament, totalling 97 pitches in his first two games. He's trusted mainly in his fastball, using it the 75% of the time, averaging 82.9 MPH and topping 85 MPH.

14:30 - Both teams start stretching and warming up again, while the grounds crew is working on the field.

13:58 - We're aiming to resume at 3 pm local time.

13:41 - Rain has stopped, and the tarp is being removed from the field. Resuming time still undecided.

13:15 - No updates from Barranquilla. It's still raining. Teams at the clubhouse.

12:39 - Rain is still falling in Barranquilla. Tarp still on.

Bottom 3rd - With one out in the bottom of the third inning, the game has been delayed du to heavy rain in Barranquilla (at 11:21 am local time).

Bottom 2nd - Puerto Rico keep scoring. They increased their lead to 5-2 with two in the second inning, with a clutch two-out, two run double off the left field wall by Jean Rosa.

Top 2nd - It's a one-run ballgame. Mexico score one with a clutch RBI single by Roberto Delgadillo to plate Alex Tolosa and the score now is 3-2. The inning ended with a nice plat at the hole by Puerto Rico shortsop Bradley Rodriguez.

Bottom 1st - Puerto Rico answer back with a three run rally to take the lead in the scoreboard. Two walks and a fielding error loaded the bases for the Caribbean team, and a hit by pitch scored the game-tying run. Arnaldo Rodriguez and Valentin Carrasquillo made it 3-1 with an RBI single each. The second out of the inning was a perfect throw by Mexico's center fielder Joel Vargas to throw out Jean Rosa at home.

Top 1st - Mexico go ahead with one run in their first at bat. Joel Vargas walked, advanced on a sac bunt, and the scored on a two-out RBI single by Alexander Huerta. It was Huerta's second RBI of the tournament.

Game 43 - 10:30, Edgar Renteria Stadium, Barranquilla.
MEX - #10 - Edgar Melgar RHP
PUR - #57 - Roldier Maysonet RHP

Preview - In the first game of the day, Mexico and Puerto Rico will meet at Edgar Renteria stadium. With a win, Puerto Rico will clinch a spot in tomorrow's Final, securing at the same time their first ever medal in this age bracket. On the other hand, Mexico need a win today, and a combination of results, to claim a spot in the Bronze Medal Game. Mexico hold one bronze medal in the history of the competition, won in 2009 in Taiwan, when the tournament was still a U-16 event. Mexico and Puerto Rico have never played before in this event. First pitch is scheduled at 10:30.