WBSC U-23 Baseball World Cup Day 5: Puerto Rico win to finish first, Netherlands in control. All set for the Super Round
Day 5 of the WBSC U-23 Baseball World Cup 2024 opened at the Baseball Softball Conference Center in Shaoxing, China.
World No. 24 China beat No. 15 Australia and earned a historic Super Round berth out of Group A.
"The performance in the Opening Round has exceeded my expectations," commente Chinese manager Wei Li. "I liked our defence against Australia. It is our strength. Let me thank our pitching coach [Jian Zhang] for getting our starter [Wei Zhao] ready."
China will start the Super Round with a 0-2 record, while Australia will head to the Placement Round.
No. 10 Puerto Rico finished Group A in first place. They defeated No. 11 Colombia thanks to a seventh-inning rally and improved to a 4-1 record.
World No. 1 Japan will play the night game against No. 18 Great Britain but will finish second no matter the score.
No. 17 Nicaragua outscored No. 6 Korea for their fifth straight win, confirming them as the Group B first-place finishers. They will head to the Super Round undefeated.
No. 5 Venezuela will finish Group B in second place, regardless of the score of the night game against No. 3 Chinese Taipei. Korea will place third.
The Super Round will open on Thursday, September 12, with the following standings: Nicaragua, Puerto Rico (2-0); Japan, Venezuela 1-1; China, Korea 0-2.
No. 31 South Africa-No. 7 Netherlands are in the late innings
All Games are Live on Game Time
Standings WBSC U-23 Baseball World Cup 2024
| # | Team | W | L | T | PCT | GB | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  |
| 4 | 1 | 0 | .800 | 0 |
| 2 |  |
| 3 | 1 | 0 | .750 | 0.5 |
| 3 |  |
| 3 | 2 | 0 | .600 | 1 |
| 3 |  |
| 3 | 2 | 0 | .600 | 1 |
| 5 |  |
| 1 | 4 | 0 | .200 | 3 |
| 6 |  |
| 0 | 4 | 0 | .000 | 3.5 |
| # | Team | W | L | T | PCT | GB | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  |
| 5 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 | 0 |
| 2 |  |
| 3 | 1 | 0 | .750 | 1.5 |
| 3 |  |
| 3 | 2 | 0 | .600 | 2 |
| 4 |  |
| 2 | 3 | 0 | .400 | 3 |
| 5 |  |
| 1 | 3 | 0 | .250 | 3.5 |
| 6 |  |
| 0 | 5 | 0 | .000 | 5 |
Tournament Links
Puerto Rico-Colombia 3-2
Puerto Rico overcame Colombia with a seventh inning three-run rally, improving to 4-1 and clinching Group A first place.
Left-hander Omar Melendez took the mound for Puerto Rico while Colombia handed the ball to right-hander David Acevedo.
The starting pitchers dominated the first three innings. The two teams reached base a combined four times.
Colombia broke the tie in the bottom of the fourth when first baseman homered with two outs.
Daniel Figueroa helped Melendez get out of the inning with a leaping catch on Jorge Puerta's deep fly to the left.
Colombia added a run in the bottom of the fifth when reliever Carlos Roses hit Guillermo Quintana with the bases loaded.
Puerto Rico reversed the lead in the top of the seventh. A bases loaded two-RBI single by pinch hitter Osvaldo Torres off reliever Kevin Gomez tied the game. The go-ahead run scored on a sacrifice fly by Randal Diaz.
Colon retired the side in order in the bottom of the seventh.
Netherlands-South Africa
The Netherlands got the win they needed to head to the Placement round with a 2-0 record. South Africa had a decent offensive outing, recording nine hits.
The Netherlands started Naut Kragt. South Africa handed the ball to Robert White.
The Netherlands got on the scoreboard in the first. Jackey Josefa singled, advanced on a defensive error and scored on an RBI single by Darryl Collins.
Jair Von Borkulo led off the bottom of the second with a single. He stole second and advanced to third on a flyout. He scored on Gedionne Marlin's two-out RBI single. Marlin headed home on back-to-back singles byRaydley Legito and Josepha.
The Netherlands added three runs in the bottom of the fourth. Ruben Marnix led off bunting for the hit. Gedionne Marlin scored hin from first with a double and another run scored on Raydley Legito's RBI single. Hoffman allowed the third run on a pair of walks.
South Africa scored two runs in the top of the fifth on a two-RBI single by Luke November off reliever Koen Van'T Klooster.
The Netherlands added three runs in the fifth and one in the sixth. It was not enough to end the game according to the run-difference rule.
Nicaragua-Korea 7-1
Nicaragua outscored Korea, earning their fifth consecutive win and advancing to the Super Round undefeated.
Right-hander Hyung-Won Lim started for Korea. Nicaragua handed the ball to right-hander Stanling Orozco.
Nicaragua was quick to get ahead. Odlanyer Matamoros and Edmerson Castro reached on one-out singles and advanced on a walk. Emanuel Trujillo singled on the first pitch he saw and gave Nicaragua a 2-0 lead.
Nicaragua added a run in the top of the second. Lim left with a runner on base, and Matamoros delivered an RBI double off reliever Wonpyo Hong to extend the lead to 2-0.
Lim led off the second allowing a walk and left for Wonpyo Hong. The right-hander allowed the second run on an RBI double by Matamoros.
Nicaragua made it 4-0 in the top of the fourth. Hong left for Jaeyoung Song with runners at second and first. Nicaragua moved the runners with a sacrifice bunt and the run scored on Edmerson Castro's RBI single.
Korea got on the scoreboard in the bottom half of the frame. Hojung Song led off with a double and touched third on a groundout. He scored on Sangwoo Lim's sacrifice fly to centre field.
Nicaragua made it 5-1 in the top of the sixth. Darren Britton led off with a single, stole second and scored on Junior Ortega's RBI single.
Hyunseok Choi took the mound for Korea, and Nicaragua added another run on an RBI single by Godwin Bemmett. Choi got Emanuel Trujillo to ground into a force-out, but pinch hitter Derek Loasiga scored the seventh run from third. Baeksan Kim came out of the bullpen to end the at-bat.
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GAME REPORT
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China-Australia 4-1
China played consistent baseball behind phenomenal starter Wei Zhao and defeated Australia to earn their first-ever Super Round appearance in a WBSC Baseball World Cup.
Left-hander Wei Zhao took the mound for China. Australia handed the ball to right-hander Ky Jackson.
It took Australia two pitches to take the lead in the top of the second. Ky Jackson turned the first pitch he saw into a one-out triple. Zakary Skinner singled on the following pitch to make it 1-0.
It took China one pitch to tie the game in the bottom of the second. Shortstop Yi Zhou homered along the right-field line on Jackson's first offering.
Shuai Wang gave China the lead in the bottom of the fifth when he grounded out to Stevens. The third baseman's diving stop prevented more damage.
China added two runs on reliever William Sheriff on a passed ball and a squeeze play perfectly executed by centre fielder Xudong Zhu.
Left-hander Xiang Wang took care of the final three outs.
GAME REPORT
- Day 4 Recap
- Day 3 Recap
- Day 2 Recap
- Day 1 Recap
- Pre-Tournament press conference
- Where to watch
- Korea preview
- China preview
- Colombia preview
- Netherlands preview
- Puerto Rico preview
- Chinese Taipei preview
- Great Britain preview
- Venezuela preview
- Nicaragua preview
- Australia preview
- South Africa preview
- Japan preview