04/09/2013 3 Minute Read

Second Round at XXVI 18U Baseball World Cup set to commence on Thursday

Japan, USA, Cuba, Chinese Taipei, Korea and Venezuela advance – Consolation round starts

TAICHUNG. The first round at the XXVI 18U Baseball World Cup in Taichung is in the books. The top three of each pool Japan, USA, Cuba, Chinese Taipei, Korea and Venezuela advance to the second round. The remaining six teams in the tournament Australia, Canada, Mexico, Colombia, Czech Republic and Italy will play out ranks seventh to twelfth in the consolation round on Thursday.

On the last day of the preliminary phase Venezuela and Cuba won crucial games against the Czech Republic respective Australia to book the last tickets in the second round. USA, Japan, Chinese Taipei and Korea also won to go strong into the second round.

Defending champion United States and Japan will be in premier position to make it to the Gold Medal Game thanks to two wins with which they are start into the second round. Cuba and Chinese Taipei each have one win and a loss, while Korea and Venezuela sit at 0-2. Each team will play three games in the second round robin with the top two teams reaching the championship game on Sunday.

The first game day of a supposedly heavily competitive second round on Thursday features the duel between Asian rivals Japan and Korea in the afternoon. In the evening Chinese Taipei has to square off with record title holder Cuba, while defending champion USA takes on Venezuela.

All games of the second round will be broadcasted live in various locations. Check your local listings for detailed information.

Venezuela 6 – Czech Republic 2

Venezuela defeated the Czech Republic 6-2 behind a complete game of Welmer Quintero. The southpaw allowed just two runs on eight hits and three walks, while striking out eight. They scored five runs in the first four frames to take a quick lead. With the victory they clinched the second round. The Czech team remained winless in the first phase and has to settle for the game for 11th place.

Japan 7 – Canada 5

Japan overcame a 1-5 deficit to defeat Canada 7-5 to conclude the first round with a perfect 5-0 record. Tomoya Mori hit a solo home run and had a go-ahead two-run single. Relievers Taisuke Yamaoka, Yuya Takahashi and Tomohiro Anraku combined to allow just one hit and two walks in the last 6 2/3 scoreless innings.

Italy 4 – Korea 17

Korea dispatched Italy 17-4 in eight innings. It was a back and forth affair in the early goings, but the Asian baseball powerhouse ran away in the second. Six runs in the eighth ended the contest with ten-run rule. Nine different Korean players had hits. Byung Ok Bae, Tae Jin Kim and Byeong Wuk Lim scored three runs apiece. Alnel Joel Valera drove in two of the four Italian runs.

Australia 2 – Cuba 3

Cuba edged out Australia 3-2 at the evening game in Dou-Liou Stadium on Wednesday. With the win Cuba clinched second place in Group B and advanced to the second round. It was a close game with a sac fly of Luis Robert in the fifth making the difference. Australia cut the deficit from 0-3 to 2-3 in the seventh. They still had the bases loaded with one out in the frame, but two strikeouts ended their hopes for the win and the second round abruptly.

Colombia 6 – USA 12

USA won a slugfest 12-6 against Colombia at Taichung City Stadium. The US squad scored four runs in the second to break a 2-2 tie en route to the win. Adam Haseley collected four hits and scored three times. Michael Rivera had three runs and two RBI. With the victory USA clinched first place in the Group B standings.

Chinese Taipei 17 – Mexico 5

Chinese Taipei scored 11 runs in the first three innings and put runs on the board in six of the seven innings played to down Mexico 17-5 in the last first-round game at Intercontinental Stadium. A wild first inning took 50 minutes, as both teams combined to score ten runs. Li Lin went 3-for-4 with two runs and four RBI. Nine players scored for CT.

Standings

First Round

Group A
1) Japan 5-0
2) Chinese Taipei 4-1
3) Venezuela 3-2
4) Canada 2-3
5) Mexico 1-4
6) Czech Republic 0-5

Group B
1) USA 4-1
2) Cuba 4-1
3) Korea 3-2
4) Australia 2-3
5) Colombia 1-4
6) Italy 1-4

Second Round

Group C
1) Japan 2-0
1) USA 2-0
3) Chinese Taipei 1-1
3) Cuba 1-1
5) Korea 0-2
5) Venezuela 0-2

Schedule

Consolation Round

Thursday, September 5, 2013