Netherlands earn key win against Panama, still in play for super round of U-23 Baseball World Cup

Netherlands earn key win against Panama, still in play for super round of U-23 Baseball World Cup
26/09/2021
The Dutch score all their runs in the fourth. Panama strands 10 runners.

In a do-or-die matchup to keep any hope of a Super Round berth alive, the Netherlands delivered.

The world No. 8 got stellar pitching throughout its fourth game of the Opening Round and made a four-run fourth inning hold up on the way to a 4-1 win over world No. 13 Panama on Sunday in Hermosillo.

Netherlands starter Koen Postelmans and Panama starter Meliton Reyes duelled through three scoreless innings in the morning contest until the Dutch national side finally broke through. Sending all nine batters to the plate in the fourth, the Netherlands got on the scoreboard with a two-out rally, loading the bases and bringing home the game’s first run on a walk by Jeandro Tromp out of the last spot in the order.

One batter later, Julian Rip took a pitch off his left shoulder to make it a 2-0 lead, and after a pitching change brought reliever Abraham Atencio onto the mound, Tyriq Kemp continued his terrific tournament with a two-run single to center field to stake his team to a 4-0 advantage.

That was more than enough for Netherlands pitching. Though Postelmans walked Enoc Watts leading off the fourth and was charged with the run when Watts scored four batters later on a single by Joshwan Wright off Aaron De Groot, Panama couldn’t get any closer.

De Groot, Eric Mendez, and Jiorgeny Casimiri combined to toss four innings of scoreless relief, allowing just two hits to quiet a Panam offense that entered the day with the second-best team batting average and slugging percentage in the tournament.

The Netherlands victory tightened the Group B standings, with Sunday’s winners moving to 1-3 with a head-to-head win over Panama, now 1-2. The Netherlands moves on to battle Nicaragua on Monday morning in its final game of Opening Round play, while Panama will finish Group B action against Venezuela from 3:00 p.m. Monday.