2022 U-18 Baseball World Cup

The 2022 U-18 Baseball World Cup was the 30th U-18 Baseball World Cup and was held in Bradenton, FL (LECOM Park) and Sarasota, FL (Ed Smith Stadium) from September 9 to September 18, 2022. It was the longest period between Cups as the previous one was held in 2019, the delay coming due to COVID-19 rescheduling of tournaments (this event was originally slated for 2021). The USA hosted for the first time since 1995. Participating were Australia, Brazil, Canada, Italy, Japan, Mexico, the Netherlands, Panama, South Africa, South Korea, Taiwan and the USA. Under new WBSC rules for 2022, all games were scheduled for 7 innings.

Games

September 9

• Brazil 7, South Africa 6. South Africa jumps to a 5-0 lead before a rain delay, then Brazil storms back. C Julian Takeda drives in 3 and Samuel Matias gets the win over Josh November. 2B Moegamat Adams scores a pair for South Africa while Robert White pitches four shutout innings as the starter.
• Japan 6, Italy 0. In a game delayed by rain, Ayuta Seimori, Shiki Kawahara (W) and Kaito Noda combine on a four-hitter while LF Shogo Asano has two runs and two RBI. Simone Carnevale takes the defeat.
• USA 9, Netherlands 3. The hosts fall behind 3-1 after 3 1/2 before the bats come alive. 1B Bryce Eldridge drives in 5, including a grand slam, while DH Aidan Miller scores three. Cameron Tilly wins in relief of Blake Dickerson. SS Kendrey Maduro drives in a pair for the Dutch, while Justin Morales takes the loss.
• Mexico 9, Australia 5. 1B Yael Romero drives in four, while 2B Carlos Gutierrez is 4 for 4 with 3 runs. Manuel Rodriguez Daza over Callum Wallace. LF Nicolas Hawkins reaches three times and scores two for the Aussies.
• South Korea-Canada and Panama-Taiwan were both rained out.

September 10

• Brazil 3, Canada 2. Canada leads 2-1 into the bottom of the 6th before 2B Nuno Borges' two-run single off Jack Pineau gives Brazil the comeback win. Emannoel Madeira pitches four hitless, scoreless innings of relief for the win. RF Cameron Chee-Aloy leads Canada with two hits.
• Taiwan 2, Italy 1. In another close game, Pirates farmhand Alessandro Ercolani duels Pao-Lo Huang. With the game 1-1 in the bottom of the 7th and the bullpens now in, 3B Chieh-Hsi Huang doubles off Diego Luciani. Davide Montanari relieves and issues an intentional walk, but #9 hitter LF Hsin Chiu singles in Huang with the winner. Sheng-En Lin gets the decision.
• Japan 4, Mexico 1. Kazuki Kozai allows one hit in four shutout innings (though walks four) for the win and Haruya Miyahara fans six in three innings for the save. 1B Kaito Ito has a two-run single. Angel Sanchez Valdivia takes the loss.
• USA 8, South Korea 3. 3B Colt Emerson scores three and Bryce Eldridge gets the win over Young-cheol Yoon. Five US hurlers issue seven walks but give up only one hit, to RF Jeong-min Kim, the #9 batter.

September 11

• Netherlands 3, Canada 2. Canada takes their second straight one-run loss, again blowing it late. Reece Usselman outdueled Brandon Herbold and Canada led 2-0 with two strikes away from victory. LF Jakey Josepha then hit a two-run tripled and scored on a throwing error for a huge comeback. 1B Sam White goes 2 for 2 for Canada. Stijn van der Schaaf gets the win.
• Taiwan 13, Australia 2. RF Chih-Yu Chen and SS Chun-Wei Liu each score four runs, while 3B Chieh-Hsi Huang drives in four in a rout. Yen-En Wang gets the win, Tyson Noel the loss. CF Jaxon Limpus reaches twice for the losing squad.
• Mexico 12, Italy 7. LF Antonis Macias has four hits and DH Alberto Barriga four RBI, while Victor Landeros gets the win (Anhuar Garcia saves it). LF/CF Alessandro Volpe goes 4-for-5 to lead Italy, while Giacomo Taschin is the pitcher of record.
• South Korea 11, Brazil 2. South Korea gets its first win, Brazil its first loss as Seo-hyeon Kim gets the victory (6 K in 2 2/3 IP) and Paulo Barbosa the loss. DH Beom-seok Kim drives in four and 1B Min-suk Kim goes 3 for 3 with a walk from the leadoff slot.
• USA vs. South Africa - delayed by rain in the third inning
• Japan 5, Panama 4. Japan jumps to a 4-0 lead against Andres Silvera but Panama ties it in the top of the 7th versus Haruto Yamada. In the bottom of the 7th, DH Yuta Utsumi's fly brings in PR Kojun Fujimori with the winner.

September 12

• Taiwan 4, Mexico 0. Shao-En Lin struck out eight in a one-hitter, only 2B Manuel Estrada connecting for Mexico. LF Hsin Chiu had two hits, two steals, a double, a run and a RBI.
• Netherlands 5, Brazil 2. RF Darnel Collins goes 3 for 3 with a homer and Stijn van der Schaaf saves it for Allard Helms. Joao Marostica takes the loss.
• Panama 10, Italy 0. Luis Daniel Aguilar and Moises Eduardo Castillo combine on a one-hitter in a five-inning mercy rule win. LF Roger Lasso doubles and triples in his two at-bats, with two runs and two RBI. Riccardo Nepoti is the losing hurler, while C/1B Andres Annunziata has the lone Italian hit.
• South Korea 14, South Africa 1. The two South teams have an expectedly one-sided game, Yeong-woo Shin beating Joshua Williams. CF Jun-young Jeong (3 H, 3 R), LF Young-hoo Kim (3 R), 1B Min-suk Kim (3 RBI) and C Beom-seok Kim (3 H, 3 RBI) star from the 1-to-4 spots in the batting order. DH Rio Harrison scores the only run for the African entry.
• Japan 10, Australia 0. Shiki Kawahara gets the win as Japan four-hits Australia in another mercy rule rout. Among the leaders of a balanced offense are LF Shogo Asuna (2 for 2, 2 R, RBI), C Shion Matsuo (R, 2 RBI) and 3B Kai Watabe (2 R, RBI). Jackson Grounds takes the defeat.
• USA 7, Canada 6. Down 5-3, the US rallies to hand Canada its third straight one-run loss. CF/RF Maxwell Clark homers and Blake Mitchell saves Alexander Clemmey's win. Makaio Cisneros takes the loss. C Hugh Pinkney drives in three for Canada.

September 13

• South Korea 1, Netherlands 0. South Korea picks up a big win in a pitching duel as Jun-seo Hwang and Young-cheol Yoon combine to fan nine and allow two hits (to LF Jakey Josepha and RF Kendrey Maduro) and no walks. Justin Morales and Gijs van den Brink only give up three hits, but one run scores when CF Jun-young Jeong drives in 3B Jae-sang Kim.
• Mexico 8, Panama 7. Mexico builds a 5-2 lead in the first but Panama battles back, Mexico winning on an 8th-inning single by LF Antonis Macias (his 4th hit of the day). Juan Tirado is the winning pitcher, Carlos Javier Diaz the losing pitcher. SS/3B Eric Guevara scores three times for Panama.
• Australia 5, Italy 4. The two winless teams in Pool B have the third one-run game of the day. DH Joshua Davies drives in two for Australia and Riley Marsh saves it for Callum Wallace. Davide Montanari takes the loss; SS Williams Wong reaches three times for Italy.
• Canada 5, South Africa 2. In Pool A, the two remaining winless teams also square off. DH Myles Naylor reaches four times, Elliot Cadieux gets the win and Ty Hamilton the save. Robert White goes the distance for South Africa, while RF Tyron Brickhill cracks a two-run homer.
• USA 10, Brazil 0. The US remains unbeaten as LF Aidan Miller scores three times and homers, while Jake Brown and Adam Hachman combine on a one-hitter, striking out 13. RF Enzo Ercole has Brazil's only hit, while Pedro Theodoro takes the defeat.
• Taiwan 9, Japan 2. In a match-up of previously unbeaten teams, Taiwan trounces Japan, which had allowed only five runs in their first four games. 1B Nian-Hao Wang scores three runs and 2B Jun-Wei Zheng drives in five from the 9 slot while Sheng-En Lin beats Kazuki Kokai. 1B Kaito Ito scores one of Japan's runs and drives in the other.

September 14

• USA 16, South Africa 0. Finishing off the rain-delayed game from three days prior, Stone Russell pitches a one-hitter in a five-inning mercy rule win (RF Jamie Brookes getting the lone hit). C Gavin Grahovac homers and drives in three. Bryce McCleland takes the loss.
• South Korea 13, Canada 0. After so many close losses, Canada is finally blown out, Jeong-woon Kim beating Felix Morin. 3B/1B Dae-seong Kim finishes a triply shy of the cycle and drives in five.
• Netherlands 9, South Africa 0. Marshall Albertsz and Ryan Hoogendoorn combine on a two-hitter, fanning 11. C Mees Robberse drives in four and LF/CF Jakey Josepha has three walks and three runs. Bryce McCleland is handed his second loss of the day (having gotten the decision in the rain-suspended game against the US) while 3B Aiden Carelse and 1B Ethan Grobler get South Africa's hits.
• Taiwan 10, Panama 6. Chih-Hao Shu gets the win as Taiwan finishes pool play unbeaten, backed by 3 RBI from SS Chun-Wei Liu and four from RF Yi-Lei Sun. Moises Eduardo Castillo takes the loss while 3B Eric Guevara has three hits for the Central American team.
• Panama 3, Australia 2. The last first-round game is a dramatic affair, tied 1-1 after 7. Australia scores in the top of the 8th but Panama comes back with two in the bottom half to win. Angel Vazquez gets the win, while RF Joaquin Gamba has a run and a RBI. Charlie Pierson is the losing pitcher. DH Joshua Davies has two hits to lead the islanders.

September 15

• Netherlands 7, Mexico 4. The Netherlands rally from a 4-1 deficit in the 5th to begin the Super Round. 2B Alexander Albertus has two hits and two runs, Stijn van der Schaaf gets the victory and Bryon Rincones the save. Manuel Rodriguez Daza is the losing pitcher; Mexico's offense is led by LF Antonis Macias, who reaches in three of four plate appearances.
• Italy 2, South Africa 1. Italy begins the placement round by edging the Africans. SS Alessandro Laise falls a homer shy of a cycle and Sebastiano Catellani saves Pietro Verzin's win. 2B Aiden Carelse has two hits for South Africa and Kyle Schwartz takes the loss.
• Canada 7, Australia 6. Canada finally wins a close one, Makaio Cisneros beating Tyson Noel. 3B Myles Naylor reaches every time, homers, scores two and drives in two and Zak Szabo registers a save. SS Luke Smith and RF Max Stagg each drive in a pair for the Aussies.
• Brazil 3, Panama 2. All three games in the placement round today are one-run contests. Paulo Noris allows two hits in seven shutout innings for Brazil, but Luis Aguilar is even better with one hit and no runs. In the top of the 8th, Brazil scores three off Armando Nunez, PH Paulo Barbosa driving in two. Henrique Kono gives up two in the bottom half but escapes with the save.
• South Korea 8, Japan 0. Japan again falls to another Asian team as Young-cheol Yoon goes to 2-1 in beating Haruto Yamada. CF Jun-yeong Jeong scores two and drives in one.
• Taiwan 6, USA 2. The two unbeaten teams face off and Nien-Hsi Yang goes the distance, allowing two hits, while Cameron Johnson allows two runs without retiring anyone. C Chia-Hsiang Sung reaches all three times. 1B Bryce Eldridge's two-run homer is a bright spot for the US.

September 16

• Italy 3, Canada 2. Italy again wins a one-run game in the placement round, when DH Williams Wong singles in 2B Diego Luciani in the 7th; it is Wong's 3rd RBI and Luciani's 2nd run. Sebastiano Catellani gets the win, saved by Giacomo Taschin, while Reece Usselman takes the loss. 3B Myles Naylor has another two-RBI day.
• Australia 5, Brazil 4. The close games continue, with Riley Marsh getting the win over Emannoel Madeira. The game goes nine innings, LF Nicolas Hawkins, driving in 3B Max Stagg with the winning run. 2B Julian Takeda scores twice for Brazil.
• South Korea 3, Taiwan 2. Taiwan takes their loss as South Korea joins them and the US atop the standings. It is a pitching duel as Jun-seo Hwang and Seo-hyeon Kim combine for seven innings of two-hit ball only to be matched by Taiwan's Pao-Lo Huang and Po-Chun Lin. Going into extra innings, the Koreans get three off Yu-Cheng Wu. Taiwan scores a pair off Kim in the bottom of the 8th but this is not enough.
• Panama 10, South Africa 1. 1B Alexander Chavez drives in four and C Eduardo Tait has three hits and three runs to back the fine pitching of Ismael Velasco. CF/RF Jamie Brookes has half of South Africa's four hits while Quinn McKenzie is the losing pitcher.
• Japan 1. Netherlands 0. In a rain-shortened game, Japan edges the Netherlands. Shiki Kawahara fans three in five shutout innings before the game ends, outdueling Allard Helms. RF Yoshinobu Kuroda drives in 2B Kojun Fujimori with the game's lone run.
• USA 7, Mexico 5. Bryce Eldridge continues to dazzle, driving in two and saving Adam Hachman's win. C Daniel Sierra has two hits and two runs for the Mexicans, with Juan Tirado getting the decision.

September 17

• Brazil 5, Italy 1. Brazil finishes atop of the placement pool, their 7th-place finish being their best in 25 years. Henrique Kono allows one hit and one run in 5 2/3 IP and 3B/P Paulo Noris drives in a pair. DH Williams Wong again has all of Italy's RBI, driving in SS Edoardo Cornelli while Riccardo Nepoti takes the loss.
• Panama 5, Canada 2. Panama finishes 8th as Andres Silvera gets the win, Angel Vasquez the save and Parker Burgess the loss. 3B Eric Guevara doubles, homers and drives in two for Panama while C Hugh Pinkney scores twice for Canada.
• Taiwan 3, Netherlands 0. Shao-En Lin and Yu-Cheng Wu combine to fan ten in a two-hitter as Taiwan goes to the title game. Marshall Albertsz takes the loss as only LF Jakey Josepha and SS Kendrey Maduro get hits. For Taiwan, 2B Yung-Chuan Huang comes off the bench to drive in two.
• South Korea 6, Mexico 4. South Korea gets a spot in the medal games as Young-cheol Yoon goes to 3-1, with Seo-hyeon Kim saving it. Backup 3B Dae-seong Jeong reaches all three times after entering the game and drives in two. SS Rosman Verdugo has two doubles among his three hits for the Americans. Jesus Lopez takes the loss.
• Australia 7, South Africa 2. Australia finishes in 9th as Jackson Grounds beats Robert James White (Charlie Pierson getting the save). LF Nick Bertucci doubles three times and scores three to pace the Australian offense, while 2B Josh November has the only hit for the Africans.
• USA-Japan suspended by rain

September 18

• USA 4, Japan 3. Japan led 3-2 when rain had halted the game yesterday, but the US rallies. 3B Colt Emerson singled off Yusefu Yoshimura to open the bottom of the 7th. RJ Hamilton Jr. laid down a bunt and two errors on the play by Japan put men in scoring position and a balked tied it. Kaito Noda relieved then struck out C Blake Mitchell. After SS Dylan Cupp, the #9 hitter, failed to lay down a squeeze bunt, he singled in the winner. Christian Rodriguez got the victory. 3B Kaito Ito drove in two for Japan. The US advanced to the title game.
• USA 5, Taiwan 1. The US avenged their lone loss as Matthew Dallas, Blake Mitchell and Bryce Eldridge combined on a three-hitter, allowing one unearned run, to beat Sheng-En Lin. DH/P Eldridge had two runs and three RBI to lead the US offense once more. 3B Chieh-Hsi Huang drove in Nian-Hao Wang with the only Taiwanese run.
• Japan 6, South Korea 2. South Korean starter Jun-seo Hwang only lasts one-third of an inning and Japan is up 6-0 after two to beat their rival. Ayuta Seimori gets the win and Shiki Kawahara allows only one hit in three shutout innings for the save. DH Kai Watabe has two hits and two RBI. C Dong-heon Kim's two-run shot provides all the Korean runs.

Final Standings

1. USA
2. Taiwan
3. Japan
4. South Korea
5. Netherlands
6. Mexico
7. Brazil
8. Panama
9. Australia
10. Italy
11. Canada
12. South Africa

Awards

• MVP: Bryce Eldridge, USA 1B/P
• Outstanding Defensive Player: Luis Escudero, Panama 2B

All-Star Team

• SP: Shao-En Lin, Taiwan
• RP: Shiki Kawahara, Japan
• C: Shion Matsuo, Japan
• 1B: Yael Romero, Mexico
• 2B: Luis Escudero, Panama
• SS: Rosman Verdugo, Mexico
• 3B: Dae-seon Jeong, South Korea
• RF: Aidan Miller, USA
• CF: Jun-young Jeong, South Korea
• LF: Hsin Chiu, Taiwan
• DH: Bryce Eldridge, USA