Taiwan shut out Puerto Rico 4-0 in the final yesterday to seize the 2016 Bronco League World Series title in the US.
The title was the nation’s seventh in the youth baseball division for players aged 11 or 12.
Starting pitcher Wang Tien-hsin kept the opposition batters scoreless through seven innings.
Team Taiwan, comprising select players from Kaohsiung elementary schools, took a two-run lead heading into the final seventh frame.
They assured the victory when clean-up hitter Hu Yao-en scored a home run for the third straight game, a two-run hit.
The Kaohsiung team earned the right to advance to the Bronco League World Series in Los Alamitos, California, by emerging as the champions of the Asia-Pacific Region. They overcame their tenacious hosts 9-5 in Seoul, South Korea, last month in the Asia-Pacific Regional final.
Taiwan opened the account in the competition with a 9-1 victory over US-South, and proceeded to blank US-West 10-0.
Heading into the semi-finals, Taiwan thrashed hosts Los Alamitos 17-5, with both Wang and Hu hitting home runs, to advance to the final against Puerto Rico.
Head coach Yen Meng-chan lauded the players after yesterday’s title win, saying: “They were outstanding through the game. In fact, it was a pleasant surprise that some performed well above my expectations.”
Regarding criticism that he relied too much on core players, Yen said: “Yes, it was regrettable that some team members did not get into the games. I feel sorry about that, but coming here to participate in the Bronco League finals, that in itself is a good learning experience. Through this competition, I hope the players have learned about the different baseball cultures of other countries.”
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