Taiwan on Monday scored 12 runs against South Africa to book their berth in the super round at the WBSC U-12 Baseball World Cup in Tainan.
Taiwan shut out South Africa 12-0 in five innings at the Asia-Pacific International Baseball Stadium, their third win in the opening round which secured qualification alongside Mexico and Venezuela.
Taiwan, who won the previous edition of the tournament in 2019, have a 3-1 record. Venezuela are at the top of the group with a 4-0 record.
Photo courtesy of the CTBA via CNA
The game against South Africa was a friendly affair, with smiles, applause and dancing, but that did not stop the defending world champions from getting busy right from the start, tallying a total of three runs at the top of the first.
After pocketing two more runs in both the second and third innings, sportsmanship was displayed on the field in the bottom of the third when Taiwan shortstop Yeh Shu-wei made a brilliant diving catch and hitter Sean Cupido applauded in appreciation.
Taiwan went on to add another four runs in the fourth inning and three in the fifth to run out 12-0 winners.
Left fielder Yen Yu-hsiang went three for three, while pitchers Ko Shao-chieh and Qiu Yun-zhou combined to achieve a no-hitter.
For South Africa it was all about appreciation of the atmosphere and love of the sport, with catcher Kyle Griebenow interacting and dancing with the crowd in between plays.
The top two finishers in the super round are to compete for the U-12 world title on Sunday.
In Laredo, Texas, Taoyuan Municipal Pingjen Senior High School on Monday defeated the hosts to win the 18-and-under division at the Palomino World Series.
Taoyuan produced a 5-0 shutout at the Unitrade Stadium to collect their fourth title after wins in 2012, 2018 and 2019.
They led from the off, putting up two runs in the first inning on the back of singles by Lee Hsun-chieh and Chen Jia-le.
With runners on first and second in the third inning, Lee extended Taoyuan’s lead to 5-0 with a home run off Laredo pitcher Jesed Garza.
Heavy defense was evident in the remaining four innings, with neither side able to score. Laredo pitched a total of four strikeouts, while Taoyuan posted 10.
Kaohsiung City finished runners-up in the 12-and-under division after an 11-4 loss to Placentia, California, in the Bronco World Series.
The team, made up mainly of students from Kaohsiung’s Jhongjheng Elementary School, went behind early, with Placentia’s Caden Smith starting the scoring with a line drive single in the second inning.
Jayden Stilabower then stole home in the same inning to put Placentia 2-0 ahead.
Placentia continued to dominate in the third as Cole Grothues drove in another run, while Stilabower tripled on a fly ball to right field to extend their lead to 6-0.
After a scoreless fourth inning, Placentia put another five runs on the board in the fifth to make it 11-0.
While Kaohsiung gained some ground in the fifth, they could only reduce the deficit by four runs before Placentia closed out the game in the seventh.
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