TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwan and Nicaragua competed in the consolation round for third place on Sunday (Aug. 25) at the U15 Baseball World Cup in Barranquilla, Colombia.
The Taiwan team had to come from behind, scoring four runs in the sixth inning to secure the bronze. A ground ball by Yang Chun-hao (楊竣皓) put Taiwan ahead by one run, leading to a tightly fought 7-6 victory.
Taiwan started the game with Luo Shih-cheng (羅師騁) on the mound. Luo struggled from the outset, giving up two hits in the first inning, with a run scoring on a sacrifice fly to the outfield, putting Taiwan behind by one run, according to CNA.
In the second inning, Taiwan turned to the bullpen, bringing in Yu Nian-hsiao (余念孝). He surrendered a hit to the first batter he faced, with the next batter advancing runners with a bunt, followed by a hit that plated another run.
Yu later settled in and did not allow a run in the third and fourth innings. However, in the fifth inning, his control faltered, giving up three more hits that led to another run.
With one out in the fifth inning, Taiwan turned to the bullpen again, calling upon Yang Chih-hao (楊至皓). Yang faced early trouble, surrendering another hit, a walk, and a fielder’s choice, which resulted in two more runs scored.
At the plate, Taiwan struggled early in the game, failing to score a run in the first two innings. In the third inning, they relied on a walk, a stolen base, and an error to break the scoring drought with their first run.
In the fifth inning, Taiwan used a hit, an error, and another hit to narrow the score to 3-6, putting pressure on the Nicaraguan team.
After seizing momentum, Taiwan finally broke through by stringing together three successive hits to draw the game closer by another run. Later, a hit and a fielding error allowed two more runs to score, tying the game.
With Yang Chih-hao (楊至皓) at the plate, a ground ball allowed Taiwan to take the lead at 7-6.
Taiwan held on in the bottom half of the seventh inning, surrendering one hit but no runs, securing its third consecutive bronze medal, extending back to 2018.
After the competition, Taiwan pitcher Liu Jen-yu (劉任右) was awarded “Best ERA” for not surrendering a run, finishing with an ERA of 0.00 over 12.1 innings pitched across three games and earning one win.
