myworldofbaseball

Puerto Rico won the Pan Am Games, defeating Canada 6-1 in the finals. The United States did not participate in the games, choosing to focus on the Premier 12 games to be played in Tokyo. Other teams that participated in the Games - The host Peru, Argentina, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Colombia and Nicaragua. For Puerto Rico it was their first Pan Am Gold, defeating the two time defending champs Canada. The poor hosts, Peru, were the only team that did not win a game.

Giovanni Soto got the start and the win for Puerto Rico in the gold medal game. Chris Leroux took the loss for Canada. Jorge Padilla drove in the first run for Puerto Rico with a double. Brahiam Maldonado went deep with a solo shot in the sixth and Edwin Gomez closed out the scoring for Puerto Rico with a two run single in the seventh.

Nicaragua, Colombia, Canada and Puerto Rico all qualified to play in an Olympic qualifier. Cuba had a rough tournament, only winning one game. They had a tough 10 inning loss to the Dominican Republic that was tied 1-1 after regulation time. When they scored 8 in the 10th it appeared they had the game won, but the Dominican Republic scored nine in the 10th to win it.

Puerto Rico won a tight 2-1 game against the Dominican Republic that went 10 innings and then two days later they beat Colombia 2-1. They finished the tournament undefeated.

Nicaragua shutout Colombia in the bronze medal game 6-0. During pool play Colombia had defeated Nicaragua 11-1.

Last year we included the top prospects in the “Best Prospects from South America” List. Five Colombian players were named on that list. One of them graduated to major league baseball (Jorge Alfaro) and is no longer considered a prospect. The four remaining reappear on the top prospects from Colombia list. Myworld was able to find ten players who we felt had enough skills to make it to the major leagues. Below are the top ten prospects from Colombia.

1. Ronaldo Hernandez C (Rays) - The Rays signed the infielder for $225,000 and then converted him to catcher. His biggest asset is his arm and the ability to hit for power. While the arm can control a running game he is still learning the other aspects of the game such as blocking the ball and framing the pitch that will get him to the major leagues. His defensive mechanics other than his arm would fall below average. On the offensive side, the bat showed it can hit for some power, crashing 21 homeruns last year and slugging .494 at Low A. This year he is trying to tackle High A in the Florida State League which is more of a pitcher’s park. He has five homeruns, but a much worse walk to whiff ratio (6/32), which could be a cause for concern. His batting average is still high (.287) but his OBA has dropped 20 points (.313). He is still a couple years from the major leagues.

2. Luis Patino RHP (Padres) - The Padres signed Patino back in 2016 for $130,000. At the time he was still a teenager lacking meat on his bones. He has picked up 40 pounds since that signing and his fastball velocity has gone up ten miles per hour, hitting the high 90s but sitting in the mid-90s. He also has an excellent slider that crosses the plate in the mid-80s. Finding an off speed pitch (curve or change) would make him effective as a starter. The one concern is his smallish frame, which at 6′0″ is death for right handed starters. Last year he dominated at Low A (2.16 ERA). This year a promotion to High A has not impacted his pitching, his ERA (2.92) and opposition average (.194) still showing he can dominate at that level. The Padres are flush with pitching prospects so there will be no rush to move him up the system. Expect him to make the major leagues sometime in 2020.

3. Luis Escobar (Pirates) - Luis signed back in 2013 for $150,000. He was signed as a third baseman but the Pirates moved him to the mound. He has bulked up another 60 pounds since his signing and his fastball now hits 97, but sits in the 93-95 mile per hour range. He has the secondary pitches to make it as a starter (curve and change) but he lacks the command to get them over the plate with any regularity. Last year he walked 59 hitters in 129 innings. That is almost a walk every other inning. This year he has walked 18 in 40 innings. Last year he got seven starts in AA (4.54 ERA). This year the Pirates have tried him out in the bullpen in High A, then skipping him to AAA where he has been used as a starter and reliever. His career opposition batting average entering the 2019 season was a pretty impressive .216. This year he has gotten it down to .150. The Pirates have had dome frustration as they have promoted their younger pitchers to the major leagues and achieved very little success. With every failure comes a greater opportunity for Escobar to show what he can do. Before the 2019 season ends he could start his career in the Pirates bullpen.

4. Meibrys Viloria C (Royals) - The Royals signed him back in 2013 for $460,000. In his first year stateside he shocked the minor league world in 2016 with a .376 average in rookie ball. The last two years he has been stuck at .260. Last year with the injury to Salvador Perez he got his major league opportunity, appearing in 10 games and hitting .259. That first year batting average appears to be a bit of an outlier. After getting off to a slow start in 2019 he has gotten his average up to .254. He is more noted for his defense and his strong arm that can control the running game than his bat. The Royals appear to have a top flight catcher (M.J. Melendez) ahead of him on the depth chart, which could cause a move to another organization if he wants to get playing time. He is currently in AA and should see some time in September, or earlier if an injury results in a promotion. At worst his solid defense would make him an excellent backup catcher.

5. Oscar Mercado OF (Indians) - Oscar was a second round pick of the St. Louis Cardinals in 2013, signing for $1.5 million. He was traded to the Indians last year for two lower level outfielders. Mercado moved from Colombia to the United States when he was eight years old, growing up in Florida and gaining a reputation as an excellent shortstop. He was moved to the outfield in 2017. There is not a lot of power in his game. Playing good defense and stealing bases will be his specialities. Last year he stole 37 bases in AAA, scoring 85 runs. The Indians are very weak in the outfield and that weakness led to a promotion to the major leagues this year. After hitting .294 in AAA Mercado continues to hit for the Indians with a .306 average. He has also shown some surprising pop with three homeruns in just 26 games. If this kind of production continues with the Indians he will graduate from prospect status and not appear on this list next year.

6. Harold Ramirez OF (Marlins) - With the Pirates he was once a big time prospect. Signed way back in 2011 he got a bit heavy and out of shape and his prospect status suffered. The Pirates traded him in 2016 to the Blue Jays and the Blue Jays did not see anything in him and outrighted him last year. That is where the Marlins picked him up as a minor league free agent. He has resurrected his career, killing it in AAA with a .355 average and a .999 OPS. The Marlins promoted him and have been using him in centerfield, where they had hoped Luis Brinson would have been the answer. His success in the major leagues (.325) appears to indicate that he will be another player to graduate from the prospect list.

7. Jhon Torres OF (Cardinals) - Jhon was signed by the Indians in 2016 for $150,000. Ironic that he was one of the two outfielders the Indians traded to the Cardinals for Oscar Mercado. Could be the first trade where two Colombians were traded for each other. He did not make his state side debut until last year when he hit .397 in 17 games at the Gulf Coast League. At 6′4″ he can generate some power in his swing, hitting 8 homeruns last year in just 44 rookie league games. His arm is built to play right field. The Indians may be getting some good use out of Mercado now, but in the future they may regret trading Torres. The Cardinals have him playing Low A, where he has struggled in his 21 games (.167 average). When the rookie leagues begin he will probably be demoted there to get his bat working.

8. Jordan Diaz 3B (Athletics) - Jordan signed in 2016 for $275,000. Last year he played in the Arizona Rookie League where he showed a good ability to get on base (.371). He has the defensive tools to play third base. His power is currently restricted to the gaps. Whether his 5′10″ frame can generate more pop is open to question. Last year he hit his first and only professional homerun. In the New York Penn League he went deep early where in three games he is hitting .364. He is still a long way from the major leagues. A lot of developing needs to be done.

9. Santiago Florez RHP (Pirates) - Signed in 2016 for $150,000 Santiago has the height (6′5″) and the fastball (mid-90s) to get the Pirates excited. His curveball has some promise but there is no real third pitch yet and his command is suspect. Last year he walked 23 hitters in 43 innings and saw his innings limited because of a barking elbow. There is a lot of development to do. He will work on that in the 2019 season when the rookie level leagues begin.

10. Danis Correa RHP (Cubs) - We needed a tenth player but don’t know a lot about Danis other than his fastball has hit triple digits, but sits at the mid-90s. At 5′11″ his height goes against him as a right handed pitcher. Last year he only was able to pitch in two games of relief at the rookie level. The year before he pitched 40.2 innings. At 19 years of age the Cubs are possibly waiting for the rookie leagues to begin before they put Correa on the mound.

According to a major league baseball press release there are 251 foreign players from 20 different countries or areas who appear on 25 man major league rosters, or are on restricted or disabled lists. That accounts for 28.5% of the players. The Dominican Republic again leads in the most major league players outside the 50 United States. Below is a breakdown of where all those foreign players are from;

1. Dominican Republic (102)
2. Venezuela (68)
3. Cuba (19)
4. Puerto Rico (18)
5. Mexico (8)
6. Japan (6)
7. Canada (6)
8. Curacao (5)
9. South Korea (5)
10. Colombia (4)
11. Aruba (1)
12. Australia (1)
13. Brazil (1)
14. Germany (1)
15. Lithuania (1)
16. Netherlands (1)
17. Nicaragua (1)
18. Panama (1)
19. Taiwan (1)
20. U.S. Virgin Islands (1)

Below are the names of the players who made the All Tournament Team in the Under 23 World Cup.

Catcher - Orlando Pina (Mexico) .320, 2, 8
First Base - Hisanori Yasuda (japan) .393, 1, 8 MVP
Second Base - Brailan Perez (Colombia) .462, 0, 5 with two triples and 4 stolen bases
Third Base - Dervin Pomare (Colombia) .522, 1, 10 with a 1.368 OPS
Shortstop - Jorna Rodriguez (Venezuela) .333, 0, 3
Outfield - Norberto Obeso (Mexico) .500, 0, 5 with 5 doubles, 1.363 OPS
Outfield - Carlos Vidal (Colombia) .387, 1, 7
Outfield - Bojarski Ulrich (Australia) .379, 4, 11 with 1.297 OPS
Designated Hitter - Leandro Cedeno (Venezuela).306, 2, 10
Starting Pitcher - Francisco Haro (Mexico) 2-0, 1.93 with 18 whiffs in 14 innings
Best Relief Pitcher - Kakeru Narita (Japan) 1-1, 1.17 with 1 save

Other Players Worth Note

Australia

Jack Barrie - .391, 3, 8
Mitchell Warke-Edwards - .500, 2, 6 with 1.200 slugging and 1.783 OPS

Colombia

Juan Zabala - .417, 1, 7
Juan Escorcia - 0.90 ERA with 14 whiffs in 10 IP
Reiver SanMartin - 1-0, 0.82, .179 opponent average

Czech Republic

Martin Muzik - .250, 2, 7

Dominican Republic

Claudio Galva - 0.00 ERA, 11 whiffs in 9 innings, .097 opponent average
Raffi Vizcaino - 0.00 ERA, .105 opponent average

Japan

Kairi Shimada - .344, 1, 1 with 12 runs scored with 5 stolen bases
Yasuhito Uchida - .233, 3, 8
Hiroki Kondo - 1-0, 0.00 ERA, 17 whiffs in 15 innings, .189 opponent average
Kosuke Sakaguchi - 1-0, 0.77, 16 whiffs in 11.2 innings, .179 opponent average
Soichiro Yamazaki - 1-0, 0.00, .194 opponent average

Korea

Chan-Hyung Kim - .286, 3, 9
Min-Hyeok Kim - .367, 2, 7
Dong-Hui Han - .324, 2, 7 with 12 runs scored
Jin-Won Ye - .410, 0, 4
Sung-Young Choi - 2-1, 2.31, 13 whiffs in 11.2 innings, .171 opponent average
Sang-Hyun Jeon - 2-0, 1.80, .206 opponent average

Mexico

Roberto Valenzuela - .263, 3, 9 with 3 stolen bases

Netherlands

Sherton Apostel - .375, 2, 9
Francinel Martina - .367, 1, 7

Puerto Rico

Isan Diaz - .214, 4, 5 with 8 runs scored
Jonathan Bermudez - 0.00 ERA, 10 whiffs in 7 innings pitched, .048 opponent average
Sidney Duprey - 1-1, 1.04, 11 whiffs in 8.2 innings
Luis Sanchez - 1.17, 1 save, .125 opponent average

South Africa

Tyler Smith - .433, 0, 4

Taiwan

Wei-Han Hong - .367, 0, 1, .472 OBA
Liang-Chih Chen - 0.60, .196 opponent average

Venezuela

Anthony Concepcion - .346, 1, 6
Carlos Machado - .429, 0, 5
Jesus Lujano - .400, 0, 5
Yonny Hernandez - .200, 0, 2 with 6 stolen bases
Nivaldo Rodriguez - 0.00 ERA, .077 opponent average

In the rain makeups Taiwan edged Colombia to qualify for the Super Round. Unfortunately, they must go into this Super Round 0-2.

Taiwan 6 Colombia 5

It was a tight 1-1 game after five. In the tenth inning when teams are allowed to put two runners on base the game got wild. Taiwan scored five and Colombia could only muster four giving Taiwan the edge and advancement to the Super Round.

Kai-Wei Li got the big hit with a bases clearing double to drive in three. Colombia battled back with three driven in on a triple by Zabala Murillo. Milton Ramos drove her in with a single but Chun-Chang Su retired the last two hitters to win the game.

Reiver SanMartin pitched five innings of shutout ball before Colombia went to the pen. San Martin only gave up one run in the 11 innings he had pitched in the tournament. Liang-Chih Chen pitched 8.1 innings, allowing just one run. He was a bit wild walking seven.

Netherlands 7 South Africa 3

In a game that meant little the Netherlands won their second straight game.

The Netherlands won their first game, upsetting Taiwan and the Czech Republic almost shocked the Dominican Republic. Five of the six teams have advanced to the Super Round.

Venezuela 9 Korea 2

The two teams will advance to the Super Round, but Venezuela will advance with no losses while Korea will carry over two losses. And the domination they received at the hands of Venezuela. Nivaldo Rodriguez shutout Korea on two hits for four innings. The Koreans were able to pull to within 3-2 against the Venezuelan bullpen in the sixth. Jose Rodriguez shut them out for the final 3.2 innings. In total the Venezuelan pitchers finished the game with 14 strikeouts.

The Venezuelans were able to spray 13 hits and six walks into nine runs. The top two hitters in the lineup, Yonny Hernandez and Jesus Lujano led the charge with two RBIs each. Hernandez and Carlos Machado led all players with three hits each. Of the 13 Venezuelan hits, only one went for extra bases.

Sung-Ju Moon led Korea with three of their seven hits and drove in both runs with a double.

Japan 7 Colombia 2

Japan remained undefeated with their win over Colombia. Colombia must still beat Taiwan in a makeup game to hope to advance. Colombia scored first to take an early 1-0 lead. Two three run innings, one in the third and another in the seventh was too much for Colombia. Taiga Matsuo got the big hit for Japan with his two run triple in the third to give Japan a 2-1 lead. He later scored on a wild pitch. Hisanori Yasuda also drove in two runs with two sacrifice flies, one in the seventh and the other in the ninth.

Dominican Republic 9 Czech Republic 8

The Dominicans advanced to the super round with a wild win over the Czechs. In the tenth they scored two runs to win the game. Jeison Guzman is credited with the walk off single to give the Dominicans the win. The Czechs remain winless.

The Dominicans had jumped out to an early 5-0 lead after two and all seemed cool after that. Hansel Moreno punched a two run shot in the third and Wendell Rijo went solo. In the fifth Martin Muzik finished off the five run fifth with a three run homer and the game was tied 5-5. The Dominicans called on Eduardo del Rosario to finish the game, throwing 3.2 innings of almost shutout ball. He gave up one unearned run in the 10th on a wild pitch. In extra innings in international play runners are placed on first and second to begin the inning.

Netherlands 10 Taiwan 9

The Netherlands diminished Taiwan’s chances of advancing to the Super Round. They must now beat Colombia to have any hope of advancing. Like the Dominican game, the Netherlands scored two runs in the bottom of the tenth to win the game. The last run was scored when Tijmen Takke was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded. Taiwan chose to walk Sherton Apostel to load the bases and face Takke, who had come in the game as a pinch runner. Apostel was 3 for 5 with two doubles, a homerun and four RBIs.

Netherlands had jumped out to an early 5-0 lead but could not hold it.

Mexico 13 South Africa 3

Mexico advanced to the Super Round. South Africa scored their first runs of the tournament. Both teams were happy. Roberto Valenzuela and Orlando Pina both went deep, each with their second homeruns of the tournament. The two combined to drive in seven of the 13 runs for Mexico.

Puerto Rico 3 Australia 2

Puerto Rico knocked Australia out of the Super Round with the win. At 2-3 Puerto Rico fails to advance as well. Isan Diaz drove in all the runs for Puerto Rico with two homeruns. He hit a solo shot in the third and a two run blast in the fifth. He came into the game 1 for 12. Luis Sanchez pitched two perfect innings to stamp out the victory and eliminate Australia from the Super Round.

Only Japan and Venezuela remain undefeated after the fourth day. Japan seems to do it with their pitching while Venezuela relies on their bats.

Japan 5 Netherlands 0

Japan completed their second shutout of the tournament. The European teams remain winless in these events. Hiroki Konda dominated in seven innings, striking out 12 and allowing just three hits. Japan scored all five of their runs in the first, taking advantage of three walks then coasted the rest of the way. Taiga Matsuo drove in two runs with his triple and Hisanori Yasuda drove in two with a single.

Venezuela 7 Dominican Republic 2

Venezuela knocked off a tough Dominican team to remain undefeated. For the Dominicans it is their second loss. They scored both their runs in the second inning on a two run homer by Martin Taveras, his second of the tournament. Ivan Andueza came on in relief after the third inning and held the Dominicans hitless for six innings, striking out 10 and walking two. Carlos Machado hit a two run single in a three run first, which Andueza confirmed was all the runs the Venezuelans needed. Jorna Rodriguez finished a perfect 3 for 3 hitting from the ninth spot in the order with three runs scored. He also stole two bases.

Korea 14 Australia 7

Korea got a big win to take over second place in pool two, tacking a second loss to Australia’s ledger. Australia scored six in the opening frame but could not hold the lead. They again got big production from the bottom of their order, with number eight hitter Mitchel Warke-Edwards going deep twice, once in the first inning with a three run blast and again in the sixth with a solo shot.

Korea bounced back in the second inning with eight runs. Chan-Hyung Kim hit the first of his two homeruns in the inning, a grand slam to pull Korea to within one. Gyeong-Won Jun hit a two run double in the inning to put Korea up 7-6. Kim blasted another homer in the eighth, a two run bomb to give him six RBIs for the game. Dong-Hui Han sealed the victory with his three run homer in the seventh. He finished the day 3 for 4 with three runs scored.

Taiwan 12 South Africa 0

Taiwan got their first win and South Africa extended their scoreless streak to 0 for the tournament. Yun-Chen Tai walloped a grand slam homer in an eight run third that put the game out of reach.

Mexico 7 Colombia 6

Mexico got a big win giving Colombia their first loss. It also put them in second place at 3-1. Mexico had jumped out to an early 5-1 lead. Carlos Morales had pitched five shutout innings. He was taken out in the sixth after issuing a one out walk. The bullpen coughed up the lead in the seventh, giving up five runs. Derwin Pomare got the big hit, a bases clearing double that drove in three. Pomare finished the day with four RBIs, delivering an RBI single in the sixth that gave Colombia their first run.

Not deterred, Mexico battled back. They scored the tying run in the bottom of the seventh on a strikeout/wild pitch, scoring a run without benefit of putting the ball in play. The leadoff hitter walked, advanced to second on a wild pitch, stole third and scored on a wild pitch. The walks continued to hurt Colombia with another leadoff walk in the eighth scoring on a Roberto Valenzuela triple in right field to give Mexico the lead.

Erick Casillas got credit for the win, working his second inning of relief to close out the victory. He gave up a two out double to Milton Ramos but retired the next hitter on a fly out to end the game.

Puerto Rico 20 Czech Republic 0

Puerto Rico got their first win, their bats taking it out on the winless Czechs. The game only went five as Puerto Rico scored in every inning. Gabriel Cancel was the big bat with six RBIs, including a three run homer in the first. Xavier Fernandez clubbed a solo shot in the first, finishing the day 3 for 4 with 3 RBIs and 3 runs scored. Lean Marrero and Aldemar Burgos each crossed the plate four times.

The Dominicans are normally not that competitive in international events, except in the World Baseball Classic when they can use their major leaguers. This tournament could be the exception as they beat the Koreans, one of the favored teams in this event for their second victory.

Dominican Republic 8 Korea 2

Michael Santos shutout the Koreans for the first four innings, limiting them to two hits before a rain delay forced the Dominicans to go to their bullpen. Edwin Adon struck out seven in his 3.2 shutout innings. That left it to the bats, who raked 13 hits off the Korean pitchers to win the game.

Won-Joon Lee did not allow a hit to the Dominicans in the first four innings. He struck out seven and allowed just one walk through the first four. He walked the leadoff hitter he faced in the fifth inning and then the game was interrupted by rain. The Koreans went to their pen and it got ugly. The Dominicans scored three in the fifth and one run in every inning except the eighth.

Eguy Rosario hit a solo shot for the Dominicans in the seventh. It was the first loss for the Koreans but the second win for the Dominicans.

Japan 3 Taiwan 1

Japan got seven innings of shutout pitching from Atsuki Taneichi. He struck out nine and gave up just four hits. Hisanori Yasuda gave the Japanese all the runs they needed with a two run blast in the third. Taiwan scored their only run in the bottom of the ninth on a solo homerun from Li Cheng-En.

For Japan it was their second win. The loss dropped Taiwan to 0-2.

Australia 5 Czech Republic 3

Australia got its first win led by Ulrich Bojarski, who hit his second homerun of the tournament. His two run blast in the second inning proved to be the difference in the game. Nicholas Hutchings worked until the seventh inning to get the win, allowing three unearned runs and striking out seven. The Czech Republic is now winless in two games.

Mexico 14 Netherlands 7

Tough day for the Europeans. Mexico slugged four homeruns and collected 16 hits to put a bruising on the Dutch pitchers. Roberto Valenzuela and Orlando Pina tagged solo shots while Fabricio Macias and Jose Urena hit two run bombs. Macias and Urena finished with three RBIs each, while Macias also scored three times.

Netherlands had a 3-2 lead after the first. Urena hit his two run homerun in the fourth to give Mexico a lead they would not relinquish. They go to 2-0 while the Dutch drop to 0-2.

Colombia 11 South Africa 0

The hosts win again. The South Africans failed to score again. They could only get two hits off Hugo Beltran (3.2 innings) and Sergio Palacio (3.1 innings) who split the mound duties. Leandro Emiliani went a perfect 2 for 2 with a sacrifice fly and a two run homer.

Venezuela 7 Puerto Rico 2

Venezuela won their second while Puerto Rico lost their second. Yoel Romero hit a two run single in the top of the fifth to give Venezuela a 2-1 lead. Anthony Concepcion extended that lead to 3-1 with a solo bop in the sixth. Venezuela put the game away in the seventh when they tacked on three runs while getting just one hit. Five Puerto Rican errors allowed four unearned runs to score.

The United States and Cuba are absent from these games, but that gives other countries an opportunity to participate. Below are the results of the games from the first day.

Japan 13 South Africa 0

Japan dominated as they were expected to do against the inexperience of the South Africans. Soichiro Yamazaki got the start for Japan and limited the South Africans to two hits in six shutout innings. Ryosuke Kishisato went deep with a two run homer to close out a five run fifth. Kengo Horiuchi was the big run producer, driving in three with a two run single in the first to get the scoring started and an RBI single in the third to make the score 4-0.

Other homeruns for Japan included a two run shot from Ukyo Shuto in the fifth and a solo blast from Yasuhito Uchida in the sixth. Kairi Shimada hit an inside the park homerun in the sixth. Shimada also led all players with three runs scored.

Mexico 2 Taiwan 1

Mexico scored two runs in the first inning on a two run single from Omar Garcia and made it hold out in their victory. Luis Rodriguez pitched five innings, allowing just the one Taiwan run in the fourth. Four different pitchers closed out the final four innings with Erick Casillas getting the save with a scoreless ninth.

Liang-Chi Chen came on in the second inning and pitched 6.2 scoreless innings to keep Taiwan in the game. They had an opportunity to win the game in the seventh and the ninth innings. In the seventh they loaded the bases with two outs but pinch hitter Wen-Hsien Chang flied out to center. In the ninth Taiwan put runners at first and second with one out, but Casillas struck out the last two hitters to preserve the win.

Venezuela 4 Australia 2

Venezuela got the win banging out 13 hits, Leandro Cedeno leading the charge with three. Juan Yepez got the big hit with an RBI single in the sixth to break a 1-1 tie. Christian Mejias picked up the save working the last three innings.

Australia scored two runs, both on solo homeruns. The first from Jess Williams in the sixth to tie the game at 1-1. The second from Ulrich Bojarski in the ninth.

Korea 14 Czech Republic 3

When the Czech Republic scored three runs in the top of the fourth they took a 3-1 lead. The bats of Korea then came alive, scoring 13 runs in the last four innings to get the win. Hyo-seung Ryu tied the game with his two run blast in the bottom of the fourth. A Ji-Hoon Choi three run triple in the fifth broke the tie. Dong-Hui Han added a solo shot in the sixth and Min-Hyeok Kim crushed a three run job in the seventh to end the game via the slaughter rule. Kim and Ryu led all hitters with four RBIs each.

Dominican Republic 9 Puerto Rico 6

In a game between island neighbors the Dominican Republic reigned supreme. Puerto Rico rallied for three in the eighth but fell short of an opening round win. Jeison Guzman, Andretty Cordero and Julio Rodriguez each contributed two run homers to fuel the offense in the victory.

Puerto Rico brought the tying run to the plate in the ninth inning with two out, but Eduardo del Rosario got the big whiff to end the game.

Colombia 9 Netherlands 5

The hosts won their opener to make the fans happy. Francinel Martina blasted a three run homer for the Netherlands in the eighth to erase a 8-1 Colombia lead and make the game competitive again. Reiver San Martin pitched six strong innings for Colombia, allowing just one run. Jhon Torres drove in three runs for Colombia with a ground out in the first, a solo job in the fourth and a sacrifice fly in the eighth.

The United States, Mexico, Cuba and Venezuela qualified for the 12 and under World Cup that will be played in Taiwan in 2019. There were 12 teams participating in the qualifier in Mexico. Panama, Nicaragua, Colombia, Dominican Republic and Brazil fell short of qualifying.

The four teams will join Taiwan (host), Korea and Japan from Asia, Italy and Czech Republic from Europe as nine of the 12 teams in the tournament. One African team, an Oceania team and a wild card team are three unknown teams open to qualify in future tournaments.

In case any of these players become major leaguers, the following players were voted all tournament:

Catcher - Kailand Halstead (United States)

First Base - Dean Moss (United States)

Second Base - Brock Thompson (United States)

Third Base - Carlos Miguel Villalobos (Colombia)

Shortstop - Denilso Aguila (Cuba)

Outfield - David Guzman (Venezuela), Ricardo Orozco (Mexico), Leonardo Nicolao (Brazil)

Pitcher Luis Sarabia (Mexico)