Taiwan rallies past Mexico in an exciting U12 Baseball World Cup game at the Tainan Asia Pacific International Baseball Stadium. Although the local team fell behind early, they overcame the deficit to win 6-5 and secure their spot in the tournament’s super round.
At the start, Mexico took an early lead. Unfortunately, Taiwan’s starting pitcher, Lee Yun-ruen, struggled, allowing five runs on six hits and two walks in just one and one-third innings. However, Taiwan rallied past Mexico in the second inning. The home team scored five runs to tie the game at 5-5, which shifted the momentum in their favor.
Afterward, Taiwan’s relief pitcher, Zhong Ding-xu, took over on the mound. Zhong delivered an impressive performance by pitching four and two-thirds innings while allowing just two hits and no runs. Moreover, he struck out five batters, which helped keep Mexico’s hitters off balance.
Rain then interrupted the game in the bottom of the fourth inning with the score tied at five. Once play resumed, both teams battled fiercely in a pitching duel that continued through the sixth inning. Taiwan rallies past Mexico remained the story as Zhong reached base with two outs after an error and stole second base.
Next, Hu Cheng-en was intentionally walked. In response, Mexico brought in reliever Uriel Gonzalez, who unfortunately hit two batters in a row. Consequently, this mistake forced in the winning run, giving Taiwan a 6-5 victory.
The crowd at the stadium erupted in celebration as the home team secured the crucial win. With this victory, Taiwan clinched a place in the super round. This next phase features a round-robin format against top teams from South Korea, Japan, the United States, the Dominican Republic, and Mexico. Unlike traditional Little League Baseball, the U12 WBSC Baseball World Cup involves national teams representing their countries.
In summary, Taiwan rallies past Mexico to take an important step forward in the tournament. The team showed resilience by overcoming a poor start and capitalizing on key moments. Their victory highlights strong pitching and timely hitting, thus setting up an exciting super round ahead.