#pushthegame

By Spencer Latran

Mexico came out firing on all cylinders, scoring 5 runs in the first inning, and although Team Southeast did not let up another run for the rest of the game, their hitting game did not have the power to beat them, as they fell, respectably, 5-3 in the World Championship in Cal Sr.’s Yard.

“They were just a good-hitting team, and we got a little rattled, “ said Southeast/USA Head Coach, Rick Pate. “It’s a big stage for these kids, for sure.”

Mexico started off the game with 6 singles in the first inning, one of which was an RBI Single. This was accompanied by a 3-run home run, making the score 5-0 going into the Bottom of the first inning. Southeast’s Payton Green was able to get things going for Team USA, stealing 2nd base and putting him in scoring position. #16 Sam Perez put the first run on the board for Team USA, hitting an RBI Single which scored Payton Green.

In the bottom of the 3rd inning, Sam Perez came up big again, this time hitting an RBI double which scored Payton Green for the 2nd time tonight, making the score 5-2.

For the next two innings, no hits or runs were made by either team, but in the bottom of the 6th inning, a Single followed by a 2nd base steal by Team USA’s #18 Blake McCain gave them a chance to score. #13 Xander Lietz was able to hit McCain home, putting Team Southeast within 2 runs of Mexico. Unfortunately, Team USA was not able to get a rally going, having trouble capitalizing on their at-bats, as Mexico became victorious in the World Championship.

“Like I said earlier in the week I feel like we can compete with anybody and I just had to let my kids know that.” said Coach Pate.

The Southeast/USA Player of the Game was #21 Zach Hurand, who pitched 5 scoreless innings against Mexico. This is the third time that Zach has won the Player of the Game award at the 2015 Cal Ripken World Series.

“It feels great to come out and represent my country, ” said Hurand.

After Garrett Moffett came off of the mound in the first inning, Zach was put on after throwing a decent number of pitches over the course of the week.

“I didn’t have the mindset of pitching, but I’m ready when I get called on… I just wanted to throw pitches that would keep them off-balance.”

“It’s just been an amazing experience to play with people from all around the world.” said Hurand. “We’ve talked about this week since the kids were nine years old, “ said Coach Pate. “We went to the 10U World Series down in Ocala, FL, and when we left there after losing in the semifinals, we made it a priority to get up here and compete for a week… I had 13 guys that just really put it on the line every game this whole summer. From getting off the plane and going to Under Armour to playing in the World Series has been amazing. And going through last night winning the National Championship and getting to play Mexico tonight was just phenomenal for us.”

Congratulations to Team Southeast as they gave a spectacular performance throughout the entirety of the 2015 Cal Ripken World Series, going 5-2. The award recipients are as follows:

Team Mexico and Team Japan met Friday night on Cal Sr.'s Yard to decide who would be crowned champions of the International Championship Game.

Both teams met in an exhibition crossover matchup last week where Team Mexico prevailed by a final score of 8-2.  

The storyline of Friday night's game was somewhat similiar. Team Japan's Nao Kaneko started the game on the mound, but wouldn't last long. Kaneko went for two and a third innings allowing five hits, four runs and striking out two.

At the end of three, Team Mexico led Team Japan by a score of 5-0.

The Japan bats struggled to keep up with the hard-throwing Vidal Sotelo, who pitched four and a third innings only allowing three hits, two runs and striking out six Japan batters.

"We had trouble with Sotelo's fastball all night," said Coach Nakagome.

Team Japan put together a rally in the fourth and fifth innings as Sohma Sato hit an RBI single followed up by Hiroto Nakayama and Ryunosuke Saito both stroking RBI doubles.

That would be all the offense Team Japan had in them Friday night.

At the end of five innings of play, Team Japan trailed Team Mexico 7-3. This stood as the final score after six innings after Team Japan failed to get anything going in the bottom half of the sixth.

"The boys represented the country of Japan in a way that made me proud. I want them to know that," said Coach Nakagome.

Ultimately, Team Japan falls short of bringing home a 2015 Cal Ripken World Series title. The amount of character, charisma and respect for the game of baseball that they showed this week is something that I'll always carry with me.

To all players, coaches, host families, friends and family: Thank you from the bottom of my heart. It has been an absolute pleasure covering such a respectful group of young men. I know each and every one of them has a bright future ahead. Best of luck to all in their travels back to Japan!

By Bobby Trosset

(@BobTrosset)

As we approach the final day of the 2015 Cal Ripken World Series, it’s always nice to take a look back at what made another successful year possible.

Quite frankly, there would be no tournament from an international viewpoint if it weren’t for the gracious Host Families who take in these 12-year-old boys year in and year out.

They really give these players the opportunity to become a part of the family by welcoming them into their homes with arms wide open. Many families take an extra step and provide so much support to the boys by cheering them on from the stands at every single game throughout the tournament.

After Team Japan’s Ryu Taguchi pitched a complete game in yesterday’s semi-final win against Team Korea, host mother Regina Flosser reached out to the team’s Twitter account.

“We are so lucky to have Ryu as part of our family for the short time he is here,” said Flosser. 

Team Japan has been fueled by one of the loudest and most energetic fan bases throughout the entire Cal Ripken World Series. Many parents and relatives were able to make the trip to the States and let me be the first to tell you that they make their presence felt early and often. 

Baseball in Japan is fundamentally different than what Americans are accustomed to and I think that’s why so many of the American teams here at the Cal Ripken World Series have taken such a fascination to Team Japan and what they’re all about.

“The first thing I noticed when we scrimmaged Japan was how disciplined they were in every aspect of the game,” said Team Maryland player Diego Rivera.

As the International Championship game approaches, expect Team Japan’s fan base, which includes family, host families and perhaps even players from other teams that have been eliminated, to come out in full force.

Team Japan squares up against Team Mexico this evening at 5:30 p.m. on Cal, Sr.’s Yard with a ticket to the World Championship on the line.

Be sure to follow (@CRWS_Japan) on Twitter for live updates throughout the rest of the 2015 Cal Ripken World Series.

By Bobby Trosset

After a rain delay that lasted close to two hours, Team Japan took the field which began Semi-Final action on the international side of the Cal Ripken World Series.

Thursday night's contest was a pitcher's duel as Team Japan's Ryu Taguchi faced Team Korea's workhorse ace Wooin Choi. The first two and a half innings went in the books as scoreless. Not until Yutaro Hamaguchi stroked an RBI single did a run come across the scoreboard. Hamaguchi then put on his wheels and scores from first on a wild throw from the catcher attempting to throw out Hamaguchi stealing.

After three, Team Japan led Team Korea by a score of 2-0.

At times, Choi seemed so dominant that Team Japan almost would have been better off bunting every time because of the smoke he was throwing. As if his dominance wasn't already known, Choi knocked a solo home run over the centerfield fence narrowing Team Japan's lead to 2-1.

After the mistake that Taguchi threw to Choi, he was perfect. The lefty went the distance only allowing six hits, one run and fanning seven Korean hitters.

"I made a few mistakes in the first few innings, but stayed confident and believed in my catcher Sohma Sato along with the rest of my teammates," said Taguchi.

Team Japan awaits their opponent which will be decided by tonight's matchup between Team Dominican Republic and Team Mexico.

"We have historically struggled against Mexico and Dominican Republic, so we're very excited to get the opportunity to play either team and we'll be ready," said Coach Nakagome.

Team Japan beats Team Korea by a final score of 2-1 on Cal Sr.'s Yard Thursday night. They advance on to the International Championship tomorrow.

Be sure to follow (@CRWS_Japan & CRWSAberdeen) on Twitter for updates on who Team Japan will play tomorrow at the 2015 Cal Ripken World Series.

By Bobby Trosset

(@BobTrosset)

By: Charlie Hooper

Today, in the first U.S. Semifinal game on Cal Sr’s Yard, Pacific Southwest suffered its first loss of the tournament to Team Southeast 5-2.

Cal Ripken JR. and MLB commissioner Rob Manfred came to watch today’s games and greeted both teams before they took the field. The fans saw excitement right from the beginning when Southeast scored off an RBI single by Blake McCain.

Pacific Southwest would answer with a couple of runs of their own after Stanley McKenzie hit a home run off of the Under Armour Hummer in center field. Going into the second inning, Pacific Southwest lead Southeast 2-1.

I asked Player of the Game Stanley McKenzie how that first inning homer felt, “It felt good, I just did it for my family.” Stanley’s home run would give Pacific Southwest the lead until the top of the fourth inning when Southeast struck back.

Down one run, Sam Perez and Payton Bloom hit back-to-back doubles to score three runs and give Southeast a 4-2 lead. Team Southeast would get an insurance run in the top of the fifth after Grayson Nichols scored on a passed ball at home plate.

With the weather threatening all game, we finally had a significant rain delay in the bottom of the sixth. Before the delay, Pacific Southwest had two runners on base and no outs. The delay postponed the sixth inning until 4:00 PM when the players were able to go back on the field.

Confident and ready to shock the world, Pacific Southwest’s fans and bench erupted with cheers and support for their home team. Southeast’s defense and pitching proved to be too much in the end and a double play coupled with groundout ended the game with a score of 5-2.

The players some Pacific Southwest should be proud of how they played on the world stage here at the 2015 Cal Ripken World Series. I asked Coach Daryl Kitagawa what he told his players after their heartbreaking loss, “Keep your heads up high we are one of four teams left in the U.S. bracket and one of 18 teams in the world lucky enough to make it here. Be proud of your accomplishments, keep getting better and move forward as you advance as players.”

Paciric Southwest’s 2015 Cal Ripken World Series run would end today with their loss to Southeast, but it will not be the last time you will here from these talented young men from Manoa, HI.

Check out the post game press conference with Coach Daryl Kitagawa and Player of the Game Stanley McKenzie:

In search of their second consecutive win at the 2015 Cal Ripken World Series and playing in the Iron Bracket on the Nationals Field, Team Maryland matched up against Team Midwest in search of their first win.

 John (J.T.) Gibson started on the mound for Team Maryland. He hurled for three innings allowing five hits, one run and issuing two walks.

Offense came in the second inning when Rico Cuevas snuck a grounder past the shortstop bringing in a run. Shane Kirby followed it up with an infield RBI single. Team Midwest really escaped trouble in this inning as Cuevas and Kirby each came to bat with the bases loaded. This would be a crucial inning for Team Midwest as they limited the damage done.

What has become a theme of Team Maryland's tournament has been their struggle to close out games. They entered the sixth leading Team Midwest by a score of 2-1.

Moody would start the inning, but after a controversial call at first base things would really unravel for Team Maryland as Team Midwest rallied for a five-run inning that went unanswered.

"We fundamentally broke down in the top half of the sixth. There were definitely some close calls, but they put the ball in the right places when they needed it the most. It really wasn't the sixth inning that killed us. We needed a more aggressive approach through five innings despite having a one-run lead," said Coach Moody.

Although Team Maryland's journey has come to an end, the squad will always look back fondly at the memories they created this week.

When asked about what he'll remember the most, Diego Rivera shared, "Just the experience. During our scrimmage with Japan, the first thing I realized was how disciplined they are. I've really had a lot of fun here."

It was a tough way to finish up, but Team Maryland loses to Team Midwest Thursday morning by a final score of 6-2 on the Nationals Field.

Thanks to all for keeping up with CRWS_Maryland via Twitter and YouTube throughout the week. It was a pleasure helping to cover Team Maryland at the 2015 Cal Ripken World Series.  

By Bobby Trosset

Watch as Austin Teixeira hits an RBI double to left field, scoring the eighth and final run in Pacific Southwest’s 8-3 victory over Southwest yesterday. 

Today, Pacific Southwest will be looking to stay undefeated and earn their fourth win of pool play when they take on Team Pacific Northwest under lights at 8:00 PM on Cal Sr’s Yard! 

Keep up with live updates here: @CRWS_PacificSW

Heading into Wednesday's matchup against Team New England, Team Maryland was well-rested coming off of an off day where the team enjoyed Oriole Park in Camden Yards.

We did a little bit of team bonding," said Coach Kirby.

Well, whatever they did to 'bond' worked well as Team Maryland played their best game of the 2015 Cal Ripken World Series defeating Team New England 4-2 on Cal Sr.'s Yard.   

Trevon Hayes led the way for Team Maryland throwing five strong innings allowing eight hits, two runs and striking out two.

A key point during this afternoon's game was the way Hayes bounced back after allowing a Josh Morissette long ball in the third. After the solo shot, Hayes wouldn't allow another run and really settled down nicely.

"Trey got ahead in his counts today and did a great job of mixing up his pitches. He pitched a really solid game for us," said Coach Kirby.

Tyler Moody contributed when his team needed him the most stroking two RBI doubles, which scored Shane Kirby both times. Diego Rivera singled bringing in a run and Marquill Barnes worked a bases-loaded walk scoring a run.

With a two-run cushion headed to the sixth, Moody came in for the save and did his job giving Team Maryland their first win by a final score of 4-2.

Although Team Maryland is headed to the Iron Bracket, the boys are remaining confident and enjoying the ride.

"My phone has been blowing up with texts and calls from my buddies back home," said Player of the Game Trevon Hayes.

Iron Bracket play begins Thursday, so be sure to follow (@CRWSAberdeen & @CRWS_Maryland) for live updates throughout the final stretches of the 2015 Cal Ripken World Series.

By Bobby Trosset