CARY, N.C. – A California showdown is coming to Thomas Brooks Park.
After securing semifinal wins on Saturday morning, ZT Prospects National will take on Braves Baseball Academy in Sunday’s 2021 10U Futures Invitational in a battle of California-based teams.
The top-seeded ZT Prospects advanced to the final after staging a late-inning comeback to knock off San Diego Show, 6-4.
ZT Prospects opened the scoring in the bottom of the first inning, plating a run on an Eli Martinez RBI single. But the lead didn’t last long.
Everett Satterly started the top of the second with a leadoff single for San Diego Show, scoring on an error shortly after to tie the game. Wyatt Gordon, who has two homers in the tournament, followed that with an RBI triple to give San Diego the lead. Ethan Nesbit drove Gordon in with an RBI single, and the Show added another run to grab an early 4-1 advantage.
In the third, Martinez drove in his second run of the game with an RBI groundout to trim the team’s deficit to two. The game remained 4-2 into the fifth inning, when Show starter Lawrence Duffin ran into his first trouble of the game.
With two on and two out in the fifth, Duffin nearly escaped. But the ZT Prospects got within a run on an error, and then notched back-to-back doubles to take a two-run lead.
One of those doubles was by Martinez, who drove in four of his team’s six runs. Martinez then returned to the mound for his third inning of work, escaping a late jam to secure the win.
Along with his offensive performance, Martinez tossed 4.2 scoreless innings in relief for the ZT Prospects. He struck out eight, allowing just two hits.
The comeback was not much of a surprise to head coach Rick Martinez, who emphasizes the importance of the late innings.
“We went down early, but we always tell the guys to keep the pressure on the other team,” said ZT Prospects head coach Rick Martinez. “It gave us a chance at the end and the kids came through. We usually have long practices and end them with conditioning because we know the late innings are when we’re going to have to think clearly and act decisively.”
In the second semifinal of Saturday morning, the Braves also punched their ticket with a come-from-behind win over the Keystone Cardinals. Keystone loaded the bases with no outs in the third inning, threatening an offensive outburst. But Braves pitcher Jake Nuño limited the damage, allowing just one run to keep his team in it.
Down 1-0 in the bottom of the inning, the Braves quickly bounced back to take a 2-1 lead. Alex Scott tied the game with a run-producing triple before scoring on a passed ball to give the Braves the lead.
It was all that the Braves pitching staff needed.
After Nuño delivered three innings and allowed just one run, Wyatt Ruiz entered and struck out five over the final three innings to keep Keystone’s offense at bay. Ruiz, who started the game in right field, allowed just two hits.
The Cardinals put the tying run on base in the sixth, but Ruiz stranded him in scoring position to seal the win and the Braves’ spot in the championship game.
The final out 🙌🏻@BravesBBA is going to the 10U #Futures21 Gold Medal Game! pic.twitter.com/11ZBLrnIOE
— USABEvents (@USABEvents) June 19, 2021
“These kids have been playing together for a really long time,” said Braves head coach Gus Rico. “They know how to win. They maintained focus and I’m very proud of them. This program has been through a lot and it’s not easy to travel out here and play on the East Coast on a big stage. I’m sure they’re proud of us back home.”
ZT Prospects National will battle Braves Baseball Academy for a gold medal on Sunday morning at 8:00 a.m. on Field 5 at Thomas Brooks Park in Cary, N.C. The Cardinals and Show will play at the 8:15 a.m. on Field 7, with the winner receiving a bronze medal.
Be sure to follow all of the 2021 10U Futures Invitational action on GameChanger, as well as by following @USABaseball and @USABEvents on Twitter.
