OKINAWA, Japan – Fresh off a tournament-opening win over Panama, Team USA returns to the diamond for a group play matchup with Chinese Taipei at the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) U-18 Baseball World Cup. First pitch from Nishizaki Stadium is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. JST/5:30 a.m. ET.
HOW TO WATCH
Every game of the WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup will be streamed LIVE on Gametime.sport ($). Live stats will also be available HERE.
GROUP B STANDINGS
Team USA (1-0)
Chinese Taipei (1-0)
Germany (1-0)
Australia (0-1)
China (0-1)
Panama (0-1)
HISTORY AGAINST CHINESE TAIPEI
The U.S. and Chinese Taipei have faced off 26 times in international competition at the U-18 level, with the stars and stripes holding an 18-8 advantage in the series. Team USA won the first seven meetings between the two sides, but Chinese Taipei has taken three of the last four. The United States has beaten Chinese Taipei in three world championship games (1995, 1999, and 2022).
LAST TIME OUT
Gio Rojas tossed four shutout innings and Aiden Ruiz picked up three hits in a 9-0 tournament-opening win over Panama on Friday. Rojas got out of jams in the first and fourth innings to keep Panama off the board, striking out three and walking just one. Ruiz opened the scoring with an RBI single in the third before the U.S. put up seven runs over the fourth and fifth innings, using patience in the fourth and rallying for three RBI singles in the fifth to pull away from Panama. Nine of the 10 U.S. players with an at-bat picked up at least one hit; CJ Sampson reached base twice and Anthony Murphy scored three runs for the stars and stripes. After Rojas’ four innings of work, Kaden Waechter and Cole Koeninger put the finishing touches on the win by combining to get the final nine outs.
Jorvorskie Lane Jr. and Ruiz each had two RBIs in the win. Will Brick, Andrew Costello, Grady Emerson, and Jacob Lombard each drove in a run of their own. U.S. hitters only struck out four times in the contest and drew seven walks, also getting hit by four pitches.
THIS LOOKS FAMILIAR
Team USA’s starting pitcher in Saturday’s game, Carson Bolemon, has experience pitching against Chinese Taipei in a World Cup. The southpaw tossed five shutout innings against Chinese Taipei at the WBSC U-15 Baseball World Cup in 2022, earning the win while striking out four and allowing just one hit
STARTING OFF STRONG
The United States has now won its World Cup opener in 10 consecutive tournaments after beating Panama on Friday. The last time Team USA lost its first game of a World Cup was all the way back in 2006 against Chinese Taipei before going on to claim silver.
DEATH BY A THOUSAND CUTS
All 11 of Team USA’s hits in its tournament-opening win were singles. The stars and stripes hit two singles in the first inning but did most of their damage in the fourth, stringing together four singles in a seven-batter span to pull away from Panama.
BUILT BY MLB DEVELOPS
James Clark, Jacob Lombard, Anthony Murphy, and Aiden Ruiz are all products of MLB Develops, which is Major League Baseball’s youth and amateur baseball and softball development programs and initiatives. The athletes have competed in a number of MLB Develops programs and events, including the Breakthrough Series, DREAM Series, Hank Aaron Invitational, High School All-American Game, High School Home Run Derby, and The Program.
THE ROSTER
The 20-player Team USA roster features five USA Baseball alumni, 10 players with USA Baseball national team development programming experience, and four players who have participated in MLB Develops events and programming. Grady Emerson is appearing on a national team roster for the fourth consecutive summer, becoming the first player in USA Baseball history to play for two 15U National Teams and two 18U National Teams. He is joined by his 2022 15U teammates Carson Bolemon and Andrew Costello, who helped Team USA win gold at the 2022 WBSC U-15 Baseball World Cup. 2023 15U alum Jorvorskie Lane Jr. makes his second appearance on a U.S. roster, while two-time alum Jared Grindlinger rounds out the alumni on the roster.
In addition to the five alumni on the roster, 10 total players have experience participating in USA Baseball’s national team development programming. Emerson and Grindlinger were both members of the 2022 13U/14U Athlete Development Program (ADP), while Costello and Jacob Lombard both participated at the 2023 16U/17U National Team Development Program (NTDP). Bolemon, Coleman Borthwick, Will Brick, Lane Jr., Anthony Murphy, and Gio Rojas competed at the 2024 16U/17U NTDP, and Grindlinger played at the 2025 16U/17U NTDP in July.
Additionally, James Clark, Lombard, Murphy, and Aiden Ruiz all have experience across a myriad of MLB Develops programs and events. The quartet has participated in nearly all of MLB Develops’ offerings, including the Breakthrough Series, DREAM Series, Hank Aaron Invitational, High School All-American Game, High School Home Run Derby, and The Program-all of which are hosted jointly with USA Baseball.
FOLLOW ALONG
To follow along with all the action with the 18U National Team, be sure to follow @USABaseball18U on X and @USABaseball on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and X.
