NIIGATA, Japan – The 45th USA vs. Japan Collegiate All-Star Championship Series continues on July 11 at Hard Off Eco Stadium in Niigata, Japan. First pitch for game three is set for 5:00 p.m. local/4:00 a.m. EST.

LAST TIME OUT

Team USA suffered an 8-1 loss to Japan in the second game of the series on July 9 at Es Con Field in Hokkaido. Japan used 12 hits and an error to score all of its runs in the third, fourth, and fifth innings. The stars and stripes’ lone run came in the fifth inning when Zion Rose (Louisville) drove in AJ Gracia (Virginia) on a line drive to right field after he reached base with a double to left field.

Rose turned in the team’s first multi-hit performance of the series with a 2-for-4 outing, while Eric Becker (Virginia) and Gracia also tallied hits in the game. On the mound, Ryan Lynch (North Carolina) and Jacob Dudan (NC State) had strong performances as they pitched two shutout innings each to keep Japan at bay the final four innings of the contest.

SERIES HISTORY

The 2025 series marks the 45th edition of the two nations meeting each other in the USA vs. Japan Collegiate All-Star Series. The first time the teams met was in 1972, and the U.S. leads the series with an all-time record of 24-20 (135-110-2 game record prior to start of series).

The teams last met in 2023 when they played a five-game series from July 7-12 in Cary, North Carolina, and Charleston, South Carolina. Japan took three of the five games to clinch the series. The last time the teams met in Japan was on July 16-21, 2019, and once again Japan won the series 3-2.

The U.S. will look to win a series matchup in Japan for the first time since 1979.

INSIDE THE ROSTER

The 2025 Collegiate National Team roster features 10 USA Baseball alumni in Eric Becker (Virginia; 2024 CNT), Drew Burress (Georgia Tech; 2019 15U and 2024 CNT), Jason DeCaro (North Carolina; 2024 CNT), Jacob Dudan (NC State; 2024 CNT), Gabe Gaeckle (Arkansas; 2024 CNT), AJ Gracia (Virginia; 2024 CNT), Ryan McPherson (Mississippi State; 2021 15U), Liam Peterson (Florida; 2024 CNT), Brett Renfrow (Virginia Tech; 2024 CNT), and Zion Rose (Louisville; 2024 CNT).

Arkansas boasts three players on the roster, the most of any school, while Georgia Tech, Louisville, Mississippi State, NC State, Oregon State, UCLA, North Carolina, and Virginia all have two players on the roster. Overall, 16 different schools are represented on the roster, and seven other schools have one player on the team.

TRAINING CAMP RECAP

USA Baseball held its annual Collegiate National Team Stars vs. Stripes series from June 29-July 3, which featured 56 of the top non-draft eligible players across college baseball. The teams played six games to determine the 26-man roster that would represent the U.S. in the series. Some of the Training Camp stat leaders include:

• Batting Average: Zion Rose – .667
• Hits: Zion Rose – 12
• RBIs: AJ Gracia – 8
• Runs: Roch Cholowsky – 6
• Innings Pitched: Jason DeCaro & Liam Peterson – 4.0
• Strikeouts: Ricky Ojeda – 6

COACHING STAFF

The 2025 Collegiate National Team is led by manager Andy Stankiewicz, and he will be joined by Rusty Filter (pitching coach), Omar Johnson (first base coach), Bill Mosiello (third base coach), Carlos Muñoz (bullpen coach), and Don Wakamatsu (bench/hitting coach).

Filter, Johnson, Mosiello, Stankiewicz, and Wakamatsu bring a combined 138 years of coaching experience across all levels of the game to this year’s staff. This year marks Stankiewicz’s fifth time on a USA Baseball national team coaching staff, while Mosiello returns to a staff for the first time since 2017 after being with the 18U National Team. This is Filter, Johnson, and Wakamatsu’s first time being on staff with a national team, and this is Muñoz’s fourth time serving as a bullpen coach for Team USA.

FOLLOW ALONG/SCHEDULE

The schedule for the 45th USA vs. Japan Collegiate All-Star Championship Series is as follows:

• July 8 - Es Con Field - Hokkaido, Japan - 5 a.m. ET/6 p.m. local
• July 9 - Es Con Field - Hokkaido, Japan - 5 a.m. ET/6 p.m. local
• July 11 - Hard Off Eco Stadium - Niigata, Japan - 4 a.m. ET/5:00 p.m. local and
• July 12 - Hard Off Eco Stadium - Niigata, Japan - 11 p.m. ET (July 11)/12 p.m. local
• July 13 - Jingu Stadium – Tokyo, Japan - 4 a.m. ET/5:00 p.m.

Live stats and streaming for each game can be found on GameChanger.

For the most up-to-date information on the Collegiate National Team, visit USABaseball.com and follow @USABaseballCNT and @USABaseball on Twitter/X, and @USABaseball on Instagram.