THUNDER BAY, Canada - The USA Baseball 18U National Team scored all eight of its runs and had 11 hits with two outs on Tuesday as it defeated Cuba, 8-1, to finish pool play with a perfect 5-0 record at the 2017 World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) U-18 Baseball World Cup.
The three-time defending World Cup champions, Team USA joins Korea as the only undefeated teams in the competition. With two games remaining on Wednesday, the U.S. now awaits those results before learning its schedule for the Super Round starting on Thursday.
Continuing the trend of dominant pitching for the U.S., starting pitcher Cole Wilcox (Chickamauga, Ga.) was outstanding against Cuba. The 6-5 righthander yielded only one unearned run on two hits and three walks while striking out five over seven stellar innings.
Fellow Peach State native Kumar Rocker (Watkinsville, Ga.) and JT Ginn (Brandon, Miss.) closed out the victory with one scoreless frame each.
Through the first five games of World Cup action, the U.S. pitching staff has a combined 0.22 ERA with just a single earned run allowed over 41.0 innings pitched. A total of 10 pitchers have taken the mound for Team USA, combining to strike out 59 while yielding just 12 hits and holding opposing hitters to a .094 batting average.
Offensively, Team USA tied its tournament high with 13 hits in the contest on Tuesday, 11 of which came with two outs on the scoreboard.
Alek Thomas (Chicago, Ill.) led the way with a 3-for-4, two-RBI effort, while Anthony Seigler (Cartersville, Ga.) finished 2-for-4 with a pair of RBIs as well. Mike Siani (Glenside, Pa.) and Raynel Delgado (Miami Lakes, Fla.) also added two hits apiece.
Cuba actually scored first, taking advantage of a U.S. error to plate an unearned run in the second which ended a streak of 34.0 innings without allowing a run by Team USA. That would be all Wilcox and the rest of the staff would allow for the rest of the day, however.
The U.S. offense responded immediately with a Thomas single tying the game in the second before adding five more runs over the next three innings to race out to a commanding, 6-1, lead.
A Siani RBI triple and a Carter Young infield single to bring him home accounted for the game's final two runs.
Team USA is the three-time defending World Cup champion and is looking to become the second country to win four-straight gold medals in the tournament.
Continue to follow @USABaseball18U on Twitter and visit USABaseball.com for the most up-to-date news about the 18U National Team.
QUOTES
USA Baseball 18U National Team Manager Andy Stankiewicz
(On the offense breaking out on Tuesday)
"It was just a matter of time. The guys have been putting too much pressure on themselves and they just needed to relax and do what they are capable of doing. We are a really good offensive team. Sometimes when you get into a little bit of a funk guys start stressing out a little bit. It was great to see the guys relax and put some good at-bats together. To get all those runs with two outs is huge. The guys are getting excited about putting the ball in play and put some great swings together. That is what it is about. A lot of base hits back up the middle, a lot of opposite-field gaps. If we hit to the middle of the diamond we are pretty good offensively. If we get pull-conscious, pull-happy that's when we don't have as much success."
(On Cole Wilcox)
"Phenomenal job. He's just a competitor who attacks the zone and is a big, strong young man. He trusts his stuff, especially his fastball and attacks with it. He works off the fastball and that just makes his off-speed stuff that much better. He just did a great job of attacking the zone and going after hitters today."
(On finishing pool play undefeated)
"Every game we play we want to win and we've put ourselves in a good spot going into the Super Round. We know that we have a lot of work to do and we'll be facing the best three teams from the other bracket in the Super Round. They are in the Super Round for a reason, they are playing well, so we have some work in front of us. To finish our side at 5-0 is a great accomplishment and step one. Step two is the Super Round and we are looking forward to the challenge."
(On the rivalry with Cuba)
"The history of baseball is so strong in Cuba. They have such a great tradition of players and coaches. I think it is a respectful rivalry on both sides. We take it very seriously and both countries are very competitive. It is great for our sport. Anytime you get an opportunity to play Cuba in international play, emotions are going to be a little heightened and we saw a little bit of that from both sides today."
Infielder Raynel Delgado
(On facing Cuba)
"We expected a tough game from the get-go. We knew we were going to have to bring our A-game today and we knew they were going to come out and be aggressive. We just had to play our game. Like I said yesterday, I wanted to beat them and today we did just that."
(On Cole Wilcox)
"It was his day today. Seven innings, two hits, he came to play today. What a clutch performance by him."
(On finishing pool play undefeated)
"That's what we wanted to do, get to 5-0 and be in good shape for the Super Round. Now it's time to go win the gold."
Outfielder Alek Thomas
(On having three hits today)
"It is a game of adjustments. We did a little extra hitting this morning and I tweaked a few things in my swing and with my feet, just making I am aligned with the pitcher."
(On playing Cuba)
"I know the other players who have played internationally before had a little bit of a history with Cuba and I could see it. They have a lot of good players on their team and it was a fun game to play today. I feel like we really bonded as a team and really came together."
(On finishing pool play undefeated)
"Our mentality is just to keep on winning, no matter how we get it. We are trying to whatever we can to get the next win. It doesn't matter if we strike out 23 times, we are going to find a way to score runs and our pitchers are going to get their job done."
