| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | R | H | E | |
| Force Baseball Club Blue | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 0 |
| Zoots Baseball Club | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 2 |
| Win: River Diaz De Leon Loss: Lucas Dennis |
| Box Score | Play-by-Play | Cumulative Stats |
PHOENIX — River Diaz De Leon fired a complete-game, six-hit shutout to guide Force Baseball Club Blue to a 3-0 win against Zoots Baseball Club on Thursday at the 2021 16U National Team Championships Arizona.
Diaz De Leon struck out five in the standout performance and kept Zoots at bay by inducing three double-play grounders. The right-hander escaped multiple jams with the help of his defense, which included a 1-6-3 double play with the potential tying run at the plate in the sixth inning.
Zoots also loaded the bases in its final at-bats in the seventh, but Diaz De Leon struck out consecutive batters to seal the win for Force Baseball Blue. He needed just 76 pitches to work through the seven innings and maintained a 71 percent strike rate.
The lone offense in the game came in the third frame when Gabriel Camacho tripled to bring home a pair of runs. Adrian Macias followed with a single through the right side to plate Camacho and extend Force Blue's lead to 3-0.
Right-handed reliever Cole Ehrhorn kept Zoots within striking distance and tossed four hitless, scoreless innings with four strikeouts and no walks.
Diaz De Leon earned the win for Force Baseball Blue, while Lucas Dennis suffered the loss for Zoots.
Force Baseball Club Blue improved its mark to 2-2 at the National Team Championships Arizona. Zoots Baseball Club dropped to 1-3 at the event.
Key Moments
- River Diaz De Leon (Force Blue) started a 1-5 double play to escape a first-inning jam.
- Gabriel Camacho (Force Blue) delivered a two-RBI triple to right field to open scoring in the third inning.
- Adrian Macias (Force Blue) singled through the right side to extend Force Blue's lead to 3-0 in the third inning.
- River Diaz De Leon (Force Blue) retired seven consecutive batters between the third and fifth innings.
- Rivera Diaz De Leon (Force Blue) struck out consecutive batters looking to end the game with the bases loaded.
Notable Information
- "(Diaz De Leon) had traffic on the bases all day, but I think when guys got on base, he really buckled down. The three double plays were huge for him and he threw all three pitches for a strike. For him, in those pressure situations, he actually got better throughout the game. He was a bulldog on the mound, for sure." — Force Baseball Club Blue head coach Brandon Decker
- "This is what we prepare our guys for. We want to play against the best and we believe our team has gotten to that level. In order for our young guys to develop and get eyes on them, we have to play the best teams and be in this type of environment." — Force Baseball Club Blue had coach Brandon Decker
On Deck
- Force Baseball Club Blue improved to 2-2 at the event and awaits its next opponent (TBD).
- Zoots Baseball Club fell to 1-3 at the event and awaits its next opponent (TBD).
Social
- Stay tuned to @USABChamps_AZ on Twitter for the most up-to-date news about the National Team Championships Arizona.
