Day 1 of the WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup 2025 presented by RAXUS proved rich in emotions and good baseball in Naha and Itoman, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan.
In the first games of the day, 10-time champions USA beat Panama 9-0 at Cellular Stadium in Naha while Germany came from behind to beat Australia in a 5-4 thriller at Nishizaki Stadium in Itoman.
In the afternoon games, Korea erased a two-run deficit to beat Puerto Rico. Reliever Yohan Choi was perfect for 4.2 innings. Cuba beat South Africa in five innings.
In the evening games, defending champions Japan scored the winning runs in the bottom of the sixth to overcome a brave Italian side 4-1 while Chinese Taipei shut out China 7-0 to close the day.
WBSC Secretary-General Beng Choo Low declared the WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup 2025 open during the Opening Ceremony.
After keeping Japan scoreless for two innings, Italian starter Santiago Arismendi left with the bases loaded in the bottom of the third. Italy gave the call to Filippo Brunelli. The left-hander allowed the first run of the game on a walk, then got out of the jam on strikes, keeping Italy in the game.
Italy tied the game in the top of the sixth. Federico De Cristan reached on a swinging bunt and advanced to third on a one-out hit-and-run executed by Aldo Pavarani. De Cristan scored on a defensive error.
It was all for starter Shota Morishita. Japan handed the ball to Saku Hayase with runners at second and first. Japan got out of the jam when Hikaru Tamenaga stopped Patrick Silva’s hard-hit chopper at third and got the third out at second.
Centre fielder Riccardo Mazzanti kept Italy in the game with a brilliant running catch in the bottom of the sixth.
The Azzurri thought they had taken the tie into the seventh when Kaito Fujimori grounded a soft comebacker to reliever Ivan Larice. Still, the right-hander delayed the throw to first, Patrick Silva lost the ball when the runner reached the bag, and Japan scored three runs on two errors, opening the score.
Chinese Taipei-China 7-0
China’s Weiyu Liu and Chinese Taipei’s I-En Chung duelled for three innings, allowing only one hit each. Liu led off the bottom of the fourth with back-to-back walks and left for Xiabo Li. Chinese Taipei got to the reliever with two hits and a sacrifice fly to put the first runs on the scoreboard. Chung and relievers Chien-Fan Lai and Lan-Hong Su limited China to one hit and a pair of walks. Their lineup opened the score, adding two runs in the bottom of the fourth and three in the bottom of the fifth. Designated hitter Yu-Hao Chang hit a double and went 2-for-2 overall.
Korea-Puerto Rico 5-2
Korea’s starter Dongkun Shin walked the leadoff batter and Emanuel Hernandez homered on the seventh pitch he saw to give Puerto Rico an early lead.
Puerto Rico wouldn’t get another hit until the top of the seventh. Left-hander Yohan Choi took the mound with one out in the top of the second and no-hit Puerto Rico through the sixth, while striking out eight.
Puerto Rico’s starter Pablo Figueroa allowed two walks in the bottom of the second, and Korea got to him with an RBI single by Jiho Park to cut the gap, and tied the game when Puerto Rico failed to turn a double play on Jaewon Oh’s grounder.
Korea took the lead in the bottom of the fourth against Ethan De Jesus thanks to an RBI single by Jiho Park. Hangyeol Park added an RBI single on Joniel Cuadrado, the third Puerto Rican pitcher, and Korea added an insurance run in the bottom of the fifth.
Taeyang Lee took care of the final three outs.
Cuba-South Africa 10-0
A six-run second at bat opened the score for Cuba on their way to a win by the run-difference rule in five innings.
Cuba scored 10 runs on six hits and thrived on six defensive errors and five walks allowed by starter Aiden McKenzie in 1.2 innings.
Leandro Forteza allowed only one hit over five innings, while striking out five, and earned the win.
USA-Panama 9-0
The United States outhit Panama (11-6) to collect their first win.
Grady Emerson led off the tournament with a single on the third pitch he saw, but Josè Serva kept USA scoreless until the third, when Aiden Ruiz scored Jacob Lombard with a one-out RBI single, the first of his three hits.
USA opened the score in the top of the fourth. Selva left with the bases loaded and one out. Reliever Joshua Martinez allowed two runs on walks and a third on a sacrifice fly.
The 10-time champions added four runs on four hits in the top of the fifth and made it 9-0 in the sixth.
Three pitchers limited Panama to six hits. Giovanni Rojas pitched four innings for the win. Kaden Waechter and Cole Koeniger took care of the rest of the game.
Germany-Australia 5-4
Robin Spies gave Germany an early lead when he homered in the top of the first off Mitch Evans.
Australia took a 4-2 lead in the fifth, but Germany tied the game with two runs in the top half of the frame and won it in the top of the sixth when Benito Bull doubled off reliever Riley Puckett and scored on a defensive error.
Germany had a 10-hit game. Catcher Felix Stroell went 3-for-4 with three RBIs, and leadoff hitter Alessandro Carrasquilla collected two hits and scored two runs.
Four German pitchers limited Australia to five hits, despite combining for nine walks. Samuel Redle pitched the sixth and the seventh and earned the win.
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