San Bernardino advances to Pony championship game
Puerto Rico’s Odrick Pitre tries to catch a pickoff attempt during the bottom of the third inning Tuesday. Chinese Taipei scored seven runs in the inning.
Chinese Taipei Hsu Jo-Hsi pitched a no-hitter against Mayaguez, Puerto Rico. Tuesday. Jo-Hsi pitched the 20th no-hitter in Pony League World Series history.
Katie Roupe/Observer-Reporter Hagerstown, Maryland’s Spencer McNamee reacts after walking San Bernardino’s Tyler Bardowell during the first inning of the game on Tuesday, August 11.
San Bernardino’s Eddie Aldama hits a home run during the first inning of Tuesday night’s game against Hagerstown, Md., at Lew Hays Pony Field in Washington.
San Bernardino’s Jon Carlos is ready to grab the ball before throwing it to first during the first inning against Hagerstown.
Fortunately for San Bernardino manager Abel Madeuno, he does not have any hair. If you look closely, you might find a few gray hairs on his goatee.
No wonder. His players have a knack for creating dramatic situations late in games that could age any coach.
One night after a dramatic win over Hagerstown, Md., San Bernardino again put on a show in Washington Park.
Shortly after Hagerstown, Md., took a two-run lead in the top of the first inning, centerfielder Eddie Aldama and Sanchez hit home runs, and San Bernardino held on to defeat Hagerstown, 10-5, Tuesday night at Lew Hays Pony Field.
The win sends San Bernardino into the championship game, against Chinese Taipei today at 7:30 p.m.
“We knew this was going to be a good game,” Aldama said. “They’re a scrappy team, but we played together. We’ve been playing together so long that it’s a brotherhood. We’re excited to move on.”
Hagerstown started the first inning with three consecutive singles before Curtis Martin drove in a run when he hit into a double play. Adam Mathias added an RBI single for a 2-0 lead.
The lead didn’t last long.
Aldama led off the bottom half of the inning with an opposite field home run to cut the deficit to one. Jon Carlos followed with a single to left and Sanchez, who had the game-winning hit in the zone championship against Santa Cruz, drove a fastball over the wall in left field for the 3-2 lead.
“We scored those two runs early, but when they came back with those three runs, that took some energy out of us and it carried over,” manager Dave Barr said. “That sank our sails.”
San Bernardino added two runs in the second inning when Tyler Bardowell hit a ball off the top of the wall in left field for a two-run double for the 5-2 lead and they weren’t done there. Five of the first six batters reached safely in the bottom of the third.
Two runs scored on a fielding error and Sanchez gave San Bernardino a six-run advantage with a sacrifice fly to center. Three players had multi-hit games, including Jon Carlos, who had three hits and scored twice.
San Bernardino scattered 13 hits and reached double digit runs for the second time in three games, despite stranding eight runners.
“Offensively, from top to bottom, we try to put together a lineup to win every inning,” Madueno said. “We are balanced and every player is capable.”
After Hagerstown scored two in the top of the fourth, Parra answered with a bloop single to score Eli Martinez, who led off the inning with a double, to make it 9-4.
Devyn Lopez hit a solo home run in the bottom of the sixth for San Bernardino, but Hagerstown caused more drama. Back-to-back one-out hits in the top of the seventh led to a run when Chase McCoy hit a sacrifice fly, but Bryce Hayes got a fly out to end the game.
“It feels good to see it all come together,” Madueno said. “We were waiting for a big crowd like this and the boys got it. They were excited. It’s been a long journey and it’s not over.”
Chinese Taipei 10, Puerto Rico 0:
Chinese Taipei pitcher Hsu Jo-Hsi is not one to show emotion. Whether it’s the anxiety he felt while waiting six days to make his debut at the Pony League World Series or the excitement of victory, his demeanor is much like his pitching – controlled.
The 15-year-old was stoic when he watched his teammates cruise to two wins, setting up a division title game against Mayaguez, Puerto Rico. A victory Tuesday night would propel Chinese Taipei into the championship game for the third time in four years and it was Jo-Hsi who was set to take the mound.
Though he isn’t one to talk, others will have plenty to say after his historic debut.
Jo-Hsi struck out nine batters and threw the 20th no-hitter in the history of the tournament as Chinese Taipei defeated Puerto Rico 10-0 in five innings to advance to the championship.
Jo-Hsi walked a batter in the second and Chinese Taipei committed two errors, but Puerto Rico did not have a runner reach second base. He struck out the first two batters in the top of the fifth inning before getting Paul Rivera to ground out to clinch the game and secure the first five-inning no-hitter for one pitcher since Tainan City’s Kuo Sheng An in 2000.
“I was so focused that I didn’t even notice that they didn’t have a hit,” Jo-Hsi said. “I’m happy I made a name for myself in the history of the world series.”
Mixing a hard slider with a fastball, Jo-Hsi allowed only one ball to leave the infield. When the final out was recorded, Jo-Hsi wiped his brow and walked off the mound. He let his teammates and coaches do the celebrating.
“I’m speechless. What can you say after something like that?,” Chinese Taipei manager Huang Wei-Chih said. “No one was expecting this. He’s a control pitcher and he was in control all game. It was a perfect game.”
After Chou Shih-Che walked to lead off the bottom of the first, Yu Wen Hsun hit a ground ball to third and the throw to second for the force went into the outfield.
Shih-Che scored and the relay throw from center field was far from Puerto Rico second baseman Brian Soto, allowing Wen Hsun to score for a 2-0 lead.
After the Chinese Taipei players sang “We Will Rock You,” by Queen in the home dugout at the start of the third inning, they did just that, scoring seven runs on six hits and three errors to take a 10-0 lead. The onslaught included a three-run homer to the top of the hill in right field by Shih-Che and third baseman Lin Chun-En improved his batting average in the tournament to .429 with an RBI double.
Nine batters reached safely and Chinese Taipei, which has outscored its three opponents by a score of 26-2, invoked the mercy rule.
“The players believe they can do it,” Wei-Chi said. “They have worked hard to get here and they’re enjoying it.”