Colombia scored two runs in each of the first two innings and didn't need to look back against a brave Cuban side. Coming off a one-run loss on Friday that ended its chances at playing for a world championship, Colombia needed to get over the defeat quickly. Less than 18 hours later, they got the job done. Led by two home runs from designated hitter Andres Angulo, world No. 15 Colombia outlasted No. 11 Cuba 5-3 on Saturday afternoon in the bronze medal game of the III WBSC U-23 Baseball World Cup at Estadio Sonora in Hermosillo. The victory gave Colombia its first-ever medal in a WBSC World Cup event. Box score "Colombia's last title on the world stage came in 1947. My grandfather was playing on that team," commented manager Jose Mosquera. For the record, the tournament was called Amateur World Series and it would evolve into the Baseball World Cup. Matching up for the second time in four days, Cuba and Colombia were destined for a much different meeting from their first one, when Colombia cruised to an 11-0 win in five innings. Cuba scored the game’s first run on a blistering Saturday afternoon in the top of the first when Loidel Chapelli walked to lead off the game and scored three batters later on Yuddiel Gonzalez’s sacrifice fly to center. Cuba’s only lead of the game didn’t last long. Angulo jumpstarted Colombia out of the three-hole with a two-run homer to left following Jordan Diaz’s one-out single through the left side. One inning later, it was the bottom portion of Colombia’s offense contributing when Brayan Buelvas and Juan Zabala singled to kick off the second. With those two at the corners, Rafael Romero worked a walk, but Cuba catcher Andrys Perez threw down to second on ball four, enabling Buelvas to swipe home. Zabala later scored on a sacrifice fly to right by Gustavo Campero to make it a 4-0 lead. Cuba got a run back on an RBI single by Geisel Cepeda, cashing in Chapelli’s second walk in the third inning, but Colombia responded on Angulo’s second homer of the day, a leadoff shot in the bottom of the third. First baseman Ivan Prieto gave Cuba a jolt of life with a one-out solo homer to left in the fourth, but though his team had opportunities the rest of the way, they never capitalized. Cuba left a runner in scoring position in the fifth and left a man at first in the sixth. Called upon to earn his third save of the U-23 World Cup, Colombia’s Jhon Peluffo obliged, retiring all five batters he faced. The victory was extra sweet for Colombia, which hosted the II U-23 Baseball World Cup in 2019 in Monteria and Barranquilla but did not qualify for the Super Round, finishing seventh on home soil. "It's a great honour for us," said Mosquera. "Now we have to keep this group together. This tournament has been a learning experience for all of us, we can improve." (Photo: WBSC)

Cuba came back three times and finally walked it off in the eighth on a base hit by Yuddiel Gonzalez. After two tough losses to open the Super Round, Cuba’s chances at playing for a medal on Saturday rested on their final Super Round game. Win, and hope remained alive. Mission accomplished. Box score World No. 11 Cuba rallied from deficits three times, including a margin of 5-0 midway through their Friday game to stun No. 13 Panama with a 9-8 walk-off win in extra innings at Estadio Sonora. With the result, Cuba pulled even with Panama at 2-3 for fourth place on the Super Round table with two more games left to be played on Friday in Hermosillo. Halfway through Friday’s contest, Panama looked to be cruising to a second win in three Super Round games thanks to five runs scored on three big hits. Rhandall Sanchez staked his team to a 2-0 lead with a two-run homer to left in the second. Erick Mordock drove a ground-rule double to left to plate a run in the third, and in the fourth, Adrian Montero singled up the middle to plate two more. Cuba not only trailed by five runs, it had only tallied two hits before the fourth. In that fourth inning, the bats arrived. Cuba sent 10 batters to the plate and stormed back to tie the game with five runs. Rodoleisis Moreno delivered a bases-clearing double to get his team on the board with three runs while Guillermo Garcia singled to left-center to bring home a fourth tally and Loidel Chapelli came across with the tying run on a two-out fielding error by Panama third baseman Enoc Watts. Panama pulled ahead in the sixth on a sacrifice fly by Joshwan Wright, but with one out in the bottom of the seventh, Cuba levelled the score again on a Rangel Ramos sacrifice fly to force extra innings. In the eighth, Panama took advantage of the international tiebreak rule to score a pair of runs Jason Patterson singling home a run and Sanchez scoring on a fielder’s choice off the bat of Adrian Montero. Undeterred facing an 8-6 deficit, Cuba mounted its final rally. With one out and the bases loaded, Ramos scored on a wild pitch charged to James Gonzalez, and the home team was underway. Moreno came across on a fielder’s choice as Garcia beat out a potential double play ball hit to second. With two gone, Yuddiel Gonzalez sent his team into jubilation by lacing a walk-off single to right-center to score Miguel Gonzalez. "I always try to stay positive when I step to the box," commented Gonzalez after the game. "This is what helped me get the hit." Cuba’s rally gave the team a 2-3 Super Round record while dropping Panama to 2-3. The sides now await the results of Friday’s afternoon contest between Venezuela (3-1) and Chinese Taipei (1-3) and the night game between Colombia (3-1) and Mexico (2-2) to determine Saturday’s bronze medal and World Championship Game matchups. (Photo: WBSC)

Colombia is now 3-1 and is aiming at the final. Cuba fell to 1-3, but has still a chance to be in the bronze medal game. On the middle day of the Super Round, Colombia put together another impressive win. Backed by 10 hits from his offense, Colombia starting pitcher Luis Moreno dealt five shutout innings to earn the win as world No. 15 Colombia beat No. 11 Cuba, 6-1, on Thursday afternoon at Estadio Sonora. Colombia and Cuba went scoreless into the third inning, with Moreno and Cuba’s Jonathan Carbo traded scoreless half innings before the visitors broke through. In the third, Colombia’s hot-hitting leadoff man Gustavo Campero got his team on to the board with a two-run homer to right field. Later in the inning, Jesus Marriaga singled through the left side to plate Andres Angulo with Colombia’s fifth hit of the frame to make it a 3-0 game. That lead alone would have been more than enough for Moreno, who scattered three hits without walking a batter and struck out two in his five innings. The right-hander threw 61 pitches, 42 for strikes. Colombia wasn’t done offensively after its big third. The world No. 15 added a pair in the fourth on an RBI double to by Rafael Romero right-center and an Angulo sacrifice fly and then tacked on one more in the fifth on Juan Zabala’s homer to left. Cuba was limited to a run on six hits, finally cashing in a tally in the bottom of the sixth inning with the outcome already in hand on Yuddiel Gonzalez’s RBI single up the middle. "These players showed how much they care about coming to the ballpark and playing hard every day," commented manager Jose Mosquera. "In the early innings, I think we had an overconfident approach. I spoke to the players, reminding them how important the game was, and I'm pleased with what I saw after that." On Friday, Colombia and Cuba will play their final games of the Super Round, with Colombia vying for a spot in Saturday’s World Championship Final and Cuba hoping for a shot at bronze. Cuba will battle Panama at 10:30 in the morning contest while Colombia faces host and defending U-23 World Cup champions Mexico from 19:30 in Hermosillo. (Photo: WBSC)

Venezuela outscored, 11-0 in 5 innings, and outhit, 15-5, Cuba and has now improved its record to 2-1. Box score With the final stage of the U-23 Baseball World Cup just days away, Venezuela’s offense is in top gear. Every batter in Venezuela’s lineup notched at least one hit led by three for leadoff hitter Carlos Rodríguez, who homered and doubled, as the world’s No. 10 run-ruled No. 11 Cuba, 11-0 in 5 innings, on the first day of the Super Round at Estadio Sonora. Rodríguez belted a leadoff homer in the bottom of the first to signal what type of day it would be for his team. Venezuela scored in each of its five innings at the plate, adding another run in the first and four in the second, the team’s biggest frame highlighted by a two-run homer to center from Romer Cuadrado. Following an RBI double by Antonio Pinero and a run-scoring single by Rodríguez in the third, Justin López doubled to plate a run in the fourth and make it a 9-0 game. That set the stage for the fifth when Juan Fernández put the exclamation point on his team’s victory with a two-run homer to left-center to end the contest. Venezuela racked up 15 hits with five players notching multi-hit games and five driving in multiple runs. On the mound, Jesús Vargas did all the work for his team, blanking Cuba over five innings to earn the victory and give Venezuela’s bullpen a second straight day of rest after having Tuesday off from action. Vargas scattered five hits allowed and struck out five without walking a batter, throwing 51 strikes in 73 pitches. On Thursday, Venezuela and Cuba move on to the second day of the Super Round when Cuba faces Colombia at 10:30 and Venezuela matches up with host Mexico from 19:30. (Photo: WBSC)

Left-hander Naykel Cruz muted the Dominican Republic lineup. Cuba scored six runs on ten hits and finished group play with a 4-1 record. Cuba will advance to the Super Round after a convincing 6-2 win over the Dominican Republic on Tuesday afternoon in Ciudad Obregon. Box score The final game of group play saw Cuba score four times in the top of the second inning when five straight batters reached base safely against Dominican Starter Cristian Solano. Right fielder Loidel Chapelli, a former WBSC U-15 Baseball World Cup MVP, had one of the RBIs. "We worked hard to qualify," commented Chapelli after the game. "We are really excited now. I came here ready to play. When I stepped to bat in the second, I knew it was a crucial at-bat. Thank God I got that line drive. We will do our best to go home with a medal." That rough patch for Solano marred an otherwise sparkling outing that ended after the righty retired seven straight - including five consecutive strikeouts. On the other side, Naykel Cruz tossed more than 100 pitches in his six innings of work. "I'm thrilled, but you don't have to credit my pitching only," said Cruz after the game. "It was a genuine team effort. I managed to get ahead in the count, which is always my goal." Cruz didn't allow a run until the bottom of the sixth when Cristopher Pujols homered to drive in two with two outs. "I always look for a fastball and I got one up in the zone," said Pujols. "I tried not to do too much and I took it deep." There were not many other good at bats for the Dominican Republic. "Well, we got too anxious and we chased a lot of bad pitches, or at least, not our pitches," added Pujols. Cruz finished the day with nine strikeouts, earning a well deserved win. Cuba had just one extra base hit, a Rodoleisis Moreno triple to begin the seventh, and Moreno was one of three Cuban hitters to finish the game with two hits. The Dominican Republic finishes group play 2–3, having scored just four runs in four games after beating Germany 8-4 in its first game on Friday. They will stay in Ciudad Obregon for the placement round. "My players got to the game too anxious," admitted Dominican Republic manager Ramon Genao. "Things didn't go our way in this tournament, but we still have to do our best to finish on top of the placement round. Motivations won't lack." Cuba heads to Hermosillo as one of four teams that will begin Super Round play with a 1-1 Super Round record. The team was 4-1 overall in five games of group play. Group A, the outcome Mexico (2-0), Cuba (1-1), Chinese Taipei (2-0) advance to the super round. The Dominican Republic (2-0), Germany (1-1) and the Czech Republic (0-2) will play in the placement round. (Photo: WBSC)

After beating the Czech Republic, 7-1, Cuba will face the Dominican Republic in the make-up game of the rained-out opener. Cuba moved one step closer to a Super Round berth with a 7-1 victory over the Czech Republic on Monday afternoon in Ciudad Obregon. Box score Cuba’s starter Jose Santos was the star, tossing a complete-game two-hitter to help his team improve to 3-1 in group play. Santos did not allow a hit until the bottom of the sixth when Marek Chlup tripled to right field. Chlup scored one batter later on a Radim Novotny sacrifice fly to account for the lone Czech run of the day. "Santos helped us a lot going the distance," commented Cuba's manager Eriel Sanchez. "Overall, we've had very good pitching. Thanks to that, we could win close games." Cuba’s offense simply took what it was given by a Czech staff that walked a total of nine batters on the day. Cuba’s first three runs came across in the third inning - the first two on wild pitches and the third on a Yandi Yanes RBI single. The team added two more in the sixth on a sacrifice fly and a Geisel Cepeda RBI double and capped the day with a pair of runs on two hits in the seventh. Rangel Ramos was the only player to record a multi-hit game, going 2-for-4 with a run scored and an RBI for Cuba out of the eight spot. The Czech Republic finishes group play 1-4, losers of four straight after the thrilling opening night victory over Mexico. Cuba heads into a Tuesday make-up game with the Dominican Republic that is certain to have Super Round implications. "We need to make that one more step to get to the super round," concluded Sanchez. "We know the Dominican Republic is a very strong team. I have a lot of respect for them. For sure, it will be fun to watch us play tomorrow." That game is scheduled to start at 10:30am local time. (Photo: WBSC)

Cuba broke the score open in the second inning. German pitchers struggled with control and allowed a total 11 walks. Germany's pitchers struggled to throw strikes and Cuba took advantage to win 10-3 on day four of Group A play in Ciudad Obregon. Cuba scored four runs in the second inning without a single hit, and added three more in the third with three hits to build a 7-1 lead after three. Three more runs in the top of the fifth had Cuba ahead 10-1 before Germany had recorded its first hit. Alexander Schmidt finally notched a hit for Germany in the bottom of the fifth and the Germans knocked three more hits around Estadio Yaquis in the bottom of the sixth to score two more runs. Schmidt would single for a second time in the bottom of the seventh, finishing the day as the only German player with two hits. David Grimes doubled for Germany for the second straight day, and Danny Lankhorst scored two runs in addition to his RBI triple. Yandi Yanez and Miguez Gonzalez both reached base four times for the victors, while Rangel Ramos finished the game with two hits, two runs scored and an RBI. The real star for Cuba was starter Marlon Vega, who gave up just one hit while striking out eight. Sebastian Oetterer was the only German pitcher to keep Cuba from scoring, tossing two hitless innings to end the ballgame. Germany's pitchers walked a total of 11 Cuban hitters in the game. The setback was tough for a German team that had earned its first victory a day earlier against the Czech Republic. Germany will end the group stage of play with a Monday night game against defending the U-23 World Champions, Mexico. Cuba heads into Monday's matchup with the Czech Republic as winners of two straight. (Photo: WBSC)

The designated hitter went deep in the fifth inning of a very well played pitching duel against Chinese Taipei. Cuba is in the mix for a spot in the super round. Box score Cuba became the final team to earn a victory in Group A, knocking off previously unbeaten Chinese Taipei 2-1 on Saturday afternoon at Estadio Yaquis. Chen Shen-Ping opened the scoring in the top of the first with an RBI double, and for the first four innings it looked as if Chinese Taipei was going to ride another strong pitching effort to a third consecutive victory. However, Cuba took advantage of a rare mistake in the bottom of the fifth. Chinese Taipei starter Lin Yu-Min began his fifth inning of work with a groundout of Ivan Prieto and followed that up with a strikeout of Yandi Yanez. He then struck out Reynaldo Zagada, but Zagada was able to hustle to first, reaching on a wild pitch. Given an extra out, Cuba took the lead with one swing when Yuddiel Gonzalez deposited a 1-1 pitch over the wall in center field. "I was just trying to put the ball in play," commented Gonzalez. "Thank God, I got a good piece of hit and put us ahead. That relieved the pression we felt." Chinese Taipei got the tying run aboard with one out in the seventh, but Yoel Cruz slammed the door shut with a flyout and a strikeout of Chang Wen-Hsien. Cruz earned the victory with 2.1 innings of one-hit ball, striking out five batters and throwing 23 of his 33 pitches for strikes. His outing came on the heels of a strong start from Jonathan Carbo, who scattered two hits across 4.2 innings of work. While Chinese Taipei is still in a good position to advance to the Super Round at 2-1, there has to be a little concern about the fact that, for the second straight game, the team failed to score a run after the first inning. The team left seven men on base on Saturday, failing to take advantage of five walks by Cuban pitching. Cuba's next opponent will be the German national team, which also picked up its first win of the tournament on Saturday. Chinese Taipei will face Mexico in the Sunday night game in Ciudad Obregon. (Photo: WBSC)

Starting pitchers Alemao Hernández and Bryan Chi were perfect for three innings. The first hit of the night, a solo homer by Fabricio Macías, set the tone for the hosts. After a disappointing defeat on opening night, the reigning U-23 World Champion, Mexico, picked up its first win of the tournament on Friday night, defeating Cuba 5-0 at Estadio Yaquis in Ciudad Obregón. The game was much closer than the final score would indicate. The starting pitchers - Cuba’s Brian Chi and Mexico’s Alemao Hernández - matched each other zero for zero through the first three innings before Mexico got on the board in the top of the fourth. Box score Fabricio Macias, Mexico’s leadoff man, blasted the first pitch of the inning over the wall in left to put his team in front for the first time in the tournament. Macías would come around to score again two innings later on a Tirso Ornelas two-out single into right. That sixth inning hit knocked Chi out of the game. Hernández came out to start the bottom of the sixth for México, but was lifted after striking out Loidel Chapellí. Reliever Herrera Hernández yielded a two-out double to Rangel Ramos, but got out of the inning unscathed. México added three insurance runs in the top of the seventh and Rabago Robles retired the side in order in the bottom of the seventh to preserve the victory. Macías and Agustín Ruíz led the Mexican offense with two hits each, while Reivaj García was the only player to drive in two runs for the victors. Alemao Hernández was simply dominant, throwing 50 of his 68 pitches for strikes, and giving up just two hits in his 5.1 innings of work. He struck out four without walking a batter. Chi, who pitched for Cuba at the Americas Olympic Qualifier earlier this summer, fanned six without walking a batter in his 5.2 innings of work. There was not a single walk issued by either side in the contest. México heads into a showdown with the Dominican Republic on Saturday night, while Cuba will face a tough task taking on the only 2-0 team in Group A – Chinese Taipei – on Saturday afternoon at Estadio Yaquis. (Photo: WBSC)

Japan remain's baseball's top-ranked nation, while Korea has hit its highest-ever ranking, climbing to No. 2 PULLY, Switzerland -- The World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) today released the latest WBSC Baseball World Rankings, following the results of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. The WBSC awarded a total of 1,239 points toward the WBSC Baseball World Rankings, based on the final standings of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Baseball Tournament: JPN - 1st place - 375 pts USA - 2nd place - 308 pts DOM - 3rd place - 240 pts KOR - 4th place -173 pts ISR - 5th place - 105 pts MEX - 6th place - 38 pts Following a gold-medal performance in baseball at the Tokyo 2020 Games, Japan (4,290 total pts) remains No. 1 in the world, amongst a total of 85 currently ranked baseball nations. Korea (3,423 pts) has climbed to its highest-ever ranking, at No. 2 in the world, surpassing now No. 3 Chinese Taipei (3,315 pts). No. 4 United States (3,077 pts) and No. 5 Mexico hold (2,270 pts) hold their respective positions in the rankings. Behind the nation's historic bronze medal, the Dominican Republic (2,063 pts) has climbed to No. 6 in the world, tying the nation's highest-ever ranking, as No. 7 Australia (1,946 pts) falls one place. No. 8 Netherlands (1,740 pts), Europe's top-ranked baseball nation, and No. 9 Canada (1,713 pts) each have advanced one place in the rankings, while No. 10 Venezuela (1,619 pts) holds its position. No. 24 Israel's rankings remains unchanged. The WBSC Baseball World Rankings measure National Team performance — from U-12 to Professional — in WBSC-sanctioned international competitions over a four-year period. The complete WBSC World Rankings and formula can be found at https://rankings.wbsc.org. (Top photo: Team Japan during theTokio'2020 Olympics: WBSC)

The Major League All Star game had stars from many countries participating in the event. Below were some of the global stars. The winning pitcher and the talk of the All Star game was Japan’s double threat on the mound and at the plate Shohei Ohtani. He retired the side in order in his one inning of work and also got two at bats, the first player ever to make the team based on both his pitching and hitting exploits. The MVP of the game, and the youngest MVP of an All Star game was Vladimir Guerrero Jr, from the Dominican Republic. Vladimir also grew up in Montreal, Canada when his dad played for the Montreal Expos. The closer for the American League was Australia’s own Liam Hendriks. Fernando Tatis, Juan Soto and Rafael Devers are three young stars from the Dominican Republic ready to make an impact in the major leagues. Jose Ramirez and Nelson Cruz are part of the old guard that continues to shine. The Dominican Republic had easily the most players outside the United States represented in the All Star game. The Venezuelan catcher Salvador Perez may be the best in the game. Eduardo Escobar also represented Venezuela well. Adolis Garcia has been a surprise and was the lone Cuban who played in the game. Xander Bogaerts was born in Aruba but represented the Netherlands in a number of international events. Myworld first saw Bogaerts when he played for the Netherlands in the last world cup in 2011, when the Netherlands took down Cuba in a rain soaked game to win their first gold medal in an international baseball tournament. Ozzie Albies was born in Curacao and also represented the Netherlands in international events. It will only be a matter of time before a player from an African country is asked to play in the major league All Star game. Will that be South Africa or some country like Uganda, whose interest in baseball has been increasing. (Top photo of Adolis García/AP: Gabriel Christus)

It used to be the Futures Game would pit the United States prospects versus the world. That is no longer the case. Now it is American League versus National League. Below are the rosters of the Future game. These are some of the top prospects in major league baseball. American League Pitchers - Shane Baz (Rays/Durham), Bryan Bello (Red Sox/Portland), Reid Detmers (Angels/Rocket City), Marcos Diplan (Orioles/Norfolk), Luis Medina (Yankees/Somerset), Cole Ragans (Rangers/Hickory), Josh Winder (Twins/Wichita), Cole Winn (Rangers/Frisco), Hector Yan (Angels/Tri City) Catchers - Adley Rutschman (Orioles/Bowie), Tyler Soderstrom (Athletics/Stockton), Bo Naylor (Indians/Akron) Infielders - Vidal Brujan (Rays/Durham), Jake Burger (White Sox/Knights), Jeter Downs (Red Sox/Worchester), Austin Martin (Blue Jays/New Hampshire), Nick Pratto (Royals/Northwest Arkansas), Spencer Torkelson (Tigers/Erie), Bobby Witt Jr (Royals/Northwest Arkansas) Outfielders - Yoelqui Céspedes (White Sox/Winston Salem), Jasson Dominguez (Yankees/FCL), Riley Greene (Tigers/Erie), Jarred Kelenic (Mariners/Tacoma), Pedro León (Astros/Corpus Christi), Julio Rodriguez (Mariners/Arkansas) International Stars from American League Dominican Republic - Bryan Bello, Marcos Diplan, Luis Medina, Hector Yan, Vidal Brujan, Jasson Dominguez, Julio Rodriguez Cuba - Yoelqui Céspedes, Pedro León Canada - Bo Taylor Colombia - Jeter Downs National League Pitchers - Cade Cavalli (Nationals/Harrisburg), Jake Eder (Marlins/Pensacola), Andre Jackson (Dodgers/Tulsa), Matthew Liberatore (Cardinals/Memphis), Nick Lodolo (Reds/Chattanooga), Max Meyer (Marlins/Pensacola), Quinn Priester (Pirates/Greensboro), Manuel Rodriguez (Cubs/Iowa), Ethan Small (Brewers/Nashville) Catchers - Francisco Alvarez (Mets/Brooklyn), Luis Campusano (Padres/El Paso), Willie MacIver (Rockies/Spokane) Infielders - Brett Baty (Mets/Brooklyn), José Barrero (Reds/Louisville), Michael Busch (Dodgers/Tulsa), Nolan Gorman (Cardinals/Memphis), Marco Luciano (Giants/San Jose), Bryson Stott (Phillies/Reading), Michael Toglia (Rockies/Spokane) Outfielders - Brennen Davis (Cubs/Tennessee), Mike Harris II (Braves/Rome), Heliot Ramos (Giants/Richmond), Alek Thomas (Diamondbacks/Amarillo), Ryan Vilade (Rockies/Albuquerque), Drew Waters (Braves/Gwinnett) International Stars from National League Mexico - Manuel Rodriguez Venezuela - Francisco Alvarez Cuba - José Barrero Dominican Republic - Marco Luciano Puerto Rico - Heliot Ramos 16 International players were selected for the Future game, a number that would fall short of a roster. The majority of international players are from the Dominican Republic (8) with Cuba the second most (3). All other countries plus Puerto Rico could only garner one player. (Cover photo of Yoelki Céspedes/MLB)