PANAMA CITY – Jayden Portes cleared the fences twice and Miles Lockridge threw a complete game shutout as Team USA fired on all cylinders in a 7-0 shutout of Panama Thursday night in the 2024 World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) U-12 Baseball World Cup Americas Qualifier.
With the win, Team USA secures the one seed in Group A and joins the Dominican Republic as the only 5-0 teams in the tournament. The 12U National Team heads to the semifinals and will play Cuba tomorrow morning for a shot at the gold medal game. All team records and Group A standings can be found here.
Team USA wasted no time in forcing Panama to exhaust its reserves from the bullpen, as the U.S. bats plated four runs within the first four batters of the game. The four-run frame began with a leadoff walk drawn by Josh Pierre and ended with a high fly ball off the bat of Portes for his first jack of the day. Jack Mattingly single-handedly plated the next two runs of the ballgame before Portes ignited the U.S. dugout once again, this time by leading off the fifth inning with a solo shot.
Lockridge dazzled under the lights and spun a gem at Estadio Nacional Rod Carew, needing only 72 pitches to secure a complete game shutout in his first start on the bump. It was relatively smooth sailing, as Lockridge faced the minimum in four of his six frames pitched yet still showed his ability to stay cool under pressure, escaping a two-on, no-out situation in the second inning unscathed. The Illinois native’s outing was extremely efficient and his performance was highlighted by a four-pitch inning in the fourth. His nine-pitch sixth inning ended in fashion as Team USA’s corner outfielders made back-to-back highlight-worthy plays to secure the win for the U.S.
Team USA’s ace struck out five batters tonight while his final line featured 6.0 scoreless frames in which only two hits were conceded and one free pass was given. Portes scored twice and drove in three runs with a pair of homers in his 2-for-3 performance. Mattingly was a productive three-hole hitter, as he also plated three runs and went 2-for-4 on the day.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Pierre won the first at-bat of the game, drawing a five pitch walk to put pressure on Panama early. Back-to-back singles by Mattingly and Carlo Rivero kept the rally going and gave the U.S. an early 2-0 advantage.
- After taking an offspeed pitch for a ball, Portes got one he liked and honed in on waist-high offering, launching the ball deep into the night sky and over the left field wall for a two-run bomb.
- Lockridge refused to let Panama’s defense rest, as he proceeded to sit down the top of the lineup and put the U.S. bats back to work.
- Daylon McCants drew an eight-pitch walk to lead off the second, setting the stage for Mattingly to punch a 1-0 offering to center for his second RBI of the day.
- Lockridge hurled another one-two-three inning in the third to keep the Panamanian bats quiet.
- McCants led off the fourth with a base knock and allowed Mattingly to register a productive out and collect his third RBI of the day, making it 6-0.
- In the fifth frame and in a nearly identical at-bat, Portes ripped an 0-1 offering well over the left fielder’s head for a solo shot and his second home run of the day.
- Lockridge secured Team USA’s third straight shutout with an electric sixth inning in which Clayton Ratliff and Joshua Park each made spectacular diving grabs in the outfield.
NOTABLES
- Team USA has now won seven straight games, a streak dating back to the 2023 WBSC U-12 Baseball World Cup while the 12U National Team is now 6-0 all-time against Panama.
- Lockridge needed only 10 pitches or less in three of his six innings pitched while throwing 63% first-pitch strikes.
- Today marks the first time since the 2019 WBSC U-12 Baseball World Cup that Team USA has thrown three consecutive shutouts.
- This is the first complete game shutout from a 12U National Team pitcher since Levi Kerr did it in the 2022 WBSC U-12 Baseball World Cup.
- Lockridge’s one free pass is the fewest a 12U National Team pitcher has yielded in a complete game shutout since Brenden Lewis’ complete game shutout in 2019.
- The team’s eight hits were scattered among six players while Mattingly and Portes accounted for six of the team’s seven RBIs.
- Team USA’s pitching staff now owns a 0.20 ERA while the team is batting at a .350 clip.
QUOTABLES
- “The team was ready to go and they jumped on Panama early,” Manager Bryan Madsen said. “In a tournament where wins mean everything, this group stepped up to the challenge and played great. Overall, I’m really happy with their performance tonight.”
- “Tonight was crazy,” Lockridge said. “It’s impossible to strike out everybody so I relied and trusted the guys behind me, the defense made tonight possible. It was great seeing how everybody hustled and played for each other.”
- “It felt great to barrel the ball and get a win,” Portes said. “The team stuck together and I love playing with my teammates; playing under the lights like tonight was really cool.”
ON DECK
The 12U National Team heads to the semifinal match and will play Cuba (4-1), for a berth to the World Cup Americas Qualifier Championship. First pitch is set for 9:30 a.m. local/10:30 p.m. ET at Estadio Nacional Rod Carew.
SOCIAL MEDIA
To follow along with all the action with the 12U National Team, be sure to follow @USABaseball12U on Twitter and @USABaseball on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and Twitter.
