Breaking Down the 2019 18U National Team Schedule

From Los Angeles to Taiwan to South Korea, the 2019 18U National Team has a busy schedule in 2019. On August 12, 48 of the best athletes in the country - selected from the inaugural Prospect Development Pipeline (PDP) League, the 2018 National Team Identification Series, and the 2019 17U National Team Development Program - will convene in California for the 18U National Team Trials to compete for a spot on the 20-man Team USA roster.
At the conclusion of trials, the final 18U National Team will be named and will then train in both Los Angeles and Taiwan before traveling to Gijang City, South Korea, for the 2019 World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) U-18 Baseball World Cup. The U.S. is the four-time defending champions of the event and will look to become the first team ever to claim five World Cup gold medals in a row at the tournament.
Here is everything you need to know about the 2019 18U National Team's path to gold:

THE SCHEDULE

The 2019 18U National Team Trials will include five intrasquad Stars vs. Stripes games in five days at two different locations in the greater Los Angeles area.
Immediately following the announcement of the final 20-man 18U National Team roster on August 17, 18U National Team Training will commence and run from August 18-26.
The 2019 18U National Team will train both domestically and internationally, playing two games in California and at least three games in Taiwan before traveling to South Korea for the World Cup.
The 18U National Team's schedule at the 2019 WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup will start with a practice day on August 29 before the team plays its first game on August 30 against South Africa.
Team USA will play five games in the Opening Round of the World Cup - one against each team in Group B - starting with a matchup against South Africa. 2019 marks the first time in program history that the 18U National Team has opened World Cup play against South Africa.
Following the Opening Round, the top three teams from both Group A and Group B will advance to the Super Round. Each team will then play one game against each of the five other Super Round teams, with the top two advancing to the gold medal game and the third and fourth seeds playing for bronze.
Three of Team USA's World Cup Opening Round opponents are ranked in the top 15 in the world, including No. 4 Chinese Taipei and No. 1 Japan.
Between August 18 and September 8, Team USA will play at least 17 games against at least nine different opponents.
The 2019 18U National Team program will compete in five different cities in three countries on two separate continents over three and a half weeks of trials, training and tournament play.
Team USA will travel a total of 13,737 miles together this summer.

THE OPPONENTS

BREWERS SOCAL SCOUT TEAM

For the first time since 2015, the 18U National Team will open its training schedule against the Brewers SoCal Scout Team.
The last time the two programs met, Team USA came away with a 6-4 victory at Cal State Fullerton on August 17, 2015.

CHINESE TAIPEI

In 2019, Team USA will train against Chinese Taipei prior to the World Cup, and will also match up against the team in the opening round of the tournament.
The U.S. owns a 23-9-1 overall record against Chinese Taipei, including wins in the first and most recent meetings between the two teams.
The 18U National Team last matched up against Chinese Taipei on September 6, 2013, in the International Baseball Federation (IBAF) "AAA" World Cup. Team USA claimed a 7-5 victory in that contest and went on to win a gold medal in the event.

SOUTH AFRICA

The U.S. and South Africa have met just twice in the history of the 18U National Team program.
The first contest between the two squads was August 9, 2000, when the U.S. came away with a 27-1 win in the IBAF World Junior Championships.
The second meeting also resulted in a Team USA victory with the red, white and blue taking down South Africa 5-0 at the 2017 WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup - one of the 18U National Team's six shutouts in the tournament.

JAPAN

The U.S. and Japan have met eight times in international play, with Team USA owning a 6-2 overall record.
Japan's last victory in the series came on August 29, 2015, when the Japanese defeated Team USA 3-0 in the opening round of the 2015 WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup in Osaka, Japan. The U.S. avenged the loss eight days later though when the two teams met in the gold medal game. The stars and stripes claimed a 2-1 victory in the contest and another World Cup title.
2019 will mark the third consecutive time that the U.S. and Japan have met in the opening round of the World Cup. Most recently, Team USA came out on top, shutting out Japan 4-0 on September 2, 2017, in the second game of the 2017 World Cup.

PANAMA

Team USA has a long and successful history against Panama in international competition, having met 23 times in international competition. The U.S. holds the advantage in the matchup with a 21-2 overall record against Panama in that time.
In the most recent meeting between the two countries, Team USA took down the home country 17-2 in the gold medal game of the 2017 COPABE U-18 Pan-American Championships. The victory marked the 18U National Team program's fifth-consecutive Pan-American Championships title.
The U.S. is 5-1 all-time against Panama in World Cup play.

SPAIN

The U.S. will close out the opening round of the 2019 World Cup against Spain. This will be just the third time the two teams have met, with both previous matchups occurring in World Cup play.
The red, white and blue has emerged victorious in both past meetings, claiming a 13-3 win in 2002 and another 10-run triumph in 2006 with an 11-1 victory.

THE LOCATIONS

IRVINE, CALIFORNIA

Three of the five 18U trials intrasquad Stars vs. Stripes games will be played in Irvine, California, at Orange County Great Park for the first time in 18U National Team program history.

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA

2019 marks the first time since August 19, 2013, that the 18U National Team program has played in Dodger Stadium, but Team USA has a long history of competition at the baseball landmark.
Most recently, the U.S. claimed its first-ever World Baseball Classic championship at the home of the Los Angeles Dodgers with a dominant 8-0 defeat of Puerto Rico on March 22, 2017.

SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO, CALIFORNIA

This will be the first time the 18U National Team has played at JSerra Catholic High School in San Juan Capistrano, California.

TAICHUNG, TAIWAN

This is the 18U National Team program's fifth trip to Taiwan and its third visit to Taichung.
The 2012 18U National Team trained in the city with two international friendlies against Chinese Taipei and a matchup with the Taichung City All-Stars before heading to Seoul, South Korea, for the IBAF "AAA" World Cup.
In 2013, the IBAF "AAA" World Cup was held in Taichung and Team USA once again trained in the city - this time with three international friendlies against Chinese Taipei - before the start of the tournament. The U.S. then stayed in Taiwan for the world championship, where it finished 8-1 with a gold medal.
In total, the 18U National Team has played 24 games in Taiwan throughout the program's history, including 14 games in Taichung, nine in Taipei City and one in Dou Liou.
The 2019 18U National Team will train in Taichung Stadium for the third time in its history, having played seven games there in 2012 and 2013.

GIJANG CITY, SOUTH KOREA

This is the second time in the history of the 18U National Team program that Team USA has competed at a World Cup in South Korea.
The 2012 IBAF "AAA" World Cup was held in Seoul, South Korea, with the U.S. finishing 7-2 and coming away as world champions after defeating Canada 6-2 in the gold medal game. • The 2019 WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup will be played at Gijang-Hyundai Dream Ballpark. The multi-field facility was recently built in time to host the WBSC Women's Baseball World Cup in 2016 and is the largest youth baseball facility in Korea, with a seating capacity of 1,295.