PANAMA CITY – Team USA took down Panama, 4-2, in the gold medal game of the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) U-18 Baseball World Cup Americas Qualifier on Sunday afternoon at Estadio Nacional Rod Carew.
The gold medal marks the seventh consecutive World Cup Qualifier title for the United States.
After a back-and-forth battle sent the game into the sixth tied at two, Team USA (8-0) loaded the bases on a single by Brayden Jaksa, a Trent Grindlinger walk, and an Eli Willits hit-by-pitch. That brought the United States’ hottest hitter to the plate in the game’s biggest moment, and as he has all tournament, Kayson Cunningham delivered. The U.S. shortstop lined a 2-2 pitch into right center field for a base hit, bringing Jaksa home and giving the stars and stripes the lead. Gavin Fien followed on the next pitch with a sacrifice fly to right to make it a 4-2 advantage for Team USA.
Cooper Rummel then came out of the U.S. bullpen and retired the first two batters on just three pitches. With two outs in the seventh, Rummel threw a 2-1 pitch that was lined into the glove of Cunningham as the U.S. poured out of the dugout and celebrated its seventh consecutive Qualifier gold.
Before Team USA scored twice in the sixth to break the tie, the United States and Panama (6-2) went punch-for-punch in the first five innings of the gold medal bout. Josh Hammond started for the U.S. opposite Panama starter Joset Herrera. Both starting pitchers sent the side down in order in a quick first inning before the stars and stripes opened the scoring in the second. Nico Partida hit a hard grounder that snuck under Panama third baseman Victor Jimenez’s glove to put a runner on second with one out, and Josh Owens laid down a perfect bunt to reach on a single and put runners on the corners. Jaksa followed with a well-struck single to left that plated Partida and got the U.S. on the board, but Herrera got a pop out and strikeout to strand two U.S. runners on base and keep it a one-run game.
Hammond then worked around a two-on, one-out jam to get the U.S. back to the plate in the third with a one-run lead, and it looked like Team USA was ready to extend that advantage. Willits singled to left and stole second with the heart of the United States’ order due up, but he was thrown out trying to steal third. Cunningham then reached second on an error and advanced to third on a balk, but Olmedo Barria entered out of Panama’s bullpen and picked up a big strikeout before inducing an inning-ending groundout as Panama continued to trail by a run.
The work of Barria proved important for the host nation, as it rattled off three consecutive singles with one out in the bottom of the third to tie the game. A walk followed to load the bases, but Hammond dug deep and won an eight-pitch battle with Julio Casas, getting the Panama five-hole hitter to ground into a crucial inning-ending double play to help Team USA regain momentum and keep the score tied at one.
That momentum continued into the top of the fourth. Owens drew a walk with one out and advanced to third on a single by Jaksa, which was followed by a perfectly placed ground-ball single by Grady Emerson to give the U.S. the lead back at 2-1. But again, Barria limited the damage as he got the stars and stripes to strand another two runners on base and kept Panama within a run.
After Austin Weiss entered in the bottom of the fourth and threw a scoreless frame, Team USA had another chance to build on its lead in the fifth. Fien and Partida both singled to put runners on the corners, but Barria coaxed a fly out to left to keep his team in the game. With newfound momentum, Panama was able to muster the game-tying run in a crucial bottom of the fifth. Joey Wood and Jael Escobar both drew walks to begin the frame and a double steal put them on second and third with no outs. Weiss then got Abel Valdez to ground out to the shortstop, which allowed Wood to score and tie the game at two. With the go-ahead run at third and only one out, Weiss picked up a massive strikeout for the second out before Dylan Wood entered and struck out Angel Rujano as the game stayed tied at two.
Wood’s big strikeout made way for Team USA’s big sixth-inning rally, which begun with a leadoff single by Jaksa. Emerson followed with a sacrifice bunt to put the go-ahead run in scoring position, prompting Panama to bring Joel Gonzalez out of the bullpen. The reliever walked Grindlinger after a nine-pitch battle and then hit Willits with a 1-2 pitch, setting the table for Cunningham’s go-ahead knock. Grindlinger scored on the next pitch on Fien’s sacrifice fly, giving Rummel a two-run lead when he entered from the bullpen.
Rummel then got two groundouts before a lineout fittingly landed in Cunningham’s mitt to secure Team USA’s 4-2 win.
Wood was the winning pitcher after his huge strikeout in the fifth and hitless sixth. Edgar Samaniego suffered the loss for Panama as he was responsible for the go-ahead run in 0.1 innings pitched. The save went to Rummel, his second of the tournament.
Team USA collected 10 hits in the victory, led by Jaksa’s 3-for-4 day which earned him game MVP honors. Partida had a pair of hits and scored a run, while Cunningham, Fien, Emerson, and Jaksa all drove in runs. Seven of the nine batters in the U.S. lineup collected at least one knock.
Cunningham was named the Tournament MVP following the gold medal contest. The U.S. shortstop was a key force in Team USA’s lineup all tournament long, racking up a team-high 10 hits and driving in 12 runs, both good for top three of all players. Cunningham hit .417 overall while playing every inning at shortstop for Team USA.
Cunningham was also named to the all-tournament team alongside Slater de Brun (OF) and Emerson (2B). de Brun scored seven runs in the tournament to rank in the top five of all players, also stealing three bases. Emerson batted .381 (8-for-21) with seven RBIs–including a big run-scoring hit in Sunday’s finale–and four runs scored.
Willits earned the most runs scored award after leading the tournament with eight.
In addition to winning gold for the seventh consecutive World Cup Qualifier, Team USA also secured its spot in the 2025 WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup. The United States, along with Cuba, Panama, and Puerto Rico, all qualified for next year’s World Cup.
