CARY, N.C. – Japan used a three-run fourth inning and a shutdown pitching performance to hand the USA Baseball Collegiate National Team a 5-2 setback Friday evening in the opening game of the 44th USA vs. Japan Collegiate All-Star Championship Series at Coleman Field.
Kaito Shimomura and Natsuki Takeuchi combined to strike out eight batters and hold Team USA to seven hits, with each allowing just a single run.
Japan led 1-0 after three innings when doubles by Misho Nishikawa and Kyuto Ueda on consecutive pitches ignited a three-run rally, from which the U.S. never recovered.
KEY MOMENTS
- Japan grabbed a 1-0 lead in the second after Yuyo Shinto lined a two-out double to right-center to bring in Ueda all the way from first.
- Back-to-back doubles by Nishikawa and Ueda on the first two pitches of the fourth from U.S. starting pitcher Ryan Johnson (Dallas Baptist) led to the second Japan run of the night.
- A walk to Tai Sasaki, followed by the third double of the inning—a liner into the right-center field gap off the bat of Ryuta Hirose—stretched the lead further, and Shinto’s bouncer to the right side plated a third run in the inning to make it a 4-0 game.
- Team USA answered in the home half of the fourth, putting its first run of the night on the board courtesy of a 440-foot Jac Caglianone (Florida) home run that cleared the scoreboard in right-center field.
- The U.S. manufactured a second run in the eighth after Griff O’Ferrall (Virginia) drew a leadoff walk against Takeuchi; a wild pitch and a balk moved the runner to third, and Charlie Condon (Georgia) brought O’Ferrall home with a sacrifice fly to center.
- Hirosi answered the U.S. tally with a leadoff homer to left on the first pitch of the ninth inning to establish a three-run cushion for Japan once again.
NOTEWORTHY
- Matt Ager (UC Santa Barbara) kept the U.S. within striking distance by retiring 10 hitters in a row and 13 of 14 overall; in all, the right-hander allowed a single run on three hits over his 4 1/3 innings of relief.
- Johnson logged a pair of scoreless innings and finished his night permitting three runs on four hits in his three-plus frames.
- O’Ferrall, who hit .619 in Team USA’s five-game sweep over Chinese Taipei, recorded a hit in his sixth-consecutive game to open the CNT slate.
- Condon registered a hit in his sixth straight game as well, finishing 1-for-3 with an RBI.
- Caglianone’s fourth-inning home run marked his second of the CNT season and was clocked at an exit velocity of 116 mph.
- Three Japan hitters recorded two-hit games, including a 2-for-4, 2-RBI performance by Hirose.
- In addition to its strong effort on the mound, Japan turned a pair of double plays to thwart U.S. scoring opportunities and played error-free defense in the contest.
- The U.S. continued its standout defensive start to the campaign as well, logging its fifth error-free game in six outings.
ON DECK
- The USA Baseball National Training Complex in Cary, N.C., will host games two and three of the 44th USA vs. Japan Collegiate All-Star Championship Series sanctioned by the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC), Saturday (July 8) and Sunday (July 9), while games four and five of the series will be played at Joseph Riley Jr. Park in Charleston on July 11 and 12.
- Tickets for this year’s Collegiate National Team’s series with Japan can be found HERE.
SOCIAL MEDIA
- Stay tuned to @USABaseballCNT on Twitter for the most up-to-date news about the 2023 Collegiate National Team.
