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TOKYO – Team USA will look to rebound from its Super Round-opening loss to Japan, taking on Chinese Taipei on Friday afternoon at the Tokyo Dome. First pitch is scheduled for 12:00 p.m. local/10:00 p.m. ET (Nov. 21).

PITCHING MATCHUP
LHP Po-Ching Chen (TPE) vs. Zac Grotz (USA)

SUPER ROUND STANDINGS

Japan (1-0)
Venezuela (1-0)
Team USA (0-1)
Venezuela (0-1)

LAST TIME OUT

After Colby Thomas opened the scoring with a home run in the fifth, Japan responded with nine unanswered runs to beat Team USA, 9-1, in the Super Round opener on Thursday. Rich Hill started for the U.S. and continued his dominant stretch with four shutout innings, giving him 10.1 innings with zero earned runs allowed through three starts. But once Hill was pulled from the game, Japan got to the U.S. bullpen. Kaito Kozono drove in a Premier12-record-tying seven runs in Japan’s win, homering twice and hitting a go-ahead triple in the fifth. Termarr Johnson collected two hits in the six-hit effort for Team USA, which got extra-base hits from Thomas and Carson Williams.

HISTORY AGAINST CHINESE TAIPEI

In 10 all-time meetings between Team USA and Chinese Taipei, the stars and stripes own a 9-1 record. The two sides first met at the 1999 Intercontinental Cup, which resulted in a 5-2 win for the United States. Team USA dropped its only game to Chinese Taipei at the XXXV World Cup in 2003 and has won six straight matchups since then, including at the 2019 Premier12. The U.S. has allowed two or fewer runs in seven of its 10 contests against Chinese Taipei.

STAY HOT, SIMPSON

U.S. leadoff hitter Chandler Simpson continued his hot tournament on Thursday against Japan, picking up a hit for the sixth consecutive game. The speedy outfielder has collected eight hits in his last three games and is batting .500 overall in the tournament, also scoring seven runs.

NOT OVER THE HILL

44-year-old Rich Hill continued to dominate at the Premier12 with his start against Japan, where he tossed four shutout innings. The veteran southpaw has now pitched 10.1 innings and still owns a spotless 0.00 ERA, yielding just one unearned run and five hits while striking out 14 batters.

THOMAS TANKS OUR TENTH

Colby Thomas smashed a solo home run in the fifth inning of Thursday’s defeat to Japan, giving Team USA its 10th home run of the Premier12. The 10 round trippers tie the Netherlands for the most in the tournament and the U.S. is now just five homers away from tying its Premier12 tournament record of 15 set in 2019.

PATTON ON THE BACK

United States’ reliever Spencer Patton pitched another scoreless frame on Thursday against Japan, his fourth such outing of the tournament. Patton has pitched in four games and tossed one inning each time, not yet allowing a run and giving up only three hits while walking none.

THE FUTURE IS NOW

Six players on Team USA’s roster have played in the MLB All-Star Futures Game, including five players who competed in the event in 2024: Drake Baldwin, Justin Crawford, Termarr Johnson, Matt Shaw, and Chandler Simpson. Crawford also earned a spot in the 2023 iteration of the Futures Game, while Willie MacIver played in the event in 2019.

TOP SPECTS

The U.S. roster features four players who rank in the MLB Pipeline Top 100, including two players who are the top-ranked prospect for their respective Club. Carson Williams ranks as the fourth-best prospect in baseball and atop Tampa Bay’s Top 30 Prospects, while Matt Shaw leads the way for the Cubs and is the 22nd-ranked prospect in the sport. Additionally, Justin Crawford sits at No. 53 and Termarr Johnson ranks No. 75 in the Top 100.

BIG LEAGUERS

The U.S. roster features nine players with MLB playing experience, combining for 57 big-league seasons. Rich Hill leads the way with 20 MLB seasons under his belt, while Dan Altavilla, Anthony Gose, Spencer Patton, and Touki Toussaint bring at least five seasons of big-league time to the roster. Zac Grotz, Casey Lawrence, Chris Okey, and Cam Vieaux have also had stints in the major leagues.

MVPs!

Justin Crawford and Matt Shaw have each earned a Most Valuable Player honor in the past two seasons. In 2023, Crawford was named the Florida State League MVP after hitting .344 with 16 doubles, 60 RBIs, and 40 stolen bases for the Clearwater Threshers (A). Shaw nabbed Southern League MVP honors in 2024 following a season in which he smacked 14 homers and drove in 50 runs while batting .279 over 86 games with the AA Tennessee Smokies.

FATHERS AND SONS

Thirteen years after Rich Hill was teammates with Carl Crawford on the Boston Red Sox, Hill now teams up with Carl’s son, Justin, on the 2024 Premier12 roster. Hill and Carl were also teammates on the 2016 Los Angeles Dodgers.