TEPIC, Mexico – Matt Shaw went 4-for-5 with seven RBIs, including a run-rule, walk-off home run, as Team USA beat the Netherlands, 12-2, in eight innings in Group A play at the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) Premier12 presented by RAXUS on Sunday night at Coloso del Pacifico.
Shaw’s seven RBIs tie him with Ken Griffey Jr. for the most RBIs in a single game in Team USA history.
The first of Shaw’s seven RBIs came in the third inning, giving Team USA a 3-2 lead after a busy first inning saw the two sides exchange two-run frames. Didi Gregorius homered and Jonathan Schoop scored on a ground out to put the Netherlands up 2-0, but Luke Ritter and Ryan Ward responded with back-to-back home runs to make it a 2-2 score. That score became 3-2 in the third thanks to Shaw, who smoked an RBI knock through the right side to plate Termarr Johnson and give the U.S. (1-1) its first lead of the tournament.
The lead then ballooned to 5-2 later in the third inning on the strength of a Ritter sacrifice fly and an RBI double by Justin Crawford. The Netherlands (1-1) threatened to answer in the fourth, hitting two consecutive singles to knock U.S. starter Casey Lawrence out of the game. But Antonio Menendez entered out of the United States’ bullpen and halted the threat; after falling behind in the count, the side-armer coaxed an inning-ending double play to keep Team USA in the lead by three.
The score stayed 5-2 in the following few innings. Menendez (1-0) kept the Netherlands’ bats at bay in the middle frames, turning in 2.2 scoreless innings of relief to keep the three-run edge and eventually earn the win. Spencer Patton relieved Menendez in the seventh and twirled his second perfect inning in as many nights before Team USA’s offense got back to work in the bottom of the seventh.
Drake Baldwin got the big inning started by drawing a seven-pitch walk and Johnson followed by placing a bunt perfectly on the infield and beating it out for a single. Chandler Simpson then drew a walk to load the bases for Shaw and prompt a pitching change. Scott Prins entered out of the Netherlands’ bullpen and Shaw greeted the right-hander with a three-run, bases-clearing double down the right field line to blow the game open. Shaw then advanced to third and later scored on a sacrifice fly by Ward to give Team USA a 9-2 lead in the seventh.
A crisp inning by Austin Vernon got the United States right back to the plate in the bottom of the eighth which would wind up being the game’s final frame. Johnson and Simpson each worked walks to bring Shaw to the dish, and as he did all night, Shaw delivered: he went the other way on a 1-2 pitch and sent it over the right-field wall for a three-run, game-ending blast that sent the U.S. dugout into a frenzy and finished off the 12-2 win.
Shaw finished the day with a 4-for-5 line, which included his bases-clearing double and three-run homer. In addition to his seven RBIs, the third baseman also scored three runs in the win. He is now batting .875 (7-for-8) through two games at the 2024 Premier12, giving him the most hits and RBIs so far in tournament play. Shaw also leads Group A in OPS (2.264) and his three runs are tied atop the tournament leaderboard. He is also one of three players with multiple stolen bases.
The U.S. got additional contributions from all over its lineup on Sunday. Crawford, Ritter, and Simpson each collected two-hit games, as Ritter also added a pair of RBIs while and Crawford notched two doubles. Ward homered as part of a two-RBI night and a trio of Team USA batters drew two walks each: Johnson, Simpson, and Carson Williams.
The stars and stripes used four pitchers in the win, with Lawrence tossing the first 3.1 innings. The veteran righty settled in after surrendering a home run on the first pitch of the game, finishing the night with four hits and two runs allowed while punching out four. Menendez was steady for his 2.2 scoreless innings before Patton and Vernon wrapped up the game with a perfect inning each. For the Netherlands, Kaj Timmermans (0-1) got the start and gave up five runs on five hits in 2.1 innings to suffer the loss.
The United States returns to action on Monday night for a matchup with Venezuela at 7:00 p.m. local/9:00 p.m ET. Stream all the action from Coloso del Pacifico on DAZN.
