Super Round Day 2 - WBSC U-23 Men's Softball World Cup

APRIL 21, 2023

Japan cruise into World Championship Final; Argentina, Australia, Mexico, Canada and New Zealand remain in medal contention at WBSC U-23 Men's Softball World Cup

Welcome to this daily summary of the I WBSC U-23 Men's Softball World Cup, giving you the latest news and key updates on the inaugural edition of this men's softball event.

PARANA, Argentina – Japan marched into the World Championship Final, of the WBSC U-23 Men's Softball World Cup with an impressive 8-1 win over Australia on the second day of Super Round action on Friday. Jose Valdez also led Mexico to an important 1-0 win over Canada and Argentina beat New Zealand 8-1 leaving a three-way tie in second place.

Yoshinari Matsumoto laid down a strong foundation for offence, marking Japan's win over Australia with four RBIs, including a 2-of-3 hitting game and two runs. With a 4:0 win:loss record in the Super Round and with only one game left, the world No. 3 booked a spot int eh final.

Meanwhile, Player of the Day Valdez led Mexico to a crucial win over Canada. The right-handed pitcher only needed a single run from his teammates as he took care of the win with a complete game, allowing only four hits and three walks with five strikeouts.

Argentina's outstanding win over New Zealand in the last game of the day, established the triple tie with Australia and Mexico in second place. Argentina stars Alan Peker and Juan Cruz Garolini hammered home runs to lead the hosts in their fifth successive win.

It's all set up for an exciting final day of the Super Round on Saturday with five teams in medal contention and the second spot in the final still up for grabs..

In the Placement Round, Czechia claimed top spot with a 2-0 victory over Venezuela, move to 4:0. Israel recovered from their loss to Czechia with a 5-3 triumph on South Africa, while Singapore beat Team WBSC 11-0 to earn their first win in the tournament.

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Day 7 Games

· Venezuela 0-2 Czechia - Boxscore

· Israel 5-3 South Africa - Boxscore

· Canada 0-1 Mexico - Boxscore

· Singapore 11-0 Team WBSC - Boxscore

· Australia 1-8 Japan - Boxscore

· New Zealand 1-8 Argentina - Boxscore

Tournament Stats

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Softball fans around the world can watch all the action on GameTime. A tournament pass for $9.99 (US dollars) will give subscribers access to all 50 games of the tournament, while six-game daily passes will be available for $5.99 each day.

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Tournament Schedule

Tournament Bracket

Day 7 Results

Day 8 Schedule

Super Round and Placement Round Standings

Player of the Day

Live-stream via WBSC's GameTime.Sport

Social Media Highlights

Videos

WBSC U-23 Men’s Softball World Cup Day 7: Japan advance to World Championship Final; remaining five Super Round teams still in medal contention

Undefeated Japan made their way to the World Championship Final with a victory over Australia. Argentina, Australia, Mexico, Canada and New Zealand remain in medal contention with one day to go in the Super Round.

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Peker, Garolini home runs give Argentina 8-1 win against New Zealand to remain in contention

With the win, Argentina improved to 2-2 in the Super Round and remain in the hunt for a spot in the World Championship Final. They need a combination of results to join Japan in the final game.

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WBSC U-23 Men’s Softball World Cup Day 7: Japan advance to World Championship Final; remaining five Super Round teams still in medal contention

Yoshinari Matsumoto finished with 2-of-3 hitting and was accounted for two of Japan's eight runs. Taiga Onishi started for Japan and pitched four innings, giving up two hits and one run while striking out six. Yutaro Inoue pitched a perfect fifth inning to close the game.

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Ean Eu, Shun Cheoh home runs highlight Singapore's first tournament win against Team WBSC

Ean Eu grand slam and a Shun Cheoh three-run homer fuelled the Singaporean offence in their first tournament win. Jeron Tan struck out eight in four innings giving up three hits and a walk to earn the win in the circle.

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Jose Valdez blanks Canada as Mexico get key win in Super Round

The Mexican pitcher tossed a complete game, giving up four hits and three walks against five strikeouts.

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Leon, Hadar homers lift Israel past South Africa in Placement Round

Leon was also the winning pitcher for Israel. He struck out 11 in seven innings while giving up eight hits, four walks and two runs.

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Jakub Osicka’s one-hit shutout leads Czechia 2-0 win over Venezuela

The right-hander tallied 15 strikeouts and lowered his ERA to 1.84. Czechia are on top of the Placement Round standings with a 4-0 record, while Venezuela dropped to second with a 3-1 card.

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World Baseball Softball Confederation

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