Major League Olympians

Jinjiao Guo, deputy manager of the development company:  “It could only be guaranteed if there were enough activities to attract people to the venue. We absolutely could not accept any suggestion of (keeping the field) to be used only once or twice a year.”

The $29 million stadium not only played host to the Baseball tournament at the Olympics, but also to a two-game exhibition series between the San Diego Padres and the Los Angeles Dodgers in March 2008. The Chinese Baseball League also couldn’t afford to save the ballpark.

MLB spokesman Michael Marrone: “Obviously it’s a shame. You would prefer to have it kept as a relic of the Olympic Games and to help baseball culture to further develop here.”

NY Times: Beijing Games Venue Struck Out By Shopping Mall

“To be on the Olympic program is an issue where you need universality as much as possible. You need to have a sport with a following, you need to have the best players and you need to be in strict compliance with WADA (World Anti-Doping Agency). And these are the qualifications that have to be met.”

On the chances of Baseball and Softball to get reinstated in 2009 at the IOC congress: “We will consider the possibility for baseball to come back as softball also is considered next year in October. Baseball and softball will have to compete with five other sports. There is no hierarchy. That’s something that will be decided by our committee after reviewing all of the factors.”

Source: MLB.com

KOR 200 000 100  3 4 0
CUB 100 000 100  2 5 1

Box score

Korea took the gold medal at the Olympics in Beijing with a 3-2 win against Cuba in the final on Saturday. It was their ninth victory in the ninth game in China.

The game started with a bang, as Seung Yuop Lee hit a two-run homerun in the top of the first to bring Korea an early 2-0 lead. Cuba answered with a solo homerun by Michel Enriquez in the bottom of the frame to cut the deficit in a half. But everyone, who now expected a slugfest got disappointed.

Both pitching staffs took over and exchanged zeros till the seventh period, when the Korean team added an insurance run on a RBI double by Yong Kyu Lee. This run was pretty important, as Cuba countered with another solo shot, this time by Alexei Bell.

Cuba tried to rally in the ninth and loaded the bases with one out. But Yuliesky Gourriel grounded out to short for a game ending double play.

Hyun Jin Ryu (W 2-0) pitched the match of his career, allowing five hits, two runs and two walks in 8 1/3 innings. He struck out seven. Tae Hyon Chong (S 2) relieved him in the ninth and saved the victory for Korea. Norberto Gonzalez (L 0-1) gave up two hits, two runs and two base on balls in 5 2/3 innings to take the loss.

JPN 103 000 000  4 6 1
USA 013 040 00X  8 9 0

Box score

Recap on USA Baseball

Team USA won the bronze medal at the Baseball tournament in the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. They scored four runs in the fifth to defeat Japan 8-4. It was their second victory against the Asian team in a week.

Japan actually started and stronger and took a 1-0 and a 4-1 lead in the first and third innings on a solo homerun by Masahiro Araki and a three-run shot by Norichika Aoki. But the Americans countered with homeruns by themselves. Matt LaPorta’s solo shot tied the contest in the second and Matt Brown with a three-run homer in the third.

Two frames later they decided the outcome. Taylor Teagarden came through with a two-run double to put Team USA 5-3 in front. Jason Donald followed with a two-run homerun. Japan had a last chance in the ninth, when they put runners on second and third with two outs, but a groundout to first by Shinnosuke Abe ended the match and the Olympic Games for the two squads.

Oakland Athletics prospect Brett Anderson (W 1-0) pitched seven solid innings to pick up the win. He gave up four hits, four runs and three walks, while striking out six. Kevin Jepsen closed it out to seal the medal.

Tsuyoshi Wada (JPN) gave up three hits, four runs (3 ER) and three base on balls in 2 2/3 innings. Kenshin Kawakami (L 0-1) replaced him and took the loss. Yoshihisa Naruse (five k’s in two innings pitched) and Yu Darvish also appeared in the game.

Results, August 22:
Semi-Final 1: Korea – Japan 6-2 Recap
Semi-Final 2: Cuba – USA 10-2 Recap

Schedule:
10:30 Bronze Medal Game: USA – Japan
18:00 Gold Medal Game:  Korea – Cuba
Live-Play-by-Play

USA 000 110 000   2  6 2
CUB 002 101 06X  10 14 2

Box score

Recap on USA Baseball

In the end the powerful and experienced offense of Cuba was too strong for Team USA, winning the second semi-final 10-2 and joining Korea in the gold medal game on Saturday. It is the 50 straight final for Cuba at one of the five big international tournaments (Olympics, World Cups, Pan American Games, Intercontinental Cup and World Baseball Classic) in the past few decades. They now have won seven of the eight games played so far in Beijing and now meet with the lone opponent they couldn’t beat in the preliminary round. All is set for an interesting final.

However the score of 10-2 is quite misleading, as the game itself was close till the eighth inning. Cuba took an early 2-0 lead in the third, when Hector Olivera hit a RBI triple and scored on an error at the same play by second baseman Brian Barden.

Team USA cut the deficit to a run twice in the following through a sac fly by Matt Brown and a RBI single by Jason Donald. But Cuba regained the two-run advantage each time shortly after through homeruns by Alfredo Despaigne and Frederich Cepeda.

Still, the gap between the two rivals was not that big until Alexei Bell and Ariel Pestano hit three-run shots in the eighth against relievers Jeff Stevens and Blaine Neal to decide the outcome definitely. The Americans tried to rally a last time in the top of the ninth, putting runners on second and third with no outs, but Pedro Lazo recovered to close out the game with a flyout to second and two strikeouts.

Norge Luis Vera (W 2-0) started and allowed four hits, two runs (1 ER) and a walk in six innings. Lazo struck out four in three two-hit innings to finish the match for the save. Phenomenon Stephen Strasburg (L 1-1) struggled a bit in the most important start of his young career. He gave up three runs (2 ER) on six hits in four innings. He struck out five.

JPN 101 000 000  2  6 2
KOR 000 100 14X  6 10 1

Box score

Like in Athens 2004 the Japanese Olympic roster looked strong on paper, going into the Baseball tournament in Beijing. But like four years ago they will not win the elusive gold medal, as they now have to play for bronze on Saturday. Korea overcame an early 0-2 deficit to edge Japan 6-2 in semi-final one. It was their eighth win in the eighth game at the Olympics. They now have secured at least silver, facing Team USA or Cuba on Saturday in the gold medal game.

Japan started strong and took a 2-0 lead after three innings after a RBI fielder’s choice by Takahiro Arai in the first and a RBI single by Norichika Aoki in the third. But it was not enough. South Korea cut the deficit to a run in the fourth, when Yong Kyu Lee scored on a double play groundball by Seung Yuop Lee. They tied the contest on a Jin Young Lee RBI single in the seventh.

Korea decided the outcome in the eighth, when they scored four runs, including a two-run homerun by Seung Yuop Lee, which put them up in front. Japan managed just four singles in four seperate innings after the third and could not come back to avoid elimination.

Kwang Hyun Kim (W 1-0) allowed six hits, two runs (1ER) and two walks in eight innings. He struck out five. Toshiya Sugiuchi (JPN) started and gave up one run on three hits and two base on balls in 3 2/3 innings. Hitoki Iwase (L 0-3) took the loss for a third time at the Olympics.

In the early half final Korea is facing rival Japan. The preliminary round match ended with a Korean 5-3 victory, when they scored three runs in the ninth. They went on to win all seven games so far, including a 7-4 against Cuba. Japan struggled against the other two playoff participants too, though this doesn’t mean you can count out the two-time silver medalist.

In evening session we’ll see another chapter in the rivalry between Cuba and the USA. The Caribbean team won a nail biter in the first round in eleven innings and has to move past the Americans, if they want to defend Gold. It’s not going to be easy, as Team USA will send out Stephen Strasburg to the mound, who impressed all summer long.

Results, August 20:
Cuba – China 17-1 (7) Recap
Netherlands – Korea 0-10 (8) Recap
Canada – Taiwan 5-6 (12) Recap
Japan – USA 2-4 (11) Recap

Schedule, August 22:
10:30 Semi-Final 1: Korea – Japan
18:00 Semi-Final 2: Cuba – USA

JPN 001 100 1  3 5 0
USA 000 100 0  1 5 2

Box score

Japan upset Team USA in the finals of the Softball tournament at the Olympics in Beijing and won the gold medal through a 3-1 victory. Japan snapped a 22-game Olympic winning streak in the most important game in China. The American also didn’t win gold, since Softball is a medal competition at the Olympic Games.

After Team USA loaded the bases with one out in the first, Japan came through in the third frame to take the lead. Masumi Mishina led off with a double and scored moments later on a RBI single by Ayumi Karino. Eri Yamada made it 2-0 in the top of the fourth with a solo homerun. Crystl Bustos brought the USA on the board with a solo shot by herself in the bottom of the period.

They fought for their lives and tired to come back, loading the bases with one out once again in the sixth, but failed to bring in the tying run. Japan added another insurance run in the seventh on a RBI fielder’s choice by Motoko Fujimoto to seal the win.

Yukiko Ueno (W 5-1), who threw 21 innings on Wednesday and lost the semi-finals to the USA, started again for Japan and allowed just one run on five hits and two walks in another complete game win. She struck out four. Since the Olympics 2004 she had beaten the Americans four times. The win on Thursday was the fifth and most important one.

Cat Osterman (L 3-1) started strong, striking out five of the first six batters, but lost her rhythm in the third. She gave up two runs on three hits in five innings. She finished with nine strikeouts. Monica Abbot closed it out.

The game was hindered by rain, even causing a delay in the fourth inning.

Olympic baseball is history for Europe after Korea has beaten the Netherlands 10-0 in the last round-robin game of the China Games of 2008. The England Games of 2012 will be played without baseball, although at the same time neighboring Netherlands will celebrate its first century of federation baseball, founded in 1912. The Netherlands will participate in the second World Baseball Classic in spring 2009 and in World Cup tournament in fall 2009. At both occasions more pro players will be available for the Netherlands to reach better results than in present Olympic Games. Without defender Hainley Statia (disabled) and offenders Roger Bernadina and Gregory Halman, manager Robert Eenhoorn saw his national team finish seventh in the final eight teams ranking by only beating hosting China 6-4.

The other six games were lost by the Netherlands, including five shutouts: the first three and the last two games. This year the Netherlands pitchers were insufficiently supported by their teammates in the box and had to give up their mound performances earlier in the games than expected. In the 26 innings of their first three shutout games the Dutch batters produced just nine hits, including two doubles. The sudden resurrection of the hitting power lasted just two games versus China and Cuba, conceding eleven and ten hits including five homeruns. The key game number six versus Canada was lost due to shutout number four and once out of competition for playoffs, also the last game was lost scoreless with the second ten-run rule eight innings. The first eight innings game was lost versus Team USA, due to an improvised ruling for rain despite a no-outs bases loaded situation in the ninth inning.

Four out of five homeruns hit by the Netherlands during the tournament came from the bats of regular Hoofdklasse players, who will continue their national major league games on Thursday August 28. A three-run homerun was hit by Sidney de Jong (Pirates Amsterdam) and solo homeruns were signed by Percey Isenia (Sparta/Feyenoord Rotterdam) and twice by Bryan Engelhardt (Kinheim Haarlem). The only homerun by a pro player was produced by Sharnol Adriana, Triple A player in Mexico. Adriana in his seven games also delivered a double and two singles and he stole a base for the Netherlands. The other batter on loan from Minor League Baseball, Yurendell de Caster, singled twice and doubled twice during his absence for the Washington Nationals Triple A farm team in Columbus.

Deeply missed in the Netherlands selection was the Columbus Clipper Roger Bernadina, who often hit and stole for his national team in last year’s European Cup and World Cup tournaments before he debuted in Major League Baseball in June 2008. When he was requested to join Eenhoorn’s team in the Beijing Olympics, Bernadina preferred to remain available for the Washington Nationals, even if he was actually playing at the Triple A level in Columbus. Eenhoorn has also in vain been after Dutch talents like sluggers Wladimir Balentien and Gregory Halman and pitcher Rick van den Hurk, but all of them are considered too strategic for their Major League clubs, blocking their flights to the Olympic Games. In fact Dutch players individually succeeding in American pro ball caused the disappointing results of the Dutch national team in the first international tournament since finishing fourth in Intercontinental Cup and World Cup in Taiwan and first in European Cup in Barcelona.

Without Barcelona and Taiwan heroes Halman, Statia and Bernadina the Netherlands were struck out 60 times in 60 Olympic innings, during which the batters produced only 36 hits, varying from one hit versus USA to ten versus Cuba and eleven versus China. Remarkable are the two bases stolen by Dutch runners: only Sharnol Adriana versus Japan and Danny Rombley versus Taiwan attempted successfully. Because of early trailing in the games, the bullpen had to rescue the Netherlands mound earlier than expected.

As out of ten pitchers in Beijing only three were experienced relievers (Michiel van Kampen, Dave Draijer and Pim Walsma), Eenhoorn had to call regular starters as occasional relievers to substitute Shairon Martis twice, Alexander Smit twice, David Bergman once, Leon Boyd once and debutant Juan-Carlos Sulbaran once. Usual starting pitchers appearing as rare reliever were best Hoofdklasse pitcher Rob Cordemans three times, Diegomar Markwell three times, David Bergman once and Leon Boyd once. Most innings were played by Minor League pitchers Shairon Martis and Alexander Smit (10 2/3 in two games) and Hoofdklasse pitcher Rob Cordemans with eight innings in three games. The only save was for closer Michiel van Kampen with his two final outs in the game versus China.

Next rendezvous of international baseball is the 2009 World Baseball Classic, where Major League players can join freely their national teams. Robert Eenhoorn as last time national team manager is looking forward to welcome this category’s pitchers Jair Jurrjens (Atlanta Braves), Sidney Ponson (New York Yankees) and Rick van den Hurk (Florida Marlins) and sluggers Wladimir Balentien and Gregory Halman (Seattle Mariners), Roger Bernadina (Washington Nationals) and excellent defender Hainley Statia (Los Angeles Angels) as regular additions for the optima forma representation of Netherlands baseball on this real top event of worldwide tournaments. After World Baseball Classic Two Robert Eenhoorn, 41 by then, will be relieved as national team manager in order to take the position of KNBSB Technical Director of baseball.

Netherlands at Olympics:
Taiwan – Netherlands 5-0 Recap
Netherlands – USA 0-7 (8) Recap
Japan – Netherlands 6-0 Recap
China – Netherlands 4-6 Recap
Netherlands – Cuba 3-14 (8) Recap
Netherlands – Canada 0-4 Recap
Netherlands – Korea 0-10 (8) Recap

Pim van Nes
Baseball writer for
www.honkbalsite.com
www.sporttribune.nl
www.baseball.it

USA 000 000 000 04  4 5 0
JPN 000 000 000 02  2 5 0

Box score
Recap on USA Baseball

After both teams put zeros on the board for the first ten innings, Team USA took full advantage of the IBAF tiebreaker rule in the eleventh to defeat Japan 4-2. The USA now takes on Cuba on Friday in the semis, with Japan battling Korea in the other.

Both pitching staffs were locked into a duel nearly over the whole game and only the new rule, which puts runners at first and second at the start of each frame following the tenth, ended the scoring drought.  Brian Barden, Nate Schierholtz and Matt Brown produced consecutive RBI singles to put three runs on the board. A RBI groundout by John Gall led to another run.

Japan cut the deficit to two runs in the bottom of the frame through two-out RBI singles by Atsunori Inaba and Hiroyuki Nakajima. But after a wild pitch and a walk, Casey Weathers (S 1) recovered and finished the win with a flyout to first.

Both teams rotated on the mound, giving some pitchers work. The Americans started with Trevor Cahill (USA), who went three innings, allowing just one walk. Yu Darvish (JPN) struck out three in two perfect periods, opposing him. Jeff Stevens (W 1-2) picked up the win for two innings of relief. Hitoki Iwase (L 0-2) took the loss.

TPE 140 000 000 001  6 10 2
CAN 210 100 100 000  5 10 3

Box score
Recap on Baseball.ca

Taiwan concluded the preliminary round with a 6-5 victory over Canada. They finish in fifth and sixth in the tournament with 2-5 records.

Chinese Taipei scored the winning run in the top of the twelfth on Chih-Hsien Chiang’s RBI single, after both teams couldn’t profit from the IBAF tiebreaker rule in the eleventh, when each squad loaded the bases with one out, but failed to get a runner in.

Taiwan also had the better start into the match, scoring five runs in the first two periods to take a 5-3 lead. Che-Hsuan Lin and Chih-Sheng Lin hit homeruns. But Canada came back and tied the contest in the seventh through Stubby Clapp’s solo shot to force extra innings.

Wei-Yin Chen (KOR) allowed seven hits and four runs (3 ER) in 3 1/3 innings. Chih-Chia Chang (W 1-0) picked up the win, after Fu-Te Ni had dominated over five innings of relief, striking out six. Mike Johnson (CAN) started for Canada and gave up six hits, five runs (4 ER) and two base on balls in 3 1/3 innings. Chris Reitsma (L 0-2) took the loss.

USA 000 000 004  4 6 0
JPN 000 000 001  1 3 0

Box score
Recap on USA Softball

In the first semi-final at the Softball tournament in Beijing Team USA defeated Japan 4-1 in nine innings to reach the Gold Medal Game on Thursday. Japan had to go to the Bronze Medal Game in Wednesday afternoon to clinch a berth too.

Both teams exchanged zeros for the first eight innings, before Caitlin Lowe singled home Natasha Watley in the top of the ninth to break up the scoreless tie. After a walk to Jessica Mendoza, Crystl Bustos widened the gap with a three-run homerun. Japan cut the deficit in the bottom of the frame through a RBI single by Sachiko Ito, but could not rally for more.

Each team had to start the eighth and ninth inning with runners on second due to the ISF international tiebreaker rule. Neither squad was able to bring a run home in the eighth.

Monica Abbott (W 3-0) allowed one unearned run on three hits and a walk in eight-plus innings. She struck out eleven to pick up win number three. Cat Osterman closed it out in the ninth. Yukiko Ueno (L 3-1) gave up six hits, four runs (3 ER) and two base on balls in nine innings, while striking out eight.

Semi-Final 2: Canada – Australia 3-5

AUS 011 102 0  5 5 2
CAN 003 000 0  3 4 2

Box score

Australia reached the Bronze Medal Game on Wednesday afternoon due to a 5-3 win against Canada in semi-final two. Kerry Wyborn had the decisive hit with a two-run single in the top of the sixth to bring Australia a 5-3 lead. Danielle Stewart had tied the match with a solo shot in the fourth.

The Aussies also had the better start into the contest, scoring twice till midway through the third on a homerun and sac fly, both induced by Sandy Lewis.  But Canada came back, rallying for three runs in the bottom of third. A bases loaded walk by Megan Timpf forced home the first run. Alison Bradley followed with a two-run single to put the maple leafs in front. But it was not enough.

Melanie Roche (AUS) pitched 2 2/3 innings before losing the strike zone. She allowed two hits, three runs and three walks. Tanya Harding (W 2-1) replaced her and picked up the win for 4 1/3 innings of relief. Lauren Regula Bay (L 2-3) gave up five hits, five runs (4 ER) and five bb in seven innings. She struck out nine.

Bronze Medal Game: Japan – Australia 4-3 (12)

AUS 100 000 100 010  3  7 2
JPN 000 200 000 011  4 11 1

Box score

After twelve thrilling innings Japan joined Team USA in the finals by winning the Bronze Medal Game on Wednesday afternoon. Rei Nishiyama decided the match with a RBI single in the bottom of the twelfth to lead Japan to a 4-3 win against Australia.

It was an impressive performance from both teams, as this was already their second game of the day, after playing the semi-finals in the morning. Japan had taken a 2-1 lead in the bottom of the fourth on a two-run shot by Megu Hirose. However Kerry Wyborn forced extra innings with her two-out homerun in the top of the seventh.

Both teams couldn’t score till the eleventh frame, despite starting each period in overtime with runners on second due to the ISF tiebreaker rule. The Aussies broke the 2-2 tie through Natalie Ward’s RBI single. But Japan came right back, answering with a RBI single by Satoko Mabuchi, setting the stage for the final in the twelfth. They loaded the bases with one out and Nishiyama came through to end a long day for the Asian team.

Yukiko Ueno (W 4-1) probably needs to ice her arm for a couple of days after going the distance for a second time on Wednesday. She allowed seven hits, three runs (2 ER) and two walks in twelve innings, while striking out seven. She already went nine innings against Team USA in the morning bringing her total to 21 for the day.

Justin Smethurst (AUS) started for Australia and gave up two runs on five hits in five innings. Tanya Harding (L 2-2) relieved in the bottom of the sixth, allowing six hits, two unearned runs and three bb in 6 1/3 innings of relief. She also appeared for the second time this day, after going 4 1/3 innings against Canada.

Schedule:
Thursday, August 21:
18:30 Final: USA – Japan

KOR 200 042 02  10 16 1
NED 000 000 00   0  4 1

Box score

South Korea completed the preliminary round with a perfect 7-0 record after shutting out the Netherlands on Wednesday 10-0 in eight innings. The European team is going to finish 1-6.

Dae Ho Lee, who went two-for-five with three RBI, opened the match with a two-run homerun and his offense continued to score till the end. Hyun Soo Kim also drove in three. Yong Kyu Lee had four hits in four at bats. Take Keun Lee hit a solo homerun.

Eugene Kingsale, Raily Legito, Bryan Engelhardt and Martijn Meeuwis had the lone hits for the Dutch, all singles.

Won Sam Jang (W 1-0) dominated in a complete game shutout. He allowed just four hits in eight innings, striking out seven. Cincinnati Reds prospect Alex Smit (L 0-2) started for the second time at the tournament, giving up eight hits, six runs and a walk in five innings. He struck out six. Rob Cordemans and Michiel Van Kampen also appeared on the mound for Holland.

CHN 000 000 1   1  2 1
CUB 091 412 X  17 20 0

Box score

At the end of the preliminary round Cuba crushed Chinese pitching in a 17-1 slugfest, highlighted by a nine-run second inning. Nonetheless the Caribbeans will finish in second place and is going to face the winner of the USA-Japan matchup in the semi-finals.

Giorbis Duvergel (grand slam, 4 RBI), Ariel Pestano (2 RBI) and Michel Enriquez (4-4, 3 RBI) hit homeruns. Alexei Bell went three-for-three with two runs scored and two RBI. Alfredo Despaigne also drove in two.

Lei Li brought Delong Jia home in the ninth with a groundout to shortstop for the lone Chinese run of the game after Jia had reached with a triple.

Elier Sanchez started for Cuba, which used four pitchers in the game. He threw two perfect innings. Jonder Martinez (W 2-0) replaced him in the top of the third and picked up the win. Adiel Palma and Miguel La Hera completed the two-hitter.

Tao Bu (L 0-2) gave up eight Runs (7 ER) on eight hits in 1 1/3 innings to take the loss.

Today Japan and the USA followed Cuba and Korea into the playoffs with wins against China and Taiwan. Korea nearly clinched first place in the standings, after beating Cuba in a duel between undefeated teams. Each will play a 1-5 squads with China and the Netherlands on Thursday and anything others than wins for the two favorites would be a surprise.

So with the top two seeds set, the game between Japan and Team USA is going to be interesting for the fact that the winner could be the possible loser, as he faces Cuba in the semis on Friday. But with the performance by Korea these days it is not a given that this would be the easier matchup.

Results:
August 18:
Canada – Japan 0-1 Recap
Taiwan – Korea 8-9 Recap
Netherlands – Cuba 3-14 (8) Recap
USA – China 9-1 Recap
August 19:
Netherlands – Canada 0-4 Recap
Korea – Cuba 7-4 Recap
Japan – China 10-0 (7) Recap
USA – Taiwan 4-2 Recap

Schedule:
10:30 Cuba – China
11:30 Netherlands – Korea
18:00 Canada – Taiwan
19:00 Japan – USA

Standings:

1. Korea 6-0
2. Cuba 5-1
3. Japan 4-2
4. USA 4-2
5. Canada 2-4
6. China 1-5
7. Netherlands 1-5
8. Taiwan 1-5

TPE 000 010 100  2  5 0
USA 000 012 01X  4 10 2

Box score
Recap on USA Baseball

Team USA followed Cuba, Korea and Japan into the semi-finals with a 4-2 win against Taiwan on Tuesday. The last day of the preliminary round on Wednesday will decide the matchups.

Both teams started with zeros on the board in the first four frames till Chinese Taipei scored first in the fifth, when Chih-Sheng Lin reached with a double, advanced to third on a sac bunt and scored on an error by first baseman Matt Brown. But the Americans came right back tying the game through a RBI double by Brian Barden in the bottom of the same period.

One inning later John Gall led off with a solo shot to put his team up in front. Dexter Fowler doubled in another run three batters later to make it 3-1. Fowler went three-for-three with a walk in the game and missed the cycle by a homerun.

Taiwan cut the deficit to a run in the top of the seventh on Lin’s solo homerun. But a RBI single in the eighth by Jason Donald brought in an insurance run to seal victory number four for Team USA.

Brandon Knight (W 1-0) allowed two runs on five hits and two walks in 6 1/3 innings, striking out five. Michael Koplove and Kevin Jepsen (S 1) relieved him to shut down the opposing offense with eight consecutive outs to finish the match. Wen-Hsiung Hsu (L 0-1) was responsible for seven hits, three runs and four base on balls in five-plus innings to take the loss. He struck out six.

CHN 000 000 0   0  2 0
JPN 031 006 X  10 10 0

Box score

Japan beat China 10-0 on Tuesday to get win number four and the ticket for the semi-finals on Friday. They took the lead through three runs in the second and blew the score wide open with a six-run sixth to seal the victory due to ten-run rule in seven innings.

Tsuyoshi Nishioka went three-for-three with a homerun and three RBI. Hiroyuki Nakajima and Atsunori Inaba each drove in two. Masahiro Araki and Akihiro Yano scored twice.

Japan also received a brilliant performance by starter Hideaki Wakui (W 2-0), who allowed just two hits in a complete game shutout, striking out six. Nan Wang (L 0-1) gave up three hits, four runs and three walks in two-plus innings to take the loss.

CAN 001 200 010  4 7 1
NED 000 000 000  0 2 1

Box score
Recap on Baseball.ca

Brooks McNiven (W 1-0) allowed just one hit in six innings to lead Canada to a 4-0 shutout over the Netherlands. Two base runners were on, but both were erased due to double plays in the first and sixth. A single by Roel Koolen denied the no-no bid by McNiven in the sixth.

The maple leafs took the lead in the third on a RBI groundout by Matt Rogelstad. One frame later they added two more runs through a RBI triple by Emerson Frostad and a following sac fly by Brett Lawrie. Jimmy Van Ostrand made it 4-0 with a RBI single in the eighth.

Besides the Koolen single and Michael Duursma, who had reached on an error by third baseman Rogelstad in the first, Holland only had two more base runners in the game. Bryan Engelhardt worked a walk in the eighth, but was also eliminated through a double play. Percy Isenia led off the ninth with a single, but stayed there, as the next three batters all went down on strikes against closer Tim Burton.

Shairon Martis (L 0-2) gave up  four hits, three runs and three base on balls in six innings. He struck out five. Diegomar Markwell allowed one more run on three hits and a walk in three innings of relief.

CUB 030 000 010  4 7 2
KOR 000 501 10X  7 9 0

Box score

In a duel between undefeated teams South Korea overcame a 0-3 deficit and stunned Cuba with a 7-4 victory to move into lone position of first place with a 6-0 record.

The three-time Gold winner Cuba took a 3-0 lead in the second on a two-run double by Ariel Pestano and a RBI single by Giorbis Duvergel. But Korea came back. They rallied for five runs in the fourth on three hits and a throwing error by pitcher Norberto Gonzalez to go in front. Young Min Ko evened the score with a two-run single. The following error led to two more runs.

They added insurance runs in the sixth and seventh on RBI singles to seal the win. Frederich Cepeda drove in another Cuban run with a single in the eighth. But it was too little too late.

Seung Jun Song (W 1-0) allowed five hits, three runs and four base on balls in 6 1/3 innings to pick up the win. Norge Luis Vera (CUB) started and allowed just one walk in two innings. Vicyohandry Odelin (L 1-1) took over in the third and took the loss.

CUB 100 054 04  14 16 0
NED 011 000 10   3 10 2

Box score

After four innings, the Netherlands led 2-1 against Cuba and everybody remembered the upset at the Baseball World Cup last November. But in the end the Caribbean Baseball heavyweight crushed the lone European participant 14-3. Cuba decided the outcome by scoring five times in the fifth, four in the sixth and four in the eighth to win due to ten-run rule.

The Dutch overcame an early 0-1 deficit through a solo homerun by Bryan Engelhardt and a RBI double by  Yurendell De Caster to take a 2-1 lead in the third. But the possible surprise win didn’t last long, as Cuba loaded the bases in the fifth and took advantage of it, putting a five-run spot on the board, highlighted by a two-run triple by Alexei Bell.

Bell finished with four hits, two runs scored and three RBI. Alfredo Despaigne also had three RBI. Michel Enriquez scored thrice. Percy Isenia hit a second homerun for Holland in the seventh.

Yadier Pedroso (CUB) started and allowed two runs on six hits in three innings. Yonder Martinez (W 1-0) replaced him and picked up the win with six strikeouts in four innings of relief. Juan Carlos Sulbaran (L 0-1) gave up four hits, five runs (2 ER) and three base on balls in 4 2/3 innings. He struck out six. David Bergman, Dave Draijer and Pim Walsma also appeared in the game.

CHN 000 000 001  1 4 1
USA 100 031 40X  9 9 0

Box score
Recap on USA Baseball

Team USA solidified their position in the standings with a 9-1 victory against host China. They took a fast lead, when leadoff hitter Brian Barden moved to third after a single and an error by right fielder Fei Feng and scored on a RBI single by Nate Schierholtz. Three scoreless innings followed before the Americans put the game away by scoring eight runs between the fifth and seventh inning. China scored their lone run in the ninth, when Yang Yang homered with one out against reliever Blaine Neal.

Schierholtz drove in a total of three runs and scored two times after going two-for-three with a walk. Barden also scored twice. Taylor Teagarden drove in two.

Jake Arrieta (W 1-0) allowed just two hits and two walks in six scoreless innings. He struck out seven. Chenhao Li (L 0-1) gave up four hits, two runs and three bb in 4 2/3 innings.

TPE 100 000 1  2 8 1
NED 022 000 X  4 6 2

Box score
Recap on Official Team Website

On the last day of the preliminary round at the Olympics in Beijing the Dutch Women Softball Team finally won a game. They scored two runs each in the second and third period en route to a 4-2 victory against Taiwan.

Chinese Taipei had opened the match with a 1-0 lead after a RBI single by Hsueh-Mei Lu in the first frame. But the Netherlands came back moments later. They loaded the bases in the second and Noemi Boekel came through with a RBI single to plate the tying run. Marjan Smit brought a one-run lead with a sac fly one batter later.

In the third Sandra Gouverneur added two more runs with a two-run single to make it 4-1. Taiwan tried to rally in the seventh, but only got one run in on a Hui-Chan Chiang sac fly, leaving the bases loaded to end the threat.

Rebecca Soumeru (NED) started and allowed one run on four hits and a walk in 1 2/3 innings. Judith Van Kampen (W 1-2) replaced her and picked up the win. Kristie De Vries closed it out. Sheng-Jung Lai (L 0-3) gave up two hits, two runs (1 ER) and a base on balls in 1 2/3 innings.

USA – China 9-0 (5)

CHN 000 00  0 1 1
USA 900 0X  9 9 0

Box score

Recap on USA Softball

Team USA shut out another opponent on Monday to conclude the preliminary round with a perfect 7-0 record, winning 9-0 against China. They scored nine runs in the first on their way to the victory. Kelly Kretschman set the highlight with a three-run shot. Tairia Flowers drove in two. Natasha Watley scored twice.

Cat Osterman (W 3-0) started and allowed just one hit and a walk in three scoreless innings. Jennie Finch relieved her with two perfect innings. Each struck out three. Wei Lu (L 0-3) gave up three hits, six runs and two bb in 2/3 of an inning to take the loss.

Canada – Japan 0-6

JPN 022 002 0  6 9 0
CAN 000 000 0  0 4 3

Box score

Japan finished in second place after the first round with a 6-0 victory against Canada, which dropped to fourth, but clinched a berth in semi-finals too.

Japan scored two runs apiece in the second, third and seventh frame. Rei Nishiyama and Motoko Fujimoto combined to drive in four runs. Megu Hirose and Masumi Mishina each scored two runs.

Yukiko Ueno (W 3-0) allowed just three hits in six innings to pick up the win. Lauren Regula Bay (L 2-2) gave up three hits, three runs (1 ER) and four bb in 2 1/3 innings.

Venezuela – Australia 2-9

AUS 410 40  9 8 0
VEN 000 02  2 1 0

Box score

Australia clinched third place in the standings by beating Venezuela 9-2. They scored five runs in the first two frames and added four more in the fourth to finalize the win in five innings. The South Americans tried to avoid the early ending by rallying for two runs in the fifth, but lost anyway.

Danielle Stewart hit a three-run homerun. Natalie Ward and Tracey Mosley each drove in two. Stacey Porter scored three times.

Justine Smethurst (AUS) started with two perfect innings, before Kelly Hardie (W 2-0) came in and closed the game out for the win. Hardie allowed one hit, two runs and two walks in three innings. Mariangee Bogado (L 2-3) was hit hard with five runs on four hits and six bb in 1 1/3 innings.

The Softball Tournament at the Olympic Games in Beijing is off on Tuesday and continues on Wednesday with the semi-finals. Team USA is playing second-ranked Japan in semi-final one. The winner advances directly into the final. The loser is playing the winner of semi-final two to determine the bronze medal and the second finalist. This game is going to be played on Wednesday too. The gold medal game is scheduled for Thursday, August 21 at 18:30.

Schedule:
Wednesday, August 20:
09:30 Semi-Final 1: USA – Japan
12:00 Semi-Final 2: Australia – Canada
17:00 Bronze Medal Game: Loser Semi-Final 1 vs. Winner Semi-Final 2
Thursday, August 21:
18:30 Gold Medal Game

Final Standings Preliminary Round:

1. USA 7-0
2. Japan 6-1
3. Australia 5-2
4. Canada 3-4
5. Taiwan 2-5
6. China 2-5
7. Venezuela 2-5
8. Netherlands 1-6

KOR 710 000 100  9 16 2
TPE 020 042 000  8 12 2

Box score

South Korea survived a big scare on Monday at the Olympics. They scored seven runs in the first inning and led 8-0 midway through the second, but needed a RBI single by Min Ho Kang in the seventh to win 9-8 against Taiwan.

Highlighted by a three-run homerun by Young Min Ko the Korean team scored seven runs on five hits in the first. But Chinese Taipei was not shocked for a long time. They cut the deficit to two runs till the fifth and evened the score a frame later on Cheng-Min Peng’s two-run double. But it was not enough, as Korea regained the lead on Kang’s hit in the seventh.

Taiwan tried to come back for a second time in the bottom of the seventh, when Chih-Sheng Lin reached with a leadoff double and pinch runner Yen-Wen Kuo stole third. However the next three batters went down on strikes and Korea stayed in front. They even had the chance to add a few insurance runs, but left three men on in the eighth.

Jung Keun Bong (KOR) allowed nine hits, six runs (5 ER) and three walks in 4 1/3 innings. Chien-Fu Yang (TPE) was charged with five hits, seven runs (4 ER) and a base on balls in one inning of work. Ki Joo Han (W 1-0) blew the lead in the sixth, but picked up the win anyway. Fu-Te Ni (L 0-2) took the loss.

JPN 000 010 000  1 5 0
CAN 000 000 000  0 2 2

Box score
Recap on Baseball.ca

Japan picked up win number three with a 1-0 shutout against Canada. Atsunori Inaba’s solo homerun in the fifth was all they needed to beat the maple leafs. The North Americans dropped to 1-4 after another close game. However their offense was non-existent on Monday with Emmanuel Garcia and Mike Saunders accounting for the only hits.

Yoshihisa Naruse (W 1-0) gave up just two hits in seven brilliant innings. He struck out ten. Kyuji Fujikawa and Koji Uehara (S 1) completed the two-hitter with two perfect innings in relief. Chris Begg (L 1-1) gave up one run on four hits in 5 1/3 innings.

In third and fourth are the USA and Japan with two wins each. The other four teams China, Netherlands, Canada and Taiwan all are tied for fifth with one victory each. They still have chances to move into the top four with three remaining preliminary round games.

Results:
August 16:
USA – Canada 5-4 Recap
Cuba – Taiwan 1-0 Recap
China – Netherlands 4-6 Recap
Japan – Korea 3-5 Recap
August 17:
Korea – China 1-0 (11) Recap

Schedule:
August 18:
10:30 Canada – Japan
11:30 Taiwan – Korea
18:00 Netherlands – Cuba
19:00 USA – China
Complete Schedule, incl. live scoring

Standings:
Cuba 4-0
Korea 4-0
USA 2-2
Japan 2-2
Canada 1-3
China 1-3
Netherlands 1-3
Taiwan 1-3

TPE 100 100 0  2 6 1
CHN 010 000 0  1 5 1

Box score

In the Baseball tournament at the Olympics, China upset Taiwan. In Softball Chinese Taipei avoided a loss, winning 2-1. Hsueh-Mei Lu drove in the go-ahead run in the fourth with a RBI double, regaining the lead for Taiwan, after China had tied the contest in the second on Li Sun’s RBI single. Hui-Chuan Chiang drove in the first run in the first with a RBI single.

Chia-Yen Wu (TPE) allowed one run on four hits in 2 1/3 innings. Ming-Hui Chueh (W 1-0) relieved her and picked up the win for 4 2/3 innings of one-hit relief. Huili Yu (L 1-2) gave up five hits and two runs (1 ER) in four innings.

Japan – Venezuela 5-2

VEN 001 100 0  2 7 0
JPN 000 140 X  5 9 0

Box score

Japan used a four-run fifth to beat Venezuela 5-2, overcoming a 0-2 deficit in the process. Satoko Mabuchi and Eri Yamada (2 RBI) hit homeruns. Maria Soto and Zuleyma Cirimele put Venezuela in front with a RBI single and RBI double in the third and fourth period of the match.

Hiroko Saito (W 3-0) picked up win number three with another complete game. She allowed two runs on seven hits, striking out six and walking none. Johana Gomez (VEN) started and gave up four hits and a run in four innings. Mariangee Bogado (L 2-2) took the loss.

Canada – Australia 0-4

AUS 000 001 3  4 4 0
CAN 000 000 0  0 3 0

Box score

Australia beat Canada 4-0 on Sunday for their fourth straight win. They are now 4-2, moving into third place in the standings with one game day remaining in the preliminary round. Canada dropped their third game in a row, falling to fourth.

After five scoreless innings to start the match, Australia came through in the sixth, when Natalie Ward drove in Stacy Porter with a RBI single. They added three more runs in the seventh to seal the win. Natalie Titcume and Kerry Wyborn had RBI singles in the rally.

The Canadian offense never got anything going, moving a runner into scoring position just once, when Megan Timpf advanced to second on a sac bunt by Alison Bradley in the second frame, but Erin Cumpstone lined out into left field.

Tanya Harding (W 2-1) allowed just three hits and a walk in five innings, striking out one. Lauren Bay Regula (L 2-1) gave up two hits, three runs and six walks in six-plus innings to take the loss. She struck out six.

USA – Netherlands 8-0

NED 000 00  0  0 1
USA 123 2X  8 13 0

Box score

Recap on Official Team Website Netherlands

Monica Abbot (W 2-0) excelled again and pitched five perfect innings in an 8-0 shutout against the winless Netherlands. Team USA scored runs in all of the first four innings to support their superior starter. Abbot struck out nine to pick up win number two. USA pitching now has allowed four hits in six games at the Olympics.

Jessica Mendoza, Crystl Bustos (3-3, 2 runs) and Tairia Flowers each hit homeruns.

Rebecca Soumeru (L 0-1) got her first start in Beijing, allowing eight hits and six runs (5 ER) in two-plus innings. Judith Van Kampen replaced her in the third and could not stop the American offense either.

Schedule Monday, August 18:
09:30 Netherlands – Taiwan
12:00 USA – China
17:00 Canada – Japan
19:30 Venezuela – Australia
Complete Schedule, incl. live scoring

Standings:
USA 6-0
Japan 5-1
Australia 4-2
Canada 3-3
China 2-4
Venezuela 2-4
Netherlands 0-6

He has been a long time favorite for manager Robert Eenhoorn, who always reserves an airplane and a dug-out seat for the now 38 years old first base man of Rojos de Aguila in Vera Cruz (Mexican Triple A). Sharnol Adriana compensates his national team boss also in the Olympic Games, where the first three games got lost without any run scored by the Netherlands.

In game one versus Taiwan (5-0) Adriana hits the first Dutch single in a four-hitter, in game two versus USA (7-0) he produces the only hit off strong Stephen Strasburg, in game three versus Japan (6-0) he is the first Dutch player to reach base and finally in game four Adriana breaks the fourth base ban with the team’s first hit versus China being a homerun for the first Dutch run in 30 Olympic innings.

Finally his good example is followed by younger players from amateur baseball league Hoofdklasse in the Netherlands. The first Dutch run in the fourth inning was only to tie the score 1-1, as the Netherlands again were trailing 1-0 versus home playing China. Amsterdam Pirates catcher Sidney de Jong homered with two on in the fifth inning and he was backed by Kinheim Haarlem outfielder Bryan Engelhardt with a solo homerun.

Next to the three homeruns, the Netherlands offense also delivered three doubles thanks to Danny Rombley, Michael Duursma and again Sharnol Adriana. The latter’s homerun was the first batted in, the other five in the 6-4 victory were batted in by De Jong (3), De Caster (1) and Engelhardt (1).

Winning pitcher Leon Boyd worked during six innings, striking out and conceding two earned runs off six hits. Rob Cordemans as middle reliever struck out four in 2 1/3 innings conceding two earned runs and the game was saved for the Netherlands by David Bergman with one hit and no run in 2/3 inning.

Before Adriana’s homerun the Olympic tournament for the Europeans looked very disappointing, by not only trailing and losing three and a half games, but especially by an extensive low production at bat, which started already in the Haarlem Honkbal Week with players from national Hoofdklasse clubs only. With the help from pro players on loan from American Minor Leagues a good reinforcement was expected, but also during preparatory games in Korea and China batting averages remained low, except the 8-3 win in the last game versus Canada.

The very same Canada belongs to the last three opponents for the Netherlands. Unless plans have changed, on Tuesday Leon Boyd (1-0) is scheduled to be starting pitcher for his mother’s country in the key game versus his father’s country Canada. Since the first Dutch win in game four, Eenhoorn’s selection is one of four national teams each one game behind two playoff positions: Netherlands, Taiwan, Canada and China have one victory each, one less than Japan and USA and three less than unbeaten Cuba and Korea on present standings after four games all.

A small advantage for the Netherlands in the last three games of the round robin is that the other two opponents unofficially are certain of a playoff position. On Monday the Netherlands will face Cuba and on Wednesday Korea. In last year’s World Cup tournament the Netherlands upset all playoff previews by beating Cuba in the last round robin game, although all earlier games had been won by the multi champions. This year again the mainly amateurs squad from the smallest participating country needs another miracle, but the door to the playoffs is still open thanks to Adriana’s eyes, arms and inspiration.

Pim van Nes
Baseball writer for
www.honkbalsite.com
www.sporttribune.nl
www.baseball.it

CHN 000 000 000 00  0 4 2
KOR 000 000 000 01  1 7 0

Box score

On Sunday South Korea and China completed the suspended game from Thursday. Seung Yuop Lee singled in the winning run in the bottom of the eleventh to lead Korea to a 1-0 win against China. It was the third match at the Olympics, which was decided by the new IBAF tiebreaker rule.

After ten scoreless innings didn’t decided the outcome both teams had to put runners at first and second with no outs in the eleventh. China advanced the runners into scoring position through a groundout, but failed to score, when Lingfeng Sun didn’t get back to third in time on a flyout to center field to end the half inning with a double play. South Korea didn’t mess around in the bottom of the frame, moving the runners with a sac bunt and Lee followed with a single to seal the win.

Seung Jun Song (KOR) started last Thursday and allowed just two hits and a walk in six dominant innings, striking out nine. Won Sam Jang came in on Sunday at the start of the seventh innings and struck out four in 4 1/3 two-hit innings. Seung Hwan Oh (W 1-0) picked up the win.

Chenhao Li (CHN) gave up three hits and a walk in 5 1/3 innings in the first part. Tao Bu pitched for 3 2/3 innings on Sunday, before Jiangang Lv (L 1-1) took the loss.

Momentum Builds for Campaign as Softball Makes Its Mark On and Off the Field at Olympics

VIP visits, competitive games, strong attendance, more at sport’s marquee event

BackSoftball, the global campaign to get women’s fast pitch softball reinstated to the Olympic Games, is being strengthened by a strong showing at the quadrennial competition currently taking place here, in Fengtai Softball Field.

International Softball Federation President Don Porter, who along with ISF BackSoftball Task Force Co-Chairs Donna de Varona and Dale McMann, are supporting the campaign efforts with various activities and meetings in the Chinese capital, had high praise for the first five-plus days at the softball venue.

“I’m elated at what has been taking place at our venue,” the ISF president said.  “We have had IOC Members out here to see our games, as well as representatives from National Olympic Committees and some sports ministers.  And the competition they’re seeing on the field has certainly been exciting and representative of the increased level of play that has been developed at this level.

(left to right) IOC Member Melitón Sánchez Rivas, ISF President Don Porter, IOC Member Mario Vázquez Raña, IOC Member Willi Kaltschmitt Luján, and Puerto Rico National Olympic Committee President Hector Cardona watch today’s Venezuela vs. Japan game (Photo by Qiang Fu)

“There is also great excitement with the attendance, and we still have three more days of games after today,” Mr. Porter added.  (Round robin play concludes tomorrow, and then Tuesday is an off day followed by the playoffs on Wednesday and Thursday.)

The attendance total through the first five-and-a-half days of play sits at 113,670, which has not only surpassed the grand total for the entire competition four years ago in Athens, but is just 4,437 away from also topping the entire round robin total from 1996 when softball made its Olympic debut at the Games in USA (Atlanta).

The ISF president also pointed out the continued success of rules changes made several years ago that, among other benefits, help keep game times down.  He said, “Our average length of game used to be over two hours, but we’ve been proactive and got it down to one hour and 52 minutes at the world championship in 2002, then just under one hour and 49 minutes four years ago in Athens, and so far in Beijing we’re running at an average of 1:46.  Television is one of the many important elements of our campaign and being able to give the networks what they want – games under two hours – will help us achieve one of our blueprint items, which is to gain more coverage.”

Back in November 2001 at the XX ISF Congress, several rule changes were voted in including moving up the tiebreaker to start with the top of the eighth inning (when a runner gets placed on second base to start the inning).  To further aid in the pace of the game, the ISF two years implemented a 20-second clock to complement the already-existing rule governing the amount of time a pitcher has to release the next pitch after receiving the ball, or after the umpire indicates, “Play ball.”

One other ISF rule that helps speed play is (four) pitches not having to be thrown for an intentional walk.

With regards to his comment about exciting competition on the field, Mr. Porter pointed to games such as the Japan-Australia game on the first night of play, the Canada-China game on Friday morning, and the play of Venezuela who rebounded from three losses to open the tournament to win their next two and then open a 2-0 lead in today’s game against Japan.  (The Japan-Australia game was decided by just one run, a 4-3 victory for Japan, and the Canada-China game was also a one-run game, and ended with Canada getting strong pitching and defensive play to get out of a bases-loaded jam to hold off the hosts and preserve the win.)

About the ISF and BackSoftball
The ISF is the world governing body of the sport as recognized by the International Olympic Committee and the General Association of International Sports Federations (GAISF).  Softball (women’s fast pitch) made its Olympic debut at the 1996 Games in Atlanta.  There are 131 affiliated countries in the ISF and millions of participants in the sport worldwide.

The ISF’s BackSoftball campaign is working toward the vote for the 2016 Games programme, which will be held at the IOC Session in Copenhagen, Denmark, in October 2009.

Photo: © Qiang Fu

JPN 003 000 0  3 2 0
CHN 000 000 0  0 6 2

Box score

A strong pitching performance by Yukiko Ueno (W 2-0) and a three-run homerun by Rie Sato was all, what Japan needed to beat China 3-0. Ueno allowed just five singles in six innings, while striking out six. Sato delivered the necessary run support in the third with her shot.

Wei Lu (L 1-2) was charged with one hit, three unearned runs and three base on balls in three innings.

USA – Taiwan 7-0

TPE 000 00  0  2 1
USA 105 1X  7 10 0

Box score
Recap on USA Softball

The fifth day at the Olympics Softball tournament brought the fifth win for Team USA. They shut out Taiwan 7-0 in five innings. Jennie Finch (W 2-0) picked up her second victory, going the distance, while allowing just two hits and a walk. USA pitching now has given up four hits in the tournament so far. Finch struck out six.

Offensive wise Jessica Mendoza hit her third homerun in two days in a five-run third. She was one of three batters with two RBI. Lauren Lappin and Lovieanne Jung also drove in two.

Su-Hua Lin (L 0-1) was responsible for ten hits, seven runs (6 ER) and three bb in four innings.

Netherlands – Australia 0-8

AUS 020 200 4  8 7 0
NED 000 000 0  0 1 2

Box score
Recap on Official Team Website

The Dutch Women Softball team also had no chance against Australia, losing 0-8 on Saturday. The Aussies each scored twice in the second and fourth and blew the score wide open through four runs in the seventh. Simmone Morrow (2 RBI) and Sandy Lewis (3 RBI) homered.

In additionAustralia’s pitcher Justin Smethurst (W 1-0) started with six perfect innings, before a leadoff single by Kim Kluijskens in the seventh broke up the no-no bid. It was the only hit by Holland in the complete game. Smethurst struck out nine and settled for the one-hitter.

Judith Van Kampen (L 0-2) gave up four hits, four runs (3 ER) and three walks in 4 1/3 innings. Rebecca Soumeru and Kristi De Vries also pitched in the game.

Canada – Venezuela 0-2

VEN 100 100 0  2 4 0
CAN 000 000 0  0 5 0

Box score

After their dominating performance against the Dutch, Mariangee Bogado (W 2-1) did the same with the Canadian batters and led Venezuela to a 2-0 shutout. She allowed just five hits and a walk in seven innings, striking out just one.

Denisse Fuenmayor delivered an early lead, driving in leadoff hitter Maria Soto with a RBI single. Yuruby Alicart added a run with a solo shot in the fourth. Neither team scored afterwards.

Danielle Lawrie (L 1-1) struck out nine in seven innings, but also gave up two runs on four hits to take the loss.

Schedule, Sunday August 17:
09:30 China – Taiwan
12:00 Japan – Venezuela
17:00 Canada – Australia
19:30 USA – Netherlands

Standings:

1. USA 5-0
2. Japan 4-1
3. Australia 3-2
4. Canada 3-2
5. China 2-3
6. Venezuela 2-3
7. Taiwan 1-4
8. Netherlands 0-5

KOR 000 000 203  5 9 1
JPN 000 002 001  3 7 1

Box score

South Korea scored three times in the top of the ninth to beat rival Japan 5-3. Hyun Soo Kim and Jong Wook Lee drove in the third and fourth run with RBI singles. Kim scored the fifth run on an error by catcher Shinnosuke Abe.

Japan tried to come back in the bottom of the ninth, scoring one run on an error by third baseman Dong Joo Kim, after Takahiro Arai reached with a triple. They put two more runners in scoring position with no outs, but failed to convert the golden opportunity, as a flyout, a strikeout and a groundout led to the end of the game.

Arai had brought Japan a 2-0 lead in the sixth with a two-run shot. But Korea answered immediately through a two-run homer by Dae Ho Lee to even the score again.

Tsuyoshi Wada (JPN) struck out ten in 6 2/3 innings, allowing five hits, two runs and a walk. Kwang Hyun Kim (KOR) gave up three hits, one run and a base on balls in 5 1/3 innings. He struck out seven. Suk Min Yoon (W 2-0) received the win. Hitoki Iwase (L 0-1) took the loss.

NED 000 150 000  6  9 1
CHN 001 010 011  4 11 1

Box score

The drought is over. The Netherlands scored their first runs of the Olympics and also won their first game in Beijing, using a five-run fifth to defeat host China.

The home team had the better start into the match, taking a 1-0 lead in the third on a RBI single by Fenglian Hou. But Holland answered right away with Sharnol Adriana’s leadoff homerun in the fourth to even the score. It was the first run for the Dutch at the Olympics after 29 unsuccessful innings.

One frame later they decided the outcome through back-to-back homeruns by Sidney De Jong (3 RBI) and Bryan Engelhardt, taking a 6-1 lead. China tried to rally afterwards, getting runs in the fifth, eighth and ninth. They loaded the bases with one out in the last period, but only got one run in, when Yubing Jia struck out and Chao Wang flied out to end the threat and the game.

Leon Boyd (W 1-0) started for the first time after a brief relief appearance a few days ago. He allowed six hits, two runs and a walk in six innings. David Bergman relieved Rob Cordemans in the ninth and got the last two outs to pick up the save. Weiliang Li (CHN) gave up three hits, a run and a base on balls in four innings. Guogiang Sun (L 0-1) took the loss.

TPE 000 000 000  0 4 1
CUB 000 000 10X  1 5 0

Box score

With their third one-run victory in four games at the Olympics Cuba stayed undefeated. They used a brilliant start by Elier Sanchez (W 1-0 and a late homerun by Frederich Cepeda to celebrate a 1-0 win over Taiwan.

Sanchez and his opposing starter Chen-Chang Lee (L 0-1) were locked into a pitcher’s duel from the beginning, exchanging zeros till the seventh inning, when Frederich Cepeda led off the bottom of the frame with his first homerun in Beijing. It was all Cuba needed to seal the victory in a low scoring affair.

Sanchez finished with seven innings pitched, allowing three hits and three walks, while striking out none. Norberto Gonzalez (S 2) relieved Sanchez and struck out three in two one-hit innings to complete the four-hitter. Lee made just one bad pitch in the 6 2/3 innings, he was on the mound. He gave up three hits, a run and two walks. He punched out seven.

CAN 012 100 000  4 10 1
USA 000 210 20X  5  9 1

Box score
Recap on USA Baseball
Recap on Baseball.ca

After Team USA had beaten Canada in an exhibition series in three of the four games, including a pair of lopsided wins, before the Olympics, they might thought the Saturday affair would be an easy one. But they had to work really hard to move their record to 2-2 and needed to overcome a 0-4 deficit in a 5-4 victory.

Canada had the better start, scoring four runs till the middle of the fourth for a commanding lead. Emerson Frostad drove in the first run with a RBI double in the second. Emmanuel Garcia added two more in the third reaching home on a groundout by Michael Saunders, after hitting a RBI triple. Adam Stern made it 4-0 with a RBI single one frame later. But it was the last time they would put a run on the scoreboard.

Team USA started the rally in the bottom of the fourth with a Brian Barden homerun and a RBI single by John Gall. They cut the deficit to a run in the fifth on Terry Tiffee’s RBI double. After a scoreless sixth, they completed the comeback after the seventh inning stretch. Barden and Tiffee connected on back-to-back two-out RBI doubles to seal the 5-4 win. They had the opportunity to add a few insurance runs in the eighth, but left three men stranded.

Canada had just three more base runners after the fourth with their best chance to score in the sixth, when they put runners on the corners with two outs, but Stern struck out to end the threat.

Brett Anderson (USA) allowed four runs (3 ER) on nine hits in 5 2/3 innings. James Avery (CAN) gave up two runs on four hits in 3 2/3 innings. Brian Duensing (W 1-0) replaced Anderson with two outs in the sixth and received the win for 3 1/3 innings of one-hit relief. Chris Reitsma (L 0-1) took the loss.

The rule indirectly led to the end of Jayson Nix’ Olympics, as he was hit by the ball in the face, when he tried to lay down the sac bunt in the bottom of the eleventh and the ball glanced of the bat. He sustained a laceration to the upper left eyebrow, which was repaired in the hospital. Team USA manager Davey Johnson obviously was not happy about the ending and the new rule found no supporters on their side.

Japan shut out the Netherlands, which still waits for their first run in Beijing after the third game day. They might have their best shot to win a game, at least on paper, tomorrow, when they square off with host China, which used the tiebreaker rule to their favor today in beating Taiwan.

Results, August 15:
China – Taiwan 8-7 (12) Recap
USA – Cuba 4-5 (11) Recap
Canada – Korea 0-1 Recap
Japan – Netherlands 6-0 Recap
Complete Schedule, incl. live scoring

Schedule, August 16:
10:30 USA – Canada
11:30 Cuba – Taiwan
18:00 China – Netherlands
19:00 Japan – South Korea

Standings:

1. Cuba 3-0
2. South Korea 2-0
3. Japan 2-1
4. China 1-1
5. Canada 1-2
6. Taiwan 1-2
7. USA 1-2
8. Netherlands 0-3

After two shutout losses in the Olympic games versus Taiwan and USA, also today’s game versus Japan was blown into the Chinese night for the Netherlands. Four scattered hits turned out to be insufficient to bring Eenhoorn’s squad on the scoreboard in the third consecutive game of the tournament. Japan opened the game with a three-hit rally off Alexander Smit in the first inning (4-0) and ensures the win with another three-hit rally off Diegomar Markwell in the eighth: 6-0.

With seven Hoofdklasse players (Duursma, Kingsale, De Jong, Engelhardt, Rombley, Klooster and Sluijter) and three players from professional baseball (Adriana in Mexico, De Caster and Smit from USA), the Netherlands tried to escape from the last position in present standings next to USA (defeated twice in three games). The first Dutch hit, however, was produced only in the fifth inning after having trailed 4-0 since the first inning. Bryan Engelhardt singled and tried to score 4-1 when Dirk van’t Klooster was attempting to reach second base after having singled to left field. The Japanese infield had a good eye on the situation and eliminated the runner before home plate rather than the one between first and second.

The Dutch illusions were cancelled already in the bottom of the first inning with four runs scored by the first four batters of the lineup. A walk for second baseman Tsuyoshi Nishioka and hits by center fielder Norichika Aoki, DH Masahiko Morino and first baseman Takahiro Arai (triple) brought the 3-0 on the scoreboard and a sacrifice fly to left field by left fielder Atsunori Inaba completed the Japanese quartet. The four remained intact until the eighth inning, thanks to a strong comeback by Dutch starter Alexander Smit.

The left-handed pitcher from the Sarasota Reds closed the bad first inning and opened the second with a strikeout. Smit kept the Japanese from home plate during 5 2/3 innings. After the 4-0 in the first, he withdrew five batters at a row, conceded a double and continued his performance with ten outs interrupted by third base De Caster’s error. Two singles did not harm his position in the fifth inning, but he was relieved in the sixth after a two-out walk.

Markwell started his defense with another two walks, but kept control until a one-out homerun by left fielder Takahiko Sato in the eighth inning. Two hits and one run later (6-0), Michiel van Kampen was called from the bullpen to make the third out in that inning: a strikeout for Morino.

Winning pitcher for Japan was starter Toshiya Sugiuchi, in fact as from his first pitch in the game. In the first four innings he faced only 13 Dutch batters, including a walk for Sharnol Adriana. The two Dutch singles in the fifth spoiled his no-hitter, but kept the number of batters faced as low as 24 in seven innings, striking out six. The other two hits conceded by Sugiuchi were a leadoff single by Jeroen Sluijter in the sixth and a two-out double by Yurendell De Caster in the seventh inning.

Japan – Netherlands 6-0

NED 000 000 000  0  4 1
JPN 400 000 02X  6 10 0

Box score

Pim van Nes
Baseball writer for
www.honkbalsite.com
www.sporttribune.nl
www.baseball.it

CAN 000 001 0  1 3 2
CHN 000 000 0  0 2 0

Box score

A solo homerun by Jennifer Yee in the sixth was all Lauren Regula Bay (W 2-0) would need to lead Canada to a 1-0 win against China. Regula Bay gave up just two hits and a walk in a complete game shutout to pick up win number two. She struck out six.

Wei Lu (L 1-1) was charged with a run on three hits and five base on balls in seven innings.

Japan – USA 0-7 (5)

USA 400 30  7 9 0
JPN 000 00  0 1 1

Box score
Recap on USASoftball

With the make-up game with Canada later this afternoon in mind, the United States Softball team wasted no time to get a 7-0 win against Japan. Jessica Mendoza (2 RBI) and Natasha Watley homered in a four-run first to bring them on their way. Mendoza added a second two-run shot in the fourth, going back-to-back with Crystl Bustos. The four homeruns in a game were a new Olympic record.

On the mound the Americans received their usual strong performance. Monica Abbot (W 1-0) allowed just one hit in five innings, while striking out five. Naho Emoto (L 0-1) didn’t even made one out, when she got replaced after four runs (3 ER) on four hits in the first.

Canada – USA 1-8

USA 000 004 4  8 6 1
CAN 100 000 0  1 1 3

Box score
Recap on USASoftball

After rain stopped play on Thursday with Canada leading 1-0, both teams met again on Friday to complete it. The maple leafs had scored their run in the first on two illegal pitches by starter Monica Abbot, an error by center fielder Caitlin Lowe and a sac fly by Jennifer Yee. But when they resumed the match, only Team USA came through.

They profited themselves from three errors in the sixth to score four runs and to take the lead. One frame later they blew the score wide open with another four-run spot on the scoreboard. Crystl Bustos drove in three without an hit. Bustos, Jessica Mendoza and Lowe each scored twice. Andre Duran got three RBI.

Cat Osterman (W 2-0) replaced Abbot on the mound on Friday, pitching the remaining four innings, while allowing just one hit for her second win at the Olympics. She struck out eight. USA pitching now has giving up just two hits in four games in Beijing.

Dione Meier (L 0-1) combined to throw 4 2/3 innings in the game, giving up five hits, eight runs (4 ER) and two walks to take the loss. She had started on Thursday, but Lauren Regula Bay relieved her for two innings on Friday, before Meier came back on the mound in the sixth.

Taiwan – Australia 1-3

AUS 000 021 0  3 5 0
TPE 100 000 0  1 5 0

Box score

Australia defeated Taiwan 3-1 for their second win in Beijing. Chinese Taipei got the better start, scoring a run in the first on a RBI single by Hui-Chuan Chiang for a 1-0 lead. The Aussies needed four innings to find an answer, but had an impressive one. They turned the score to 2-1 with two swings in the fifth, when Natalie Titcume and Natalie Ward opened the frame with back-to-back homeruns. Ward added an insurance run in the sixth with a RBI double.

Justin Smethurst (AUS) started and allowed four hits, a run and two walks in three innings. Kelly Hardie (W 1-0) relieved her and picked up the win, giving up just one more hit in the remaining four innings.

Sheng-Jung Lai (L 0-2) held Australia to one hit in the first four periods, but lost anyway, after the two bad pitches at the beginning of the fifth.

Venezuela – Netherlands 8-0 (5)

NED 000 00  0 1 0
VEN 330 2X  8 7 0

Box score
Recap on Official Team Website

In a duel between two teams without a win so far, Venezuela had the better end, as they crushed the Netherlands 8-0. The South Americans had a fast start into the match, scoring six runs in the first two frames to decide the outcome early. Geraldine Puertas went two-for-three with four RBI. Jineth Pimentel drove in three. Yaicey Sojo, Denisse Fuenmayor and Rubilena Rojas each scored twice.

The Dutch Women Softball team had just two base runners in the whole game after Marloes Fellinger’s two-out single in the first and a leadoff walk by Daisy De Peinder in the fifth.

Mariangee Bogado (W 1-1) picked up the win with a complete game shutout, allowing just one hit and a walk. She struck out three. Kristi De Vries (L 0-3) gave up seven hits, eight runs and three bb in 3 2/3 innings. Judith Van Kampen replaced her for the last out.

Schedule, Saturday, August 16:

09:30 China – Japan
12:00 USA – Taiwan
17:00 Netherlands – Australia
19:30 Canada – Venezuela
Complete Schedule, incl. live scoring

Standings:

1. USA 4-0
2. Canada 3-1
3. Japan 3-1
4. Australia 2-2
5. China 2-2
6. Taiwan 1-3
7. Venezuela 1-3
8. Netherlands 0-4

KOR 001 000 000  1 3 0
CAN 000 000 000  0 5 1

Box score
Recap on Baseball.ca

Hyun Jin Ryu (W 1-0) led South Korea to a 1-0 shutout against Canada. Ryu allowed just five hits and three walks in nine scoreless innings. He struck out six. Keun Woo Jeong was responsible for the lone run of the game with a solo homerun in the third.

The Canadians had their best chance to tie the game in the ninth, when they loaded the bases with two outs. But Ryan Radmanovich flied out to center field, leaving all three stranded. They also had runners on third in the sixth and eighth, but didn’t get them in. South Korea had three hits in the first three frames, but none after. Nonetheless their pitching sealed the win.

Mike Johnson (L 0-1) allowed three hits, a run and four base on balls in six innings.

TPE 000 011 001 004  7 11 1
CHN 000 000 030 005  8 11 3

Box score

Like the Cuba versus USA thriller, the second morning game on Friday also had use of the new tie-breaker rule. China upset Taiwan 8-7, after winning the twelfth inning exchange 5-4. After both teams failed to bring one of the two runners home in the eleventh, they came through in the third extra inning.

After advancing the runners with a sac bunt, Taiwan scored four runs in the top of the twelfth on a bases loaded walk by Kuo-Hui Lo, a two-run double by Feng-Min Chen and a RBI single by Chih-Wei Shih. But it was not enough.

The Chinese team, which didn’t used a sac bunt at the beginning of the period, loaded the bases with a walk and no outs. After a strikeout to Lei Li, Chao Wang cut the deficit with a RBI single. A flyout by Wie Sun led to the second out with the bases still loaded. A walk by Lingfeng Sun brought in another run, before Fenglian Hou ended the game with a bases clearing single in addition to an error by right fielder Chien-Ming Chang.

Chinese Taipei had forced extra innings, when they tied the game in the top of the ninth on Chien-Ming Chang’s two-out RBI double. China had taken the lead in the eighth, scoring three runs on RBIs by Fei Feng, Yufeng Zhang and Wei Wang. Kuo-Hui Lo homered for Taiwan in the fifth.

Wei-Lun Pan (TPE) allowed just four hits and two walks in 6 1/3 innings. He struck out eight. Nan Wang (CHN) gave up four hits, a run and three base on balls in five innings. Jiangang Lv (W 1-0) picked up the win, Chien-Fu Yang (L 0-1) took the loss.

CUB 200 000 010 02  5 10 0
USA 000 200 010 01  4  6 0

Box score
Recap on USABaseball

The new IBAF tiebreaker rule ended a thrilling game between Team USA and Cuba. With the score tied at 3-3, the match went into extra innings and into the eleventh. Due to the new rule, both teams put runners on first and second with the beginning of the second extra frame and the managers reacted to the challenge as expected. Put a sac bunt down to advance the runners and then hope to bring one run more in than your counterpart.

Cuba sent Hector Olivera and Luis Navas to first and second at the beginning of the eleventh. Giorbis Duvergel executed the sac bunt to advance both and Michel Enriquez followed with a two-run single for a 5-3 Cuban lead. Team USA brought Jason Donald and Dexter Fowler as pinch runners. Brian Barden laid down the bunt. But in difference to Enriquez, the next batter only produced a fly ball. Terry Tiffee’s sac fly cut the deficit to a run and advanced Fowler to third. But with two outs Matt Brown hit into another flyout to the end the game, possibly too soon, as the first ten innings were much more interesting than the last one.

The Cuban offense started strong, scoring two runs in the first on a RBI double by Enriquez and a bases loaded Alexei Bell hit by pitch. The Americans tied the contest in the fourth through RBI doubles by Nate Schierholtz and John Gall. Alfredo Despaigne (CUB) and Jayson Nix (USA) exchanged homeruns in the eighth, before the game went into extra innings with the already mentioned ending.

Trevor Cahill (USA) allowed six hits, two runs and four bb in five innings. Luis Rodriguez (CUB) gave up five hits, two runs and a walk in five innings too. He struck out seven. Pedro Luis Lazo (W 1-0) picked up the win for six innings of one-hit relief.  Jeff Stevens (L 0-2) took the loss.

Cuba needed two homeruns by Alex Malleta and Alfredo Despaigne in the sixth to defeat the Canadian one-man show Nick Weglarz 7-6. Japan got its first win versus Taiwan. The match between South Korea and China was first delayed and then stopped due to rain. No team scored in the six innings. They rescheduled the match for Sunday, August 17.

On Friday the tournament resumes with a first showdown between Team USA and the Cubans. The Netherlands have another favorite before their eyes with Japan.

Results, Thursday, August 14:
Netherlands – USA 0-7 (8) Recap
Cuba – Canada 7-6 Recap
Taiwan – Japan 1-6 Recap

Schedule, Friday, August 15:
10:30 China – Taiwan
11:30 USA – Cuba
18:00 Canada – South Korea
19:00 Japan – Netherlands
Complete Schedule, incl. live scoring

AUS 120 000 0  3 4 2
CHN 001 000 0  1 3 0

Box score

Australia received two homeruns by Simmone Morrow to beat China 3-1 on day three of the Softball tournament in Beijing. Morrow led off the game with a solo shot and added two more runs in the second with another homer. China cut the deficit to 1-3 in the third on a RBI single by Yanhong Yu.

Tanya Harding (W 1-1) allowed just two hits, a run and a walk in three innings. Huili Yu (L 1-1) gave up two hits, three runs and four base on balls in 1 1/3 innings.

Japan – Netherlands 3-0

NED 000 000 0  0 4 1
JPN 200 010 X  3 8 0

Box score
Recap on Official Team Website

The Dutch Women Softball team still waits for their first win in China. Hiroko Sakai (W 2-0) struck out six in six three-hit, one-walk innings to lead Japan in a 3-0 shutout on Thursday. Three RBI singles by Eri Yamada, Satoko Mabuchi and Rie Sato provided the necessary run support.

Holland managed just four hits through Britt Vonk, Marloes Fellinger, Daisy De Peinder and Marjan Smit in the seven-inning affair. Judith Van Kampen (L 0-1) started for the first time and allowed eight hits, three runs and two bb in six innings.

Taiwan – Venezuela 3-0

VEN 000 000 0  0 3 2
TPE 200 100 X  3 6 0

Box score

Taiwan celebrated a 3-0 shutout against Venezuela on Thursday. Chia-Yen Wu (W 1-1) combined with Ming-Hui Chueh to throw a three-hitter.

The first two batters of Chinese Taipei reached and Hsiao-Ting Lo drove them in with a double to make it 2-0 after one frame. Hsueh-Mei Lu added to the cushion with a solo shot in the fourth.

Johana Gomez (L 0-2) gave up five hits, three runs (2 ER) and two walks in 3 2/3 innings.

The game between Team USA and Canada was rescheduled for Friday, August 15 at 14:45 local time due to rain.

Schedule, Friday, August 15:
09:30 China – Canada
12:00 Japan – USA
14:45 Canada – USA
17:00 Taiwan – Australia
19:30 Venezuela – Netherlands
Complete Schedule, incl. live scoring

Standings:

1. Japan 3-0
2. Canada 2-0
3. USA 2-0
4. China 2-1
5. Australia 1-2
6. Taiwan 1-2
7. Netherlands 0-3
8. Venezuela 0-3

JPN 000 011 004  6 9 1
TPE 000 100 000  1 4 0

Box score

The final score of 6-1 is a bit misleading. Japan had to work hard to defeat Chinese Taipei at the Olympics to even their record at 1-1. Taiwan scored first, taking a 1-0 lead in the fourth on Chih-Hsien Chiang’s RBI single.

The hopes for a surprise didn’t last long, as Japan answered with a solo homerun by Shinnosuke Abe in the fifth and made it 2-1 in the sixth through a RBI single by Atsunori Inaba. They added four more in the top of the ninth to blow it open. Hiroyuki Nakajima hit a two-run single.

Hideaki Wakui (W 1-0) allowed three hits, a run and two walks in six innings to pick up the win. He struck out six. Wen-Hsiung Hsu (TPE) gave up three hits, a run and a walk in five innings. Fu-Te Ni (L 0-1) took the loss.

CAN 002 102 010  6 9 2
CUB 030 004 00X  7 5 2

Box score
Recap on Baseball.ca

The Canadians challenged Cuba on Thursday, but the three-time gold winner didn’t fell. Cuba moved their record to 2-0 with a 7-6 victory.

They had the better start, scoring three runs in the second on a sac fly by Ariel Pestano, a RBI double by Eduardo Paret and an error by second baseman Stubby Clapp. But the maple leafs weren’t shocked. They scored the next five runs unanswered, tying the score in the fourth on Nick Weglarz’ solo homerun and even took a 5-3 lead in the sixth on Weglarz’ second homer, a two-run shot. It was not enough.

Cuba came right back through two-run homeruns by Alexander Malleta and Alfredo Despaigne in the bottom of the period to make it 7-5. Canada tried to rally for a second time in the eight, but only cut the deficit to a run through a fielder’s choice RBI by Brett Lawrie.

Nick Weglarz was the player of the game, going four-for-four with two homeruns, three runs scored and three RBI. Mike Saunders hit a two-run homerun for the North Americans. Cuba needed just five hits to score the seven runs. Frederich Cepeda scored twice.

Adiel Palma allowed seven hits and five runs (4 ER) in five-plus innings. He struck out six. Brooks McNiven gave up two hits, three runs (2 ER) and two base on balls in just two innings. Vicyohandry Odelin (W 1-0) picked up the win. Jonathan Lockwood (L 0-1) took the loss. Norberto Gonzalez struck out three of the five last batters to earn the save.

USA 010 400 11  7 10 0
NED 000 000 00  0  1 0

Box score
Recap on USABaseball

Baseball fans all over Europe already knew what to expect from Stephen Strasburg, when he stepped to the mound this morning. The young right-hander of the San Diego State University was on the roster of the unbeaten collegiate team, which won the Haarlem Baseball Week and the World University Championships in July.

This time Strasburg dominated the Netherlands in an Olympic National Team jersey. He threw seven brilliant innings to lead Team USA to a 7-0 shutout on Thursday to bring their record to 1-1. He allowed just one hit and a walk in his start, while striking out eleven.

The American offense came through in the second, when Matt Brown hit a solo shot over the fence for a fast 1-0 lead. Matt LaPorta added three more runs with a homerun in the four-run fourth. A pair of insurance runs in the seventh and eighth sealed the win. Jason Donald got the start at short and had three hits. Terry Tiffee and John Gall each scored twice.

The Dutch team never really got a chance until the ninth, when they loaded the bases. But then came the rain for a second time and the game was called after a 90-minute delay. Since the ninth inning wasn’t completed, the game officially ended after the eighth. It was already the second delay of the match, as rain stopped play after the seventh for one hour and 35 minutes.

Shairon Martis started for Holland. He gave up six hits, five runs and two walks in 4 2/3 innings. Diegomar Markwell, Pim Walsma, Michiel Van Kampen, Dave Draijer and Leon Boyd also got into the game.

Results, August 13:
Taiwan – Netherlands 5-0 Recap
China – Canada 0-10 (8) Recap
South Korea – USA 8-7 Recap
Cuba – Japan 4-2 Recap

Schedule, August 14:
(local times)
10:30 Netherlands – USA
11:30 South Korea – China
18:00 Cuba – Canada
19:00 Taiwan – Japan
Complete Schedule, incl. Livescoring

CHN 101 031 1  7 10 1
VEN 000 100 0  1  6 0

Box score

The Chinese Softball Team also won their second game in the Olympics, beating Venezuela 7-1 on Wednesday. Yanhong Yu went three-for-four with a homerun and three runs scored. Chunxia Li and Ying Tan each drove in two.

Wei Lu (W 1-0) pitched 3 2/3 innings for the win. She allowed one run on six hits, striking out one. Mariangee Bogado (L 0-1) gave up seven hits, five runs and three base on balls in 4 1/3 innings.

USA – Australia 3-0

AUS 000 000 0  0 0 1
USA 000 012 X  3 5 0

Box score

Another day and another no-hitter for Team USA at the Olympics. One day after the combined five-inning no-no by Jennie Finch and Monica Abbot, it was Cat Osterman’s turn.  She struck out 13 in seven innings, while walking three in a dominating win against the silver medalist of 2004.

Natasha Watley broke up a scoreless tie in the fifth with a RBI single, which was followed by a two-run shot by Crystl Bustos one frame later to seal the 3-0 victory against Australia.

Tanya Harding (L 0-1) did a good job in the beginning, but lost in the end anyway. She gave up four hits, three runs and three walks in five-plus innings.

Taiwan – Japan 1-2

JPN 000 110 0  2 9 1
TPE 000 000 1  1 6 1

Box score

Japan also moved their record to 2-0 with a 2-1 victory against Taiwan. Satoko Mabuchi brought Japan the lead with a solo homerun in the fourth. They added a second run a period later on Eri Yamada’s RBI single. Chinese Taipei tried to come back in the seventh, but only could cut the deficit in a half with a RBI single by Yun-Chi Tung, who was thrown out at second by center fielder Yamada, trying to stretch the single into a double, which ended the threat and the game.

Hiroko Sakai (W 1-0) allowed six hits and a run in a complete game victory. She struck out six. Sheng-Jung Lai (L 0-1) was charged with seven hits, two runs and two bb in 4 2/3 innings.

Netherlands – Canada 2-9

CAN 003 411  9 11 1
NED 000 110  2  3 1

Box score

Starting pitcher Kristie de Vries and the Dutch Women Softball team lost for the second time in the Olympics on Wednesday, getting out-scored 9-2 by Canada. Jennifer Yee started the scoring in the third with a three-run single, after shortstop Sandra Gouverneur made an error with two outs. The maple leafs added six more runs in the following two frames, including two-run homeruns by Kaleigh Rafter and Melanie Matthews.

Gouverneur accounted for one of the two Netherlands runs with a solo shot in the fifth. Jolanda Kroesen drove in the second with a sac bunt.

Danielle Lawrie (W 1-0) allowed two hits and a run in four innings to pick up the win. De Vries gave up three unearned runs on three hits in three innings. Rebecca Soumeru relieved her and was hit hard in the remaining three frames.

Schedule:
Thursday, August 14:
09:30 China – Australia
12:00 Canada – USA
17:00 Japan – Netherlands
19:30 Taiwan – Venezuela
Complete Schedule (incl. live scoring)

JPN 001 010 000  2 9 1
CUB 011 020 00X  4 9 1

Box score

In what could be also the final game of the Olympics Baseball tournament, Cuba beat Japan 4-2 on Wednesday making a statement that the exhibition results before the event were meaningless. Japan overcame deficits of 0-1 and 1-2 until the Cubans took the lead for good in the bottom of the fifth through Alfredo Despaigne’s two-run single. He had a total of three hits and three RBIs in the game, as he also drove in Alex Bell with a single in the second frame. Frederich Cepeda also got a RBI. Bell scored two times.

Japan tied the contest twice on sac flies in the third and fifth by Norichika Aoki and Takahiro Arai. They hadn’t really a chance to score after the fifth, as they managed just three more hits, after two the base runner was removed through double plays. Munenori Miyamoto had three hits in three at bats, scoring both runs.

Norge Luis Vera (W 1-0) picked up the win after six solid innings. He allowed two runs on seven hits, striking out two, while walking none. Pedro Luis Lazo closed it out with three scoreless innings of relief for the save. Yu Darvish (L 0-1) gave up seven hits, four runs and four base on balls in four-plus innings. He had six of the twelve Japanese strikeouts.