Italy with BP prior to their game against Puerto Rico
Premier12, First Round, Pool A: Puerto Rico – Italy 7-1
Italy 000 000 010 1 6 1 Puerto Rico 000 132 01X 7 9 0
Italy’s first game at the Premier12 has been a loss. On Tuesday afternoon Puerto Rico celebrated a 7-1 win over the Squadra Azzurri at Intercontinental Stadium in Taichung. After Alessandro Maestri kept the Puerto Rican bats short in the beginning, they plated six runs between the fourth and sixth to decide the outcome.
Maestri, a pitcher from the ORIX Buffaloes in Nippon Professional Baseball, held Puerto Rico scoreless until a RBI double by Aldo Mendez got them on the board. The right-hander struck out seven in four innings, allowing just one run on three hits and two walks. 54 of his 83 pitches were strikes.
St. Louis Cardinals prospect Trey Nielsen took over in the fifth and promptly allowed three more runs on a two-run triple by Richard Thon and a wild pitch. Puerto Rico scored two more times through a RBI single by Jay Gonzalez in the sixth and a bases loaded walk by Juan Silva in the eighth.
Italy’s lone run came around in the eighth, when Erik Epifano doubled home Juan Carlos Infante. They managed just six hits in the game overall with the other good scoring opportunity being the top of the fourth, when Alessandro Vaglio and Mario Chiarini reached with a double and a walk and no outs. But Puerto Rico stopped the rally and reached the run column in the bottom of the frame.
Maestri got charged with the loss. Besides him and Nielsen, also Andrea Pizziconi, Junior Oberto, Carlos Teran, Ludovico Coveri and Nicholas Morreale took the mound for the team of manager Marco Mazzieri. An effective Andres Santiago started for Puerto Rico and gave up just four hits and two walks in seven scoreless innings for the win.
Italy is going to take on Chinese Taipei in the evening game at Intercontinental Stadium on Wednesday. Puerto Rico faces Canada at Dou-Liou.