Team USA powered their way to an 11-1 run-rule victory over Australia on Tuesday morning at Okinawa Cellular Stadium, finishing pool play of the WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup 2025 undefeated with a perfect 5-0 record. The win secures their top position in Group B heading into the Super Round starting Thursday, September 11.
Right-hander Coleman Borthwick was unstoppable on the mound, pitching three perfect innings with six strikeouts to set the tone early. The American offense took advantage of wild pitches and defensive errors, scoring a run in the first inning and adding three more in the second.
Australia managed to score once in the fifth inning, narrowing the gap to three runs, but Team USA’s offense exploded in the sixth inning, putting the game out of reach with a seven-run surge. The inning began with a bases-loaded hit-by-pitch and an RBI fielder’s choice, followed by three consecutive hits from Andrew Costello and Jaden Jackson that brought in four runs. Aiden Ruiz sealed the run-rule victory with a bases-loaded walk.
Game Highlights:
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Team USA scored early and often, opening the first inning with CJ Sampson’s RBI groundout that brought home Grady Emerson.
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Borthwick dominated in the second inning, striking out the side and racking up half of his strikeouts.
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The U.S. capitalized on two defensive errors in the second, supported by RBI walks from Emerson and Sampson, stretching their lead to 4-0.
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Australia’s lone run came in the fifth on a wild pitch, but relief pitchers Brody Crane and Kaden Waechter quickly stifled the threat.
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The decisive six-run sixth inning featured clutch hitting and patient plate discipline, highlighted by Costello’s bases-clearing single.
Notables:
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Borthwick, Crane, and Waechter combined to allow just two hits and two walks over six innings, improving Team USA’s WHIP to a tournament-best 0.63 and limiting opponents to a .123 batting average.
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Borthwick joins Carson Bolemon and Trey Rangel as pitchers who have thrown at least three innings without allowing a hit.
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Offensively, Costello finished with two hits, including the bases-clearing single; Emerson and Lombard also contributed two hits apiece.
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Team USA leads the tournament with a .344 batting average, a .491 on-base percentage, and 43 runs scored.
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This marks the 10th time in 31 appearances that Team USA has started the WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup with a 5-0 record.
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Historically, Team USA has dominated Australia at the U-18 level, improving their record to 17-5, with 15 wins in the last 16 meetings since 1992.
Looking ahead, Team USA prepares to face off in the Super Round beginning Thursday, September 11, aiming to continue their winning streak and contend for the championship.
