Major League Baseball is over for 2019, but that does not mean that the baseball season is over. On Saturday, the WBSC Premier 12 tournament got underway with pool games taking place in Mexico, Chinese Taipei and South Korea.
Games in Group A in Mexico have now been completed with the United States and Mexico advancing to the Super Round. Mexico won Group A with a perfect record of three wins and zero losses, including an 8-2 win over the United States on November 3. The Dominican Republic and the Netherlands were eliminated.
In Group B in Chinese Taipei, Japan and Chinese Taipei have both advanced. Japan beat Venezuela 8-4 and Puerto Rico 4-0. While Chinese Taipei has beaten Puerto Rico 6-1 and Venezuela 3-0. Chinese Taipei and Japan will play for first place on Thursday.
Group C began on Wednesday with a brilliant pitching performance by Phillippe Aumont. The Canadian pitcher who once played with the Philadelphia Phillies pitched eight brilliant innings, had nine strikeouts, two hits allowed and one walk in a 3-0 Canada win over Cuba. In other action, South Korea blanked Australia 5-0.
The top two teams from each group will advance to the super round in Japan next week. Teams will then play the four opponents that they have not yet played in the tournament. From the super round, the top two teams will play in the gold medal game and the third and fourth placed teams will play in the bronze medal game.
The tournament also has Olympic significance. The top team from the Americas and the top team from the Asia/Oceania region qualify for the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo.
