Puerto Rico clinched a place in the super round of the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) U-23 World Cup on Tuesday by beating Chinese Taipei 1-0 at the Soberanía National Stadium in Managua, Nicaragua. It was Puerto Rico’s second shutout win, closing the first round with a 3-2 record and placing among the tournament’s top six countries.
Puerto Rico again leaned on its pitching, using three pitchers to hold the Asian offense. Left-hander Jorhan Laboy started and worked two and one-third innings. Edwin Sánchez earned the win in relief after throwing two and two-thirds innings, allowing three hits and striking out two batters.
Right-hander Yaniel Heredia handled the last two innings and picked up the save, allowing just one hit to preserve the one-run lead. The game’s only run came in the fifth inning. Harold Laracuente opened the frame with a bunt that became an infield single and then stole second base.
After a Juan Cruz strikeout for the first out, Randal Díaz singled to drive Laracuente home with what proved the decisive run. Díaz had a perfect day at the plate, going 2-for-2, and led a Puerto Rico offense that totaled five hits. For Chinese Taipei, Wu Cheng-Hao took the loss after allowing one run and striking out seven in five innings.
No games are scheduled for Wednesday at the U-23 World Cup. The super round begins Thursday, with the three qualifiers from Group A facing the three qualifiers from Group B.