The Panama Baseball Team is Undefeated in Pre-World Cup

Panama’s U-18 baseball team maintained its undefeated record in the Pre-World Cup tournament of the category by beating its Brazilian counterpart on Monday by a score of 2 to 1.  At the Rod Carew Stadium in the Panamanian capital, one of the venues for the regional competition, the national team left the Brazilians on the ground with a run in the bottom of the seventh inning.  A sacrifice fly to center field with the bases loaded by Abel Valdez allowed Luis Rivera to step on the plate with the run that gave Panama the victory.  For Panama, under the direction of Carlos Maldonado, this is the fourth victory in Group B. The Isthmus team added victories against Puerto Rico (9-5), Venezuela (3-1), Costa Rica (8-1) and now against Brazil (2-1) to remain undefeated.  From the mound, the victory was credited to Anthony Ortega, the second pitcher to be used by Panama’s management. Ortega worked 4.2 innings in which 5 hits were given up but he struck out 3 batters.  The next game for the Canalera team will be Wednesday, August 7 against the United States, who have a record of 3-0. The game will be at Rod Carew Stadium starting at 7:00 p.m.  This competition awards three places for the 2025 U-18 World Cup. The Panamanian team, by hosting the 2024 Pan American tournament, has its place guaranteed for next year’s World Cup.