It's not the game either team wanted to be in, but Panama and Tennessee will battle for third-place honors in the Little League World Series at 10am on Sunday morning. Both teams suffered tough losses on Saturday, costing them a chance to play in the 3pm championship game. However, whichever team can rebound from the defeat quicker will have a better chance to claim third place at the World Series, still an excellent feat that will have the victors celebrating.
Pitcher's duel is expected
Both championship games on Saturday featured a slugging offense versus a lights-out pitching staff. The offenses would both games, meaning the third-place game could feature an excellent pitcher's duel. Tennessee is set up perfectly, with their ace, Zach McWilliams, ready to pitch again on Sunday. McWilliams is 1-0 in Williamsport with a 1.74 ERA over two starts. He threw a complete-game victory in the opener, beating the Northwest 3-2. He got a no-decision in his start on Tuesday, but he was outstanding, allowing just one run to the West over 4.1 innings, a game his squad would win 4-2 in extra innings.
McWilliams should be ready to deal again, facing an offense that hasn't exactly been prolific in Panama. After a ten-run explosion against Mexico in the opener, the Latin America champs have scored just eight runs in three games. They squeaked out a pair of tight 3-2 victories, but their pitching faltered in the International championship, a 7-2 loss to South Korea. Facing a weaker offense, McWilliams could be in prime shape to put on a show. He'll have to be careful though, because Panama has come up with some timely hits in the World Series, and they've featured some power as well. McWilliams could be excellent, but it doesn't mean he can be careless.
What's better than a 1.74 ERA? How about an ERA of 0.00. 3 goose eggs. You can't get much better than that. Over three appearances (1 start) Carlos Gonzalez has not allowed an earned run, surrendering just two unearned runs over 6.2 innings. He's given up just one hit and three walks, accumulating a WHIP of 0.60. He's been about as unhittable as you can be. And, eligible to pitch tomorrow, Gonzalez should be getting the start for Panama.
The other option for Panama is to start Esmith Pineda, who has made one start and one relief appearance. Pineda was roughed up on Saturday, giving up 2 runs over just 0.1 innings, but he threw only 14 pitches, making him still available for Sunday. He hasn't been as dominant as Gonzalez, accumulating a 4.50 ERA, but he's been solid, particularly in his start, in which he went five innings of two-run ball. Gonzalez is the probable starter, but don't count out Pineda. Either one of them is capable of dueling with McWilliams, setting up what could be an excellent pitcher's duel for third-place honors.
Timely hitting will be critical
Although pitching is likely to dominate this matchup, both teams will look to their hitters for some timely hitting to pioneer their squad to victory.
For the Southeast, they will be looking to the top of their order. Although they struggled in two games against New York, the Jones' twins have been excellent at the top of the order for the Southeast. Their table-setting ability will be critical in order to get to the power hitters for Tennessee. McWilliams has hit four home runs, so, to enhance the meaning of those dingers, Tanner and Tyler Jones have been very good both offensively and defensively, and they'll look to get on base for McWilliams. Carson Rucker and Ethan Jackson have been excellent as well. They offer support for McWilliams in the lineup, making the Southeast lineup a deep one and less of a one-man show.
If he is indeed pitching, Sunday could be a Carlos Gonzalez show for Latin America. Gonzalez has not only dominated on the mound, but he is 7-10 at the plate in Williamsport. Pineda is only 3-13 at the plate, but he's had some big hits, inlcuding the go-ahead 3-run bomb against South Korea on Wednesday. The top of their order has been a problem, with their 1-2 hitters going 3-21 over four games, including 1-9 from their leadoff hitter. With the exception of Gonzalez, it's been an inconsistent offense that Panama has featured. They have just 21 hits over four games, 7 of which came from Gonzalez. Joaquin Tejada is just 2-13, making him and Pineda 5-26 out of the fourth and fifth slots in the lineup. If they can't get their bats going on Sunday, Southeast would likely just pitch around Gonzalez, as he is the only major threat in their lineup right now.
This writer's prediction would be that the Southeast will take home the win in the third-place game. They have shown more offense than Panama thus far, although both sides feature excellent pitching. However, the Tennessee bats have a better shot than Panama at breaking through in what should be an exciting third-place game.