Sleeth Fires Two-Hit Shutout Against Chinese Taipei
7/19/2002 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
July 19, 2002
HAARLEM, THE NETHERLANDS - Kyle Sleeth (RHP, So, Wake Forest) pitched a complete-game, two-hit shutout to lead the USA Baseball National Team to a 2-0 victory over Chinese Taipei in the opening game of the 2002 Haarlem Baseball Week Friday night.
Eric Patterson (IF, Fr, Georgia Tech) went 3-for-4 and helped generate both American runs, while Michael Aubrey (IF, So, Tulane) and Sam Fuld (OF, So, Stanford) each contributed a pair of hits. But it was Sleeth who was the real story. The Wake Forest product fanned nine in going the distance for his second complete game and fifth victory in five outings for the USA Baseball National Team this summer. He allowed just one runner to reach third base in the entire game.
Team USA struggled throughout the night to cash in on several scoring opportunities. They left runners at the corners in the first and stranded Aubrey on base after a leadoff double in the fourth. But the Americans finally broke through in the top of the fifth, when with one out Patterson singled and stole second base. After Dustin Pedroia (IF, Fr, Arizona State) walked, Patterson advanced to third on a fielder??TMs choice groundout by Aaron Hill (IF, So, LSU) and scored when Fuld beat out an infield bunt base hit down the third base line.
Taipei starter Chang Wei Tu (0-1) lasted six innings, allowing just one run on eight hits, as he stranded eight American runners on the bases. He was relieved in the seventh by Chao Hao Tseng, who worked two perfect innings before Wei Lun Pan came on in the ninth. Team USA was able to tack on an insurance run off Pan when Rickie Weeks (OF, So, Southern) and Patterson led off with back-to-back singles. They were moved into scoring position on a sacrifice bunt by Pedroia, and Weeks was able to race home on a fielder??TMs choice ground ball hit by Hill.
The USA Baseball National Team improved to 15-3 overall, as they will next face South Africa here at the 2002 Haarlem Baseball Week on Sunday, July 21 at 7:00 pm local time (1:00 pm EDT, 10:00 am PDT) in Haarlem, The Netherlands. Kyle Bakker (2-0, 2.16, LHP, So, Georgia Tech) is slated to make the start for Team USA.
For a complete boxscore and play-by-play of this game, log on to www.usabaseball.com/natl_schedule.html and click on the red LIVE SCORING option listed next to tonight's game on the 2002 USA Baseball Red, White and Blue Tour schedule. For Team USA live real-time scoring and official team stats, log on to www.usabaseball.com.
The USA Baseball National Team is preparing to compete in the first-ever FISU Collegiate World Baseball Championships in Messina, Italy, August 3-11.
HAARLEM BASEBALL WEEK STANDINGS - Thru 7/19/02
USA 1-0Cuba 0-0Japan 0-0The Netherlands 0-0South Africa 0-0Chinese Taipei 0-1