The Tribune

By TENAJH SWEETING

Tribune Sports Reporter

tsweeting@tribunemedia.net

THE Bahamas’ 16-and under (16U) team advanced to the next round of the Babe Ruth Caribbean Baseball Championship and Invitational.

The 16U squad will get ready to play the 5-1 Pool B Puerto Rico team today at 10am after defeating the Metropolitan Junior Baseball League (MJBL) USA team.

In the 12-and under (12U) division, Team Bahamas picked up two wins against the Netherlands and Jamaica but came up short against Curacao, thwarting their efforts of advancing.

16U

The Bahamas 16U team dropped the MJBL USA 6-2 in seven innings. In the first inning, the home team was able to score two runs compared to one by the USA team. After the initial inning, it was a defensive battle between the two teams until the third inning.

The visiting team scored one run, meanwhile, The Bahamas finished the inning with none on the scoreboard.

The momentum shifted in the bottom of the fifth inning where Team Bahamas was able to amass four runs to put the USA team away and advance to a 4-0-1 record in the invitational.

Greg Burrows Jr, head coach of the 16U team, talked about the win for the home team. “I thought it was a good team win again. We have been lucky enough to have some good pitching performances this tournament and the bats came late in the game in the fifth inning but this is what it is all about,” Burrows said. Overall, he credited the efforts of MJBL USA but believed his team was able to combat them and come out with the win.

With the team now preparing to play Puerto Rico, the top team for Pool B, Burrows said they are looking to keep the momentum going and get all the way to the championships.

In this past weekend’s baseball action, the 16U team earned a comfortable 13-1 win against Europe in a Pool A head-to-head matchup. Additionally, Saturday’s game between Aruha and the home team ended in a 1-1 tie.

12U

The 12U team for The Bahamas had a busy weekend as teams looked to fight for a win to qualify for the Cal Ripken Major/70 World Series at Ballparks of America in Branson, Missouri. In their first win of the weekend the 12U team dropped the Netherlands in a 12-2 victory.

The home team was already up 5-0 on the Netherlands in the bottom of the third inning. The visiting team finally got on the scoreboard at the top of the fifth inning but Team Bahamas asserted their dominance. By the bottom of the fifth inning the home team had already amassed 12 runs to only one by the Netherlands. Ultimately, the game wrapped up in five innings with the Netherlands scoring their second run in the bottom of the fifth inning.

In the second win, Team Bahamas got the upperhand on Jamaica from the start. By the top of the second inning the team already scored 12 runs to 0 on the scoreboard. The game wrapped up in three innings due to the mercy rule.

In the home team’s only loss of the weekend Team Bahamas dropped to Curacao 3-2.

The 2023 Babe Ruth Caribbean Championship and Invitational will continue today at the Baillou Hills Sporting Complex and Andre Rodgers Stadium.