Nicaragua shows how talented its pitching is on first day
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It didn't take long for pitcher Clement Sevilla Pichardo of Leon, Nicaragua to start dazzling and impressing at the Little League World Series.
In fact, after the first inning it was pretty evident that he can throw the ball well and with a lot of control. Strikeout after strikeout; inning after inning.
By the time Nicaragua manager Jose Gabriel Rodriguez Mayorga pulled him out of Wednesday's Series opener at 81 pitches, the Latin American ace had thrown an impressive 12 strikeouts through 5 2/3 innings with only four hits allowed, one walk and one run. Sevilla Pichardo put the International field on notice: he, and Nicaragua as a whole, can throw and pitch well.
"I ant to thank God, I feel really happy and proud with the performance I gave," the pitcher said after Wednesday's 2-1 win against Nicaragua to advance to Friday's winners' bracket game against Panama. "We came here to fight and continue to go on."
Sevilla Pichardo moved to right field for the final at bat of the game and delivered a clutch moment. After the single dropped, Sevilla Pichardo rifled a throw to home to get the out which prevented a game-tying run from crossing the plate.
Just as important he was on the mound, he was just as big in the field for his only appearance in the outfield.
While the Caribbean Regional champions from Santiago, Dominican Republic out-hit the Latin American Regional champions in that game, 5-4, it was Sevilla Pichardo's pitch placement and limiting the bats which were key. The Dominican Republic didn't have a batter reach via hit until the bottom of the third inning when Yansel Guzman had a single into left, but that was followed by back-to-back strikeouts. Then a three-up, three-down fourth kept it a scoreless game.
It wasn't until the fifth when the Caribbean Regional champions collected multiple hits with a single by Diego Suarez Herrera and an RBI double by Ethan Estrada.
When Sevilla Pichardo came out of the game, he grabbed his elbow. In the post-game press conference, he -- like numerous pitchers -- had his shoulder on ice.
"I feel some pain, but that's just part of the game with throwing and curveballs," Sevilla Pichardo said. "I'm confident coming back strong and happy with the victory."
Moises Estrada Juarez relieved Sevilla Pichardo for the final batter and induced a six-pitch at-bat which resulted in a single until the right-fielder threw out the Dominican Republic runner heading home to end the game.
Now, itll be Estrada Juarez's turn as he gets the ball to start on Friday according to Mayorga.
"It was a great victory, an important victory. I'm proud of the team," Mayorga said. "We'll continue to work hard and we worked hard the last three months for this. We came to compete and we'll practice.
"Clemente's a great pitcher and we rely on our pitching and defense. It's what gives us the victory: pitching and defense," Mayorga continued.
That pitching and defense is surely a key part of why Nicaragua is at the Series for just the fourth time and first since 2022.
While there were plenty of fans in attendance at Volunteer Stadium for Nicaragua's game, the presence of fans from Leon were absent. That's due to fans from Nicaragua not being able to travel bcause of visa issues. The team itself also had two players not be able to make the trip to South Williamsport.
"Due to individual circumstances regarding visa travel documentation, two players on the Nicaragua team from the Latin America Region were unable to make the trip to Williamsport with their team. Due to timing, these players will not be replaced, and the team will play with the remaining 12 rostered players on the team's affidavit," Little League International said in a statement. "Little League International''s World Series events have been classified as a 'major sporting event,' which allows countries participating the opportunity to follow the appropriate visa process to travel and represent their community here at our tournaments. We work closely with the U.S. Department of State to support our participants and their travels, and we are pleased that 12 of our players from Nicaragua were able to obtain the appropriate documentation, and understand the disappointment for their two teammates not able to make the trip."
While those two teammates are not here and the fan support isn't what Nicaragua had hoped for, the team is still happy with the support they did see from fans throughout the area and state.
"They have trouble with visas, but that's something out of our hands. We just come here to play the game," Mayorga said. "There's a lot of support from family and friends (back home). We were surprised we had some support from those who came here to see us."