IMABARI CITY, JAPAN – Alec Burleson (ECU) hit a walk-off homer Wednesday (video) to lead off the bottom of the ninth and send the USA Baseball Collegiate National Team to a dramatic 3-2 win over Japan at Imabari Municipal Baseball Stadium. It was the first walk-off homer of Burleson’s baseball career.
“I hit it and I knew it had the distance,” said Burleson. “I was just hoping it would stay fair.”
The ball stayed fair and easily cleared the right field wall for the first homer of the series. Team USA tied the best-of-five series, 1-1.
The Collegiate National Team (7-4) got into position to win the game with an eighth-inning RBI single by Heston Kjerstad (Arkansas) to tie the game 2-2. Japan’s pitching had put up six straight zeros before Kjerstad’s RBI then Burleson’s heroics.
Team USA had another strong night on the mound, which started with four shutout innings from Asa Lacy (Texas A&M). Lacy scattered three hits while striking out five, as Team USA combined to strike out 14 in the game.
“We pitched really well,” said manager Dan McDonnell (Louisville). “We had another good outing and we showed toughness.”
Andrew Abbott (Virginia) earned the win after throwing a shutout top half of the ninth. He got a big swinging strikeout to end the inning and strand the potential go-ahead run on second base. Burl Carraway (DBU) threw a 1-2-3 eighth and Chris McMahon (Miami) allowed two runs on one hit in three innings of work.
Team USA and Japan make the trip to Kizuna Stadium in Iwakuni, Japan, for Game 3 of the series Thursday.
Key Moments
• Team USA scored in the first inning when Spencer Torkelson (Arizona State) drove home Nick Loftin (Baylor) with a sac fly.
• Japan scored twice in the fifth after a leadoff walk. Ryosuke Kodama tripled in the first run on a two-out, two-strike pitch, then scored on a wild pitch.
• Heston Kjerstad (Arkansas) singled on a line drive over the first baseman’s head for an RBI to tie the game 2-2 in the eighth.
• Alec Burleson (ECU) won it in the ninth with the walk-off homer on an up-and-in 2-0 fastball.
Notable Information
• The Collegiate National Team played at Imabari Municipal Baseball Stadium for the first time ever.
• All-Star series: USA leads, 24-18
• Series in Japan: Japan leads, 17-3
• Team USA has lost 15 straight series in Japan dating back 40 years.
• Team USA lost its last series in Japan, 3-2, including a 5-4 loss in 10 innings in the deciding Game 5 on July 17, 2016 at Kusanagi Stadium in Shizuoka.
• All-Star series games: Collegiate National Team leads, 132-105-2
• Overall games: Collegiate National Team leads, 155-124-2
• The last four series (2013, 2016, 2017, 2018) have all finished 3-2. Japan won in 2013 and 2016 in Japan, while the Collegiate National Team won in 2017 and 2018 in the United States.
• Team USA has won two straight series vs. Japan, a 3-2 win in 2017 throughout the Northeast United States and a 3-2 win in 2018 in North Carolina and Georgia.
• The longest series winning streak in the series is five by Team USA from 1973-77 .
On Deck
• July 18 vs. Japan (5 a.m. ET; Iwakuni, Japan; Kizuna Stadium)
• July 20 vs. Japan (5 a.m. ET; Kooriyama, Japan; Kaiseizan Stadium)
• July 21 vs. Japan (5 a.m. ET; Tokyo, Japan; Meiji Jingu Stadium)
