| AUCKLAND, New Zealand – A historic day on the diamond for the U.S. Men’s National Team (MNT) resulted in Team USA’s first win over New Zealand since the 1988 Men’s World Cup gold medal game where the U.S. won its fifth and last world title. Also going down in history as the biggest win over New Zealand, last night’s 7-0 shutout victory over the host-country improved the U.S. to a 2-0 record at the 2022 World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) Men’s Softball World Cup. An RBI single from Zac Shaw in the top of the second got things going for the Red, White and Blue before home runs off the bats of Blaine Milheim and Erick Ochoa broke the game open in the third. Matt Palazzo (3-for-3) and Jonathan Lynch (2-for-3) also recorded impressive performances at the plate while the pitching staff of Javier Caballero, Jon Gwizdala and Brad Kilpatrick took control in the circle. Caballero and Gwizdala kept the New Zealand offense quiet through three innings before Kilpatrick entered the game in the bottom of the fourth, fanning six New Zealand batters to close out the 7-0 U.S. victory. Since the 1988 Team USA vs New Zealand matchup, the Black Sox had posted an undefeated 8-0 win-loss record against the U.S. to knot the overall record between the two countries at 9-9. Following last night’s historic showing by the U.S. MNT, the overall record now stands at 10-9 in favor of Team USA. |
| Team USA will continue on to face the Czech Republic on Nov. 28 at 1:30 p.m. NZST/Nov. 27 at 6:30 p.m. CT before taking on Cuba (Nov. 29 at 12 p.m. NZST/Nov. 28 at 5 p.m. CT) and Argentina (Nov. 30 at 1:30 p.m. NZST/6:30 p.m. CT) to close out Opening Round. The tournament will then advance to the Super and Placement Rounds where the top three teams in each Group will battle it out to determine the final two teams who will go head-to-head in the World Championship Final on Friday, Dec, at 4 p.m. NZST (Dec. 3 at 9 pm. CT). The third and fourth-place teams will compete for the bronze medal earlier that day. |
Nov. 21, 2022, 2:41 p.m. (ET)
Fans will have the opportunity to follow along all week long through WBSC’s exclusive online GameTime video platform where live stream tournament passes can be purchased for $9.99. Live stats will also be provided on USASoftball.com.
Previously announced by USA Softball, the 16-player roster representing the Red, White and Blue includes 10 veteran members from the most recent Men’s National Team roster, which earned the the U.S. a spot in the WBSC Men’s Softball World Cup after finishing fourth at the Americas Qualifier held in Parana, Argentina in April of this year. Among the veterans are Blaine Milheim, Brad Kilpatrick, Cam Schiller, Erick Ochoa, Jonathan Lynch, Nick Mullins, Tyler Bouley, Tyler Johnson, Yusef Davis and Zac Shaw. Re-joining the squad after a one-year hiatus are two additional veterans, Jon Gwizdala and Matt Palazzo, who each helped lead the U.S. to a fifth-place finish at the 2019 WBSC Men’s Softball World Championship and a silver medal finish at the 2019 Pan American Games – the program’s first silver medal finish in 16 years. Also highlighting the 2022 roster are four rookies who will represent Team USA for the first time in their career.
Remaining at the helm of the U.S. MNT for his third-straight season, Head Coach Ron Hackett will lead Team USA in its quest to the podium at the 2022 WBSC Men’s Softball World Championship. Hackett joined the MNT as an Assistant Coach in 2019 where he helped lead the U.S. to a second-place finish at the Pan American Games and a fifth-place finish at the WBSC World Cup during the 2019 season before guiding the squad to a fourth-place finish at the 2022 WBSC Americas Qualifiers earlier this year.
Rounding out the 2022 MNT coaching staff include assistant coaches Gerald Muizelaar, Greg Hicks and Roman Foore. Muizelaar returns to the coaching staff following the 2021 Americas Qualifier while Hicks prepares for his fifth overall appearance as an assistant coach. Entering his first stint as assistant coach, Foore packs years of experience and a wealth of knowledge as a former MNT player.
The USA Softball Men’s Fast Pitch National Team garners nine WBSC Men’s Softball World Championship medals, including five gold medals (1966, 1968, 1976, 1980 and 1988), one silver medal (1972) and three bronze medals (1984, 1992 and 2000). In the Pan American Games, Team USA has advanced to eight gold medal games while claiming the silver medal each time. To learn more about the USA Softball Men’s National Team Program, visit USASoftball.com.
USA Roster
Representing the Red, White and Blue will be a roster that includes 10 veteran members from the most recent Men’s National Team roster, which earned the the U.S. a spot in the WBSC Men’s Softball World Championship after finishing fourth at the Americas Qualifier held in Parana, Argentina in April of this year. Among the veterans are Blaine Milheim, Brad Kilpatrick, Cam Schiller, Erick Ochoa, Jonathan Lynch, Nick Mullins, Tyler Bouley, Tyler Johnson, Yusef Davis and Zac Shaw. Re-joining the squad after a one-year hiatus are two additional veterans, Jon Gwizdala and Matt Palazzo, who each helped lead the U.S. to a fifth-place finish at the 2019 WBSC Men’s Softball World Championship and a silver medal finish at the 2019 Pan American Games – the program’s first silver medal finish in 16 years. Also highlighting the 2022 roster are four rookies who will put on the Red, White and Blue for the first time in their career.
Click here to view the 2022 WBSC Men’s Softball World Championship roster »
Remaining at the helm of the U.S. MNT for his third-straight season, Head Coach Ron Hackett will lead Team USA in its quest to the podium at the 2022 WBSC Men’s Softball World Championship. Hackett joined the MNT as an Assistant Coach in 2019 where he helped lead the U.S. to a second-place finish at the Pan American Games and a fifth-place finish at the WBSC World Cup during the 2019 season before guiding the squad to a fourth-place finish at the 2022 WBSC Americas Qualifiers earlier this year.
Rounding out the 2022 MNT coaching staff include assistant coaches Gerald Muizelaar, Greg Hicks and Roman Foore. Muizelaar returns to the coaching staff following the 2021 Americas Qualifier while Hicks prepares for his fifth overall appearance as an assistant coach. Entering his first stint as assistant coach, Foore packs years of experience and a wealth of knowledge as a former MNT player.
The USA Softball Men’s Fast Pitch National Team garners nine WBSC Men’s Softball World Championship medals, including five gold medals (1966, 1968, 1976, 1980 and 1988), one silver medal (1972) and three bronze medals (1984, 1992 and 2000). In the Pan American Games, Team USA has advanced to eight gold medal games while claiming the silver medal each time. To learn more about the USA Softball Men’s National Team Program, visit USASoftball.com.
From <https://www.teamusa.org/USA-Softball/News/2022/September/29/2022-Mens-National-Team-Roster-Announced>