Little League World Series 2022: Wednesday Schedule, TV Info and Bracket Predictions
One of the most intriguing schedules of the entire 2022 Little League World Series awaits fans in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, and those watching around the world Wednesday, with two rematches of earlier tournament showdowns and the dominant Hawai'i squad in action.
The team out of Honolulu has been unstoppable to this point in the tournament, living up to expectations in one-sided displays of dominance and determination. They meet a Tennessee team that could make things interesting but will likely meet the same fate all others who have tried to slay the West Region winner have: defeat.
Host state representative Hollidaysburg will seek to defeat Pearland, Texas—the team that dealt them a loss in the opening round of the tournament—while Curaçao and Managua may well have the day's best game.
Wednesday Schedule
1 of 5
- Asia-Pacific Region (Chinese Taipei) vs. Mexico Region (Matamoros) (1:00 p.m., ESPN)
- Southeast Region (Tennessee) vs. West Region (Hawai'i) (3:00 p.m., ESPN)
- Caribbean Region (Curaçao) vs. Latin America Region (Managua) (5:00 p.m., ESPN)
- Southwest Region (Texas) vs. Mid-Atlantic Region (Pennsylvania) (7:00 p.m., ESPN)
Chinese Taipei vs. Matamoros
2 of 5
Both the Chinese Taipei and Matamoros teams are coming off dominant, one-sided victories Monday afternoon.
The former allowed just four hits to its opponent from the Panama Region, three of which came off the bat of a single player. The team has yet to allow a run in either of its first two tournament games, relying on its defense to shut the opposition down and its bats to put things out of reach.
Conversely, Mexico's Matamoros squad dominated the Canada region winner in the most unexpected shellacking of the entire competition to date. Pitcher David Zarate amassed six strikeouts in three innings of work, while the bullpen as a whole no-hit the British Columbian team. They forced three errors on top of that en route to a 10-0 victory.
Like Chinese Taipei, Mexico has been able to shut opponents down defensively and accumulate runs that put the game out of reach before it can ever be truly close. Miguel Padilla has been extraordinary to this point, fueling the team's dominance on offense and defense as its leading hitter and a star pitcher.
Something has to give between the two teams. Chinese Taipei has a long lineage of winning in the LLWS, with more championship victories in tournament play than any other nation. This Mexico team, though, looks like one that can stun the Asia-Pacific representative and deal them their first loss on the grand stage.
Prediction: Matamoros
Tennessee vs. Hawai'i
3 of 5
Hawai'i is undoubtedly the class of this tournament.
The team out of Honolulu has been dominant in the competition, outscoring opponents 29-1 in three tournament showings to this point—including a 6-0 statement win Monday against Texas. They have yet to be tested and should be the favorites to leave Williamsport as 2022 champions.
More impressive than their offensive output is their smothering defense, which has allowed just two hits in three games.
Honolulu has been a runaway train, a team that remembers last year's disappointment (a 2-1 loss to Michigan in the semifinal) and is doing everything in its power to guarantee this year's tournament does not end with a stunning upset.
Tennessee is a tough, scrappy team and will attempt to slow the momentum of its opponent, but there is no reason to believe they can be the squad that can deal them their first loss.
If there is any chance, it will likely come on the bat of William Satinoff, who has been one of the more prolific hitters in this year's tournament with six hits, three RBIs and four total runs.
Is he good enough to do what no team has to this point and keep things even remotely close against Hawai'i? Maybe, but probably not.
Prediction: Hawai'i
Curaçao vs. Managua
4 of 5
The Caribbean Region's Curaçao team has yet to lose in this tournament, with its opening victory coming against the same Managua squad it will play for the second time Wednesday.
In that first showdown, it was the team's ability to turn six hits into two runs that earned them the win over a tough Managua team that has not lost since.
Managua has seen their bats come to life recently, too, scoring 16 runs in two games.
It is difficult to beat any team twice, which is reason to hesitate in picking Curaçao to pull off their fourth win of the tournament. Add to that Managua's proven ability to win a close game in this tournament—including an 8-7 win over Japan that went to extra innings—and that hesitation intensifies.
Curaçao is the safe bet, sure, but Managua is building momentum and confidence with every victory since that opening loss and feels like the right choice to put a halt to Curaçao's unbeaten streak in this international tournament in what should be a close, nail-biter of a game that could conceivably go either way.
Prediction: Managua
Texas vs. Pennsylvania
5 of 5
In the day's second rematch from an earlier game, the Mid-Atlantic Region winner, Pennsylvania, meets the Southwest Region's Texas team, with each team looking to avoid elimination.
That first game was dominated by the Pearland team, which undeniably benefited from a strong pitching performance out of Cody Khan that saw the right-hander deal nine first-pitch strikes and seven strikeouts while limiting the Hollidaysburg squad to three runs on six hits.
Texas' bats came alive in that first meeting and were able to turn nine hits into eight runs in an 8-3 victory.
Since then, the tournament host state has strung together three wins. The first was a narrow victory over Massachusetts, but the other two were anything but competitive. Pennsylvania followed a 7-1 win over New York with a dominant 10-0 victory over Indiana that was stopped in just four innings.
Like the Curaçao-Managua game that precedes it, this has the potential to be the most competitive game of the day. The teams know each other and match up fairly well. The game is likely to come down to which team can play error-free ball and do enough defensively to contain their opponent's offense.
Texas looks like a team that can give tournament favorites a headache if it advances deep in the competition, but Pennsylvania is resilient and has momentum on its side given three consecutive victories and that one-sided win over the Great Lakes Region representative.
A tough game comes down to Hollidaysburg's Chase Link and his proven ability to drive runs in as his home state favorite squad stays alive to play another game.
Prediction: Pennsylvania
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