Little League World Series 2012 Bracket: Updated Standings for Teams in the Hunt

The 2012 Little League World Series started with 16 teams vying for a spot in the Championship Game, but we’re now down to 12 after a weekend full of excitement and heartbreak.

Four teams were eliminated from contention after picking up their second loss this past Saturday and four teams stayed undefeated with a second win on Sunday. The teams with a win and a loss are still in the conversation, but have a much tougher road to the title game in less than a week.

Even though each team has only played two games, there are some clear favorites from each side of the bracket. The standings below reflect the games played through Sunday and you’ll see who’s still in the hunt just by their records. I’ve also provided you with a team to watch from the United States and International side of the bracket. 

United States

Great Lakes	New Castle, Indiana	1-2*
Mid-Atlantic	Parsippany, New Jersey	1-2*
Midwest	Kearney, Nebraska	0-2*
New England	Fairfield, Connecticut	2-2*
Northwest	Gresham, Oregon	0-2*
Southeast	Goodlettsville, Tennessee	2-0
Southwest	San Antonio, Texas	2-0
West	Petaluma, California	3-1
*Eliminated from contention

**Standings updated as of August 22

Team to Watch: Southwest (San Antonio, Texas)

Of the two undefeated teams in the United States’ side of the bracket, the Southwest champions stand out more to me. They have beaten two worthy opponents whereas the Southeast champions defeated a team no longer in contention and didn’t defeat the other too easily.

Texas made it out of the opening round with a three-run victory over New Jersey, who sits a 1-1 through Sunday. They didn’t have any trouble on Sunday against the Great Lakes in a 13-3 beatdown.

The Southwest champions are led by Jordon Cardenas who has proved he’s one of the best players in Williamsport. He’s been unreal at the plate and pitched pretty well too. He will be one of the reasons why the Southwest plays in the United States Championship Game.

International

Asia-Pacific	Taoyuan, Chinese Taipei	1-2*
Canada	Vancouver, British Columbia	1-2*
Caribbean	Willemstad, Curacao	2-2*
Europe	Ramstein, Germany	0-2*
Japan	Tokyo, Japan	2-0
Latin America	Aguadulce, Panama	2-0
MEA	Lugazi, Uganda	0-2*
Mexico	Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas	3-1
*Eliminated from contention

**Standings updated as of August 22

Team to Watch: Japan (Tokyo, Japan)

The International Champion will either be Japan or Chinese Taipei, and if you watched Sunday night’s game you should know why. The other four teams still in contention are not even close to the level that both these teams are playing at.

The edge so far goes to Japan, just because they won on Sunday night in an extra-inning showdown. Chinese Taipei put up a miraculous battle, but someone had to win eventually and Sunday just wasn’t their day. Another matchup between these teams, however, could go either way. For now, Japan is the favorite.

Japan has an incredible pitching staff that can strikeout any batter that steps into the batter’s box. Their hitters are fearless and those are two solid reasons why they are the top International—and possibly overall—team going forward.