Little League World Series 2012: Bold Predictions for Every Remaining Team

There were 16 teams that came to Williamsport, PA with the hopes of winning the 2012 Little League World Series, but now we’re down to eight contenders, as the others have been sent packing.

Both Volunteer and Lamade Stadium have been the homes of very exciting games and talented players over the first few days of play.

Which teams will continue to rise to the occasion and take advantage of the opportunities that their opponents give them? Which players will lead their teams to victory, whether it be on the mound or at the plate?

With plenty of Little League baseball still to be played, here are some bold predictions for each team still in contention.

Will Lucas Throws Another No-Hitter for New England

New England: Fairfield, Connecticut (2-1)

Will Lucas accomplished something on Monday night that is definitely more frequent in the sectional and regional rounds of the Little League World Series. Lucas pitched all six innings without allowing a hit in an elimination game against New Castle, Indiana.

Lucas has been pretty good on the mound in three appearances for the New England champions, with his best clearly coming on Monday. He was unreal on the mound for Fairfield, as he also struck out 13 Great Lakes hitters.

The scariest part of Lucas’ no-no is that he definitely could do it again. He had all of his pitches working on Monday, and if he feels good the next time he takes the mound, we could be in store for something very, very special.

Brock Myers Hits 5 Home Runs for Southeast

Southeast: Goodlettsville, Tennessee (2-0)

Brock Myers is clearly one of the best players still playing in Williamsport. He’s a great hitter and an even better pitcher.

Through Tennessee’s first two games at the Little League World Series—both wins—Myers is 4-for-6 at the plate with two home runs. He also has scored and driven in four runs for the Southeast champions.

Myers has been locked in against opposing pitchers, and he’s the main reason why Tennessee is undefeated. There’s no reason why his success shouldn’t continue. The power is there, so as long as he keeps making good contact, he can hit plenty of long balls before this tournament is over.

Southwest Pitchers Don't Strike out 25 Batters

Southwest: San Antonio, Texas (2-0)

The Southwest champions have been just as dominant as any other team in the United States’ side of the bracket. Even with their success on both sides of the ball, their pitchers haven’t been very overpowering.

Texas has used five different pitchers through their opening two games, but no one besides Tyler Vitt is much of a strikeout pitcher. In 12 innings thus far, Texas pitchers have combined for 11 strikeouts. That might be just about one strikeout per inning, but that won’t cut it.

In order to win the Little League World Series, a team’s pitching staff has to be dominant by not allowing many hits and has to have the ability to strike batters out. Texas only has one of those, and it wouldn’t be shocking if they didn’t strike out more than 25 batters in Williamsport.

Bradley Smith Hits Over .900 for West

West: Petaluma, California (2-1)

Bradley Smith is the best hitter in the 2012 Little League World Series. He’s easily the most feared, and teams will start to consider intentionally walking him going forward.

Smith leads all hitters in Williamsport with a .800 average through three games. He’s hit singles, doubles and home runs, and nearly every ball he hits is crushed. The only reason he hits singles is because the ball hits the outfield wall so hard and so quickly that it’s impossible to stretch it into a double. The home runs that he’s hit have been bombs.

Smith is a big kid who has the opportunity to hit for power and hit with consistency. He’s guaranteed at least one more game in Williamsport, and his batting average is set to go up even higher. Pitchers should jump for joy if they can sit him down.

Caribbean Makes It to the International Championship

Caribbean: Willemstad, Curacao (2-1)

Japan is clearly the favorite to play in the International Championship Game. Mexico is arguably the second-best international team remaining. That puts Curacao in at least third place going forward along with Panama.

It’s not going to be easy at all for the Caribbean champions to keep winning the way that they have. They will face a tough hitting and pitching team in Mexico on Tuesday, which is an elimination game for them. If they were to win, they’d play the loser of Japan and Panama, which would most likely be Panama.

Defeating both Mexico and Panama would be tough for Japan to do, let alone Curacao. There is reason to believe that they could do it, though. They have some solid hitters that could propel them into the Little League World Series semifinals. 

Japanese Pitchers Allow Fewer Than 2 Runs Rest of LLWS

Japan: Tokyo, Japan (2-0)

The Japanese pitchers are ridiculously good. Have we ever seen a more dominant staff through just two games?

Kotaro Kiyomiya, Yuta Ishida and Noriatsu Osaka have combined to throw the two victories for Japan over a total of 15 innings. In those 15 innings they’ve yet to allow one single run, they’ve given up six hits and have struck out an astonishing 29 batters. That’s nearly two strikeouts per inning, which is an unreal thought.

Japan is in the driver's seat going forward, and I expect them to win the entire Little League World Series. It’ll truly be impressive if they can win it all by allowing fewer than two runs. They’ve yet to allow one, but is any team strong enough to have someone cross the plate? I doubt it.

James Gonzalez Wins Triple Crown for Latin America

Latin America: Aguadulce, Panama (2-0)

We’ve seen plenty of great hitters in Williamsport, but have any of them been as balanced and consistent as James Gonzalez of Panama?

In two games, Gonzalez is hitting .625 with two home runs and six RBI. He ranks tied for fifth in batting average, tied for second in home runs and second in RBI. He can easily overtake the lead in each of those categories should he continue to hit the way that he has.

Gonzalez will need some help in order to win the Triple Crown, tough. Bradley Smith has been on a tear, and Gonzalez would need him to slow down a little as he speeds up. Emil Matti, the home run leader, was eliminated on Monday, so he can win that category despite several others having two home runs. Will Lucas leads the tournament with eight RBI, and if Gonzalez can hit with more runners on base, this shouldn’t be too difficult either.

Mexico Hitters Surpass 20 Home Runs

Mexico: Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas (2-1)

Can any pitching staff stop the Mexican hitters? The Japanese have the best shot, but even with their great staff, Mexico might be too hot for them to handle.

Mexico has played in three games, which is one more than some other teams, but they’re averaging three home runs per game. With nine long balls through three games, Mexico could be on the verge of something very special going forward.

Ramon Ballina and Andres Carrillo each have two home runs, but nearly every hitter in the lineup has the capability of going deep. Should Mexico make a great run through the rest of the Little League World Series, they could easily hit 20 balls out of the park.