Little League World Series 2015: Picks for Remainder of Sunday's LLWS Bracket
The 2015 Little League World Series has already featured a little bit of everything, from a no-hitter to a team hitting four home runs in an inning and everything in between.
All of that has happened in the first two days, so the rest of the tournament has a lot to live up to. The first order of business Sunday is to provide some separation between the early winners.
Being able to win one game in Williamsport is hard enough, but getting off to a 2-0 start gives teams a lot of leeway because of the double-elimination format leading up to the championship games on August 29.
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On the heels of Sunday's early game, here are the things to expect from the remaining games on the schedule.
Sunday Picks
| 3 p.m. | Southwest vs. West | West, 8-5 |
| 5 p.m. | Mexico vs. Japan | Japan, 3-2 |
| 7 p.m. | Southeast vs. Mid-Atlantic | Mid-Atlantic, 7-3 |
Southwest vs. West
This has all the makings of Sunday's best game, if not one of the tournament's best games. California (West) has been a wrecking ball, punishing all of its opponents dating back to the regionals with a relentless offensive attack.
In five games since August 9, the California kids have scored a total of 64 runs and haven't scored less than 11 runs in any of those games. They made a loud statement Friday with 14 runs against the Great Lakes team, forcing the mercy rule after 3.5 innings.
The third inning against Great Lakes was emblematic of everything California has done this month, making history along the way, per ESPN Stats & Info:
On the other side is Texas, which has gotten some of the best pitching from any American team in the Little League World Series.
Going back to the regional in Waco, the Pearland Little League team has only given up more than two runs once in five games. The pitching staff hasn't given up a run since Colorado got one in the fourth inning of the Southwest Regional title game.
Jarrett Tadlock and Isaac Garcia were brilliant in the Williamsport opener against the Northwest, allowing one hit with 11 strikeouts and no walks in six innings.
In the battle of the unstoppable force and immovable object, California's prodigious offense gets the slight edge because no one has been able to slow it down.
Mexico vs. Japan
Japan has to be breathing a sigh of relief since Mexico will not be able to use Daniel Zaragoza after he pitched five terrific innings Friday, striking out 10 in a 1-0 win over Canada.
Of course, the way Japan's offense has been going, it might not matter who is on the mound. Like California, the Japanese lineup has been red-hot dating back to the regionals. The offense was "only" held to seven runs against Asia-Pacific on Friday.
That was the lowest run total for Japan in a game since scoring four in the regional semifinal. In the three other games played, the offense never scored less than 10 runs.
Against Asia-Pacific, Shingo and Kengo Tomita combined for five of the team's nine hits, three home runs, four RBI and four runs scored. Japan will need more offensive balance Sunday.
Mexico has won all sorts of games, from low-scoring pitching affairs to slugfests. Friday certainly fell into the former category, though the regional championship was a 13-6 win over Conno Hill Little League.
That chameleon-like ability will give Mexico a chance to win against any opponent, though Japan's consistency from game to game gives it the edge in this matchup.
Southeast vs. Mid-Atlantic
The South Carolina (Southeast) and Pennsylvania (Mid-Atlantic) teams looked very strong in their respective Little League World Series openers.
The Southeast kids got a 7-1 victory over New England with starting pitcher Alex Edmondson throwing his second consecutive no-hitter.
Even though the Mid-Atlantic won't have to deal with Edmondson on the mound, ESPN Stats & Info did note he's not just a one-trick pony:
Avoiding Edmondson is a huge advantage for the Pennsylvania squad, because South Carolina's pitching has allowed eight runs when he's not on the mound.
Pennsylvania is a team that doesn't need much help when it comes to scoring runs. It has won each of the last three games, dating back to the regionals, via the mercy rule and has scored at least 11 runs in four straight games.
Even though Pennsylvania won't hit that mark again, it will still hit well enough to come out of Sunday's contest with another victory.
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