After the opening match between Panama and the Netherlands, the 2024 WBSC Premier12 presented by RAXUS continues at 4 pm local time on Saturday at the new Coloso del Pacífico stadium in Tepic, Mexico with the showdown between the United States and Puerto Rico.
Two left-handed pitchers will take the mound when the No. 5 and No. 8 in the KONAMI/WBSC Men’s Baseball World Rankings meet. Team USA manager Mike Scioscia selected veteran Rich Hill, while Puerto Rico captain Juan González is placing his trust in Jonathan Bermúdez.
Bermudez, 29, made his MLB debut with the Miami Marlins in August and pitched to an 8.10 ERA in three appearances. In the Minor Leagues he had a 3.38 ERA dividing his time between Triple-A and Double-A. In 101.1 innings pitched he struck out 99, while walking 50. Drafted by the Houston Astros in 2018, it was his seventh season in professional baseball. He is currently a free agent. In 2018 he played for Puerto Rico in the WBSC U-23 Baseball World Cup.
On the mound he will face Hill, a 44-year-old left-handed veteran who made 386 appearances in Major League Baseball with a career ERA of 4.01. In 1,409 innings pitched, he struck out 1,428 batters and walked 543. He played for 13 different organizations in the MLB during his 20-year Major League career. He recently made four appearances with the Boston Red Sox during the 2024 season.
Although both teams are participating in the WBSC Premier12 for the third time, it will be the first time that the United States and Puerto Rico face each other in this tournament. Puerto Rico won their last meeting between the two teams in WBSC competition, when they beat the United States 4-3 in the Super Round of the WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup in 2023. At the senior level, they last met in the final of the 2017 World Baseball Classic, where the United States celebrated an 8-0 shutout.
In previous WBSC Premier12 events, Puerto Rico finished in eighth place in 2015 and tenth in 2019. The United States was runner-up in 2015 and placed fourth in the final standings in 2019. Since 2011, they have met eight times in WBSC competitions with Puerto Rico winning five games and the United States three.
