USA Softball Men's National Fast Pitch Team undefeated in World Championship tune-up

OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. — The USA Softball Men’s National Fast Pitch Team went undefeated June 26-27 at the Moyer Sports Complex in Salem, Va., picking up four exhibition wins in preparation for next month’s International Softball Federation World Men’s Softball Championship. Team USA defeated the Virginians (Salem, Va.) 9-2 and 6-1 and topped the Keatings (Pa.) Fitness Center 12-2 and 12-3.

“I am happy with the results. The guys played real well over the weekend so it was a great tune-up for the World Championships,” Coach Pete Turner said. “I am happy with the way that they were hitting the ball out there. And our pitching staff did exactly what we wanted, putting up zeros on the board. I really think this is one of the strongest men’s teams that we’ve had in a while.“

Tyrone McKinney (Ashland, Ohio) allowed the Virginians five hits over seven innings to pick up the Friday night win. McKinney was supported by a strong offense that scored nine runs—two in the second, two in the third and dive in the fifth—off 12 hits. Team USA had home runs from designated hitter Chris DeLarwelle (Forestville, Wis.), second baseman Stephen Pinocchio (Jamestown, Calif.), centerfielder Adam LaLonde (Ashland, Ky.) and shortstop Blake Miller (Kingsville, Texas). 

Behind two home runs from catcher Don Garvey (Appleton, Wis.), who went 2-for-4 with two hits and two RBI, Team USA also beat Keatings 12-2 on Friday. The opponents used a combination of three pitchers in an attempt to stop the explosive American offense that scored four runs in the fifth and five in the sixth but no Keatings pitcher could shut down Team USA.

Travis Price (Corona, Calif.) earned his second consecutive win on Saturday as the USA topped the Virginians 6-1. Price, who pitched a complete game Friday night against Keatings, picked up the win with four innings of work. He struck out seven batters while allowing two hits. McKinney struck out four in his three innings.

Both Frank DeGroat (Ringwood, N.J.) and Landy Rodriguez (West Haverstraw, N.Y.) had home runs for Team USA.

In the Saturday nightcap, Price picked up his third win of the weekend with the USA’s 12-3 showing over Keatings. The offensive performance was highlighted by Daryn Miller (Creve Coeur, Ill.), who went 3-for-3, and long balls from DeLarwelle and DeGroat. 

“These games are just tune-ups to get everyone playing together as a team, to get everyone understanding their roles and responsibilities before we get into Worlds,” Turner said. Team USA has two or three more exhibitions in Canada before playing in the ISF World Men’s Championships July 17-26 in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. 

The five-time World Champion Americans, coming off a fourth-place performance in 2004, will also face tough competition from five-time World Champion New Zealand, which has won the last three World titles (1996, 2000 and 2004), when they kick off pool-play against each other on July 17. Also playing in Saskatoon are 2004 World silver medalists Canada and bronze medalists Australia. 

“I think we’ve got a good mix of guys that will make us competitive with the best teams in the world,” Turner said. “We have some great hitters but if our bats are struggling, it’s not game over for us. We have a strong pitching staff that I think can carry us through.”

Although the USA Softball Men’s National Fast Pitch Team is one of the most decorated in the world, it has been 21 years since the Americans stood atop the Worlds podium. The program history includes five gold medals (1966, 1968, 1976, 1980 and 1988), one silver (1972) and three bronze (1984, 1992 and 2000).

The World playoffs are July 24-25 with the medal rounds on July 26. Following the bronze medal game at noon, two teams will play for the 2009 International Softball Federation World Men’s Softball Championship title at 3 p.m. in the Bob Van Impe Stadium.

For more information about Worlds, visit www.2009worldsmensfastpitch.com.

About ASA
The Amateur Softball Association, founded in 1933, is the National Governing Body of softball in the United States and a member of the United States Olympic Committee. The ASA has become one of the nation’s largest sports organizations and now sanctions competition in every state through a network of 83 local associations. The ASA has grown from a few hundred teams in the early days to over 240,000 teams today, representing a membership of more than three million. For more information on the ASA, visit http://www.asasoftball.com/.

About USA Softball
USA Softball is the brand created, operated and owned by the ASA that links the USA Men’s, Women’s, Junior Boys’ and Junior Girls’ National Team programs together. USA Softball is responsible for training, equipping and promoting these four National Teams to compete in international and domestic competitions. The USA Softball Women’s National Team is one of the only two women’s sports involved in the Olympic movement to capture three consecutive gold medals at the Olympic Games since 1996. The U.S. women have also won eight World Championship titles including the last six consecutive as well as claimed two World Cup of Softball titles. For more information about USA Softball, please visithttp://www.usasoftball.com/.