TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwan faced off against Nicaragua on Sunday on the third day of qualifiers for the 2026 World Baseball Classic at the Taipei Dome.
Team Taiwan came in with one loss to Spain and one victory over South Africa. Nicaragua defeated Taiwan 6 to 0 and secured their place in the 2026 WBC tournament.
Nicaragua started strong in the first inning with two runs by Juan Montes and Brandon Leyton. Although Nicaragua maintained the two-run lead for most of the game, Taiwan led by starting pitcher Hsu Hsiang-sheng (徐翔聖) and follow-up pitcher Chen Yu-hung (陳宇宏) kept Nicaragua from gaining further runs until the sixth when they scored another run.
Despite several hits and runners on base, the scoreboard remained unchanged until the top of the ninth, when Nicaragua locked in their victory with an additional three runs. Chase Dawson delivered on a double, bringing home Christhian Sandoval and Juan Montes.
The win for Nicaragua secures its first place in the group of four, with three victories and no losses. South Africa was disqualified after three losses over the weekend.
As second and third place finishers, Spain and Taiwan will meet again on Tuesday in the final game of the qualifiers to determine who will advance with Nicaragua to the WBC tournament next year, per CNA.
