A bunt decided the Little League World Series and the team from Lake Mary, Florida, celebrated a championship title after its 2-1 victory over Chinese Taipei in eight innings.
Florida tied the game with two outs in the sixth inning when it looked like Chinese Taipei would win 1-0. DeMarco Mieses hit a single to left field to bring home Chase Anderson, who had just been hit by a pitch and had advanced to second base after a base on balls.
After a scoreless seventh inning, both teams began the eighth inning with ghost runners on second base. Chinese Taipei was unable to bring the runner home, giving Florida a chance to win the game.
Florida scores winning goal through bunt
The home team won the game quickly. First batter Hunter Alexander threw a near-perfect bunt up the first base line. The Chinese pitcher caught the bunt and threw it toward first base, but no one covered first base and the ball flew up the right field line, giving Florida the Little League World Series title.
The team from Florida celebrated its victory, but also consoled the defeated Chinese Taipei and demonstrated an act of sportsmanship rarely seen on the international stage.
Florida had sent teams to the championship game nine times, and this was the first time it won the championship in the title game.
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Reactions from fans watching the game were both funny and celebratory, including a post on X that featured a photo of the venerable comedy team of Bud Abbott and Lou Costello performing their famous routine “Who’s On First.” This post seemed particularly fitting since first base was exposed on the game-winning play.
Other posts taught a baseball lesson, imploring the player to hold onto the ball when a teammate doesn’t cover the base, while another post expressed sympathy for a team that was so close to winning.
Steve Silverman has covered the NFL for more than 35 years and his articles have appeared in ESPN Magazine, Bleacher Report, CBS Sports, Pro Football Weekly and Forbes.com. He has written 10 books, including “Who’s Better, Who’s Best in the NFL.”
