It was a dream summer for 12-year-old South San Francisco native Michael Ohman.
Not only did Ohman get named to the USA Baseball 12U National Team for two international tournaments, the way he got there was as unlikely as it was extraordinary. Known more for his skills as a left-handed pitcher on the mound, Ohman went into the Futures Invitational in Cary, North Carolina — the first stage of tryouts for the World Cup team that would travel to Taiwan in July — and absolutely lit it up at the plate, going 13 for 17 over a four-day stretch.
“This was like probably the one time I ever went on a streak like that,” Ohman said. “It was pretty amazing because I didn’t think I would ever go 13 for 17 in a tournament.”
How ever does one top a performance like that?
Ohman did it by earning a spot on the 12U National Team, and bringing home a gold medal from the WBSC U-12 Baseball World Cup. Team USA recorded a 7-2 record in the tournament held in Tainan, Taiwan from July 28-Aug. 6, culminating in a 10-4 victory over host Chinese Taipei at Asia-Pacific Main Stadium.
Coming on the heels of Ohman’s 13-for-17 performance in the Futures Invitational, Team USA’s World Cup tourney opener July 28 was another stunner. Team USA rallied for an unthinkable 43-1 win.
“We were really excited, but we knew we had a tougher opponent coming on, so we had to be focused,” Ohman said.
Team USA showcased plenty of offense through two international tournaments this summer. Ohman was one of 10 players to earn an 18-man roster spot in each tourney, including USA’s championship triumph in the WBSC U-12 Baseball World Cup Americas Qualifier held May 19-28 in Aguascalientes, Mexico.
With a roster including Ty Glaus (son of Anaheim Angels third baseman Troy Glaus) and Colton Byrnes (son of former Oakland A’s outfielder Eric Byrnes) Team USA recorded a 9-0 record in Mexico, finishing with a 29-28 extra-inning win over Venezuela, with Ohman earning the win on the mound with one inning of scoreless relief in the top of the seventh.
Ohman got some spectacular help on defense from second baseman Greyson Wuis, who made a diving play to his backhand with the bases loaded and two outs to rob Venezuela’s Willy Rodriguez of a run-scoring hit.
“We were all pretty hyped up because we thought it was pretty cool the way he made the catch,” Ohman said.
Team USA went on to walk it off for the World Cup Qualifier championship. Ohman’s summer, as it turned out, was just getting started.
Coming off the Mexico triumph, Team USA held another round of tryouts. Ohman was dispatched to Cary, North Carolina as part of Eric Byrnes’ Let Them Play travel team, a regional squad that participated in the four-day national Futures Invitational tournament. Ohman’s breakout performance didn’t guarantee him a trip to Taiwan, however, though it did help him make the cut for the weeklong tryout following the Futures tourney.
Ohman, though, just kept responding to the pressure.
“I handle pressure pretty well in tough moments, I feel like,” Ohman said.
After getting named to the Team USA 12U roster, Ohman spent three weeks traveling with manager Troy Gerlach’s squad. After reporting to the team in Los Angeles, Ohman traveled to Taiwan with Team USA, and lived the big league lifestyle by staying in a hotel, rooming with a teammate, for the entirety of the tournament.
Ohman’s parents made the trip but stayed at a nearby hotel.
“I had one focus the whole time, that was winning the gold medal,” Ohman said. “And just seeing my parents every day in the stands, and talking to them at the park, it keeps me in contact with them.”
Ohman pitched in two games during the gold-medal run, including a winning effort Aug. 4 with 2 1/3 innings of relief in USA’s 11-4 win over Venezuela. Ohman also socked a home run in the game, a booming shot to right field.
In the championship game, pitcher Gavin Gomez was on the mound for the final out against Chinese Taipei, finishing off the championship with a comebacker and soft throw to first baseman Ty Glaus to set off the gold-medal celebration.
“That’s the last out, we all started running out of the dugout with a bunch of water bottles, throwing water in the air … then we started dog-piling,” Ohman said. “We were all just really happy and excited.”
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