The Little League World Series title game is set, so here is a full breakdown of Sunday's championship game that will feature Japan going up against California in Williamsport, Penn.
Both squads have earned the right to play on Sunday. They have made it through the tournament unbeaten up until this point, but only one side will be able to walk away with a perfect record.
With everything on the line, the kids will need to be ready to go from the first pitch.
Here is the important information for the game, along with a full breakdown and prediction.
When: Sunday, Aug. 24, at 3 p.m. ET
Where: Williamsport, Penn.
TV: ABC
Road to championship game
Team Breakdowns
Japan
Pitching is usually the biggest key to winning a championship, and Japan's biggest strength is its pitching.
The team's pitchers have allowed only 2.25 runs per game in Williamsport. More importantly, the pitching has allowed the opponent to score first only once in the four games. Japan has trailed at the end of an inning only once in the tournament.
Japan has done well scoring early and then finding ways to hold on at the end of games. It has scored within the first two innings of every game but has had to finish teams off late several times. The winning run has scored in the bottom of the fifth inning or later in three of the four games, including Saturday's 3-2 thriller over Mexico, with game recap courtesy of GameChanger.io via Little League World Series' official website.
Takuma Gomi hit the go-ahead homer to lead off the sixth inning, a drive which put Japan in the championship game.
Great pitching and timely hitting builds a team's confidence, and, as mentioned above, three of Japan's games have been close. It hasn't been able to dominate teams and coast late in games. Pulling through for victories in those close games shows that this team won't give up.
The pitching has led the way, but the offense is going to need to be much better if Japan is going to win this game.
Japan has won two of the past three Little League World Series, including last year. Although history favors this squad, this is a different team.
California
Unlike Japan, California has a balanced attack.
Its pitching has been dominant throughout the tournament, but the offense has been just as strong.
Pitcher Grant Holman began the tournament with an extra-inning no-hitter. Since that game, the offense has taken care of business.
The team had to rally in the sixth inning of the third game but eventually won 6-3 in nine innings against Connecticut. In a rematch on Saturday, California dominated from the beginning as it won 12-1, with game recap courtesy of GameChanger.io.
The offense is led by Holman, Giancarlo Cortez, Micah Pietila-Wiggs and Nick Mora.
California's offense is averaging nine runs per game in Williamsport. The pitching has been even stingier than Japan's. California's pitchers have allowed only 1.75 runs per game.
With a strong offense and steady pitching, California has been the most balanced team in the tournament. It has won a pair of blowouts and a pair of extra-inning battles—a good combination of games to be a part of.
Chula Vista, Calif., won the Little League World Series back in 2009. Again, the past won't have an impact on the game.
Prediction
History favors Japan, but that won't matter once the game gets underway.
The most balanced team will win. California can win in a variety of ways, and its offense has been more consistent than Japan's.
Japan has been able to get out to early leads in most of its games. It closes games out with strong pitching and timely hitting, but the offense doesn't do much scoring during the middle of games.
California is a team that can score runs in bunches, which puts pressure on Japan to score more than it has so far this tournament. Japan's only chance at winning this game is to hold California to under four runs. That's a tough task and still may not be enough to win.
Prediction: California 6, Japan 2
*All information is courtesy of the official website of the Little League World Series