Alone and 2,200 miles from home, Venezuela shuts out Puerto Rico 5-0 at Little League World Series

SOUTH WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. (AP) — Hitting with the bases loaded at the Little League World Series, Samuel Castillo found the gap between left and center field. Two runs scored and Venezuela’s lead over Puerto Rico grew to 3-0.

Above the team dugout, spectators in a fan section that barely filled three rows raised one of the few Venezuelan flags in Volunteer Stadium.

It took a lot for Venezuela to get here, but on Wednesday, its team made the playing baseball part of the journey look easy. Cardenales Little League from Barquisimeto went on to shut out Puerto Rico 5-0.

Cardenales won all five of its regional tournament games, outscoring opponents 46-6 to become the Latin America representative to the LLWS. But in the wake of President Donald Trump’s travel bans and restrictions affecting 19 countries, the team needed a special exemption from the U.S. State Department and a sign-off from Secretary of State Marco Rubio after visas were initially denied.

Venezuela’s senior team, players who are up to 16 years old, which was supposed to compete in Easley, South Carolina, last month was unable to get the exemption and was denied entry to the United States.

“They were working their way through applying for the exemption,” Little League President and CEO Patrick Wilson said in a news conference before Wednesday’s game. “We ran out of time, just candidly.”

Wilson said there were close to 10 days for Venezuela’s Williamsport team to get approved, which was “more lead time” than the senior team. They were notified of the approval last Thursday.

This isn’t the first time visa snarls have been an issue at the tournament. In 2011, Uganda’s visa applications were denied and Saudi Arabia, the regional runner-up, played instead.

“We’ll do our best to have conversations with the great folks at the State Department that help us out in an effort to, whether we have to adjust lead times or whatever we can do, to ensure that all teams can participate and enjoy the Little League experience, whether that’s at the Little League level, junior, senior, softball, whatever it takes,” Wilson said.

Venezuelan players traveled to the United States without their families — parents couldn’t get visas — but the coaches of last year’s team that made it to the international final were among the few fans from back home sitting proudly in the stands above the dugout. Euclides and Ender Rivero only had to renew their visas which, they explained through an interpreter, was a much easier process.

Maria Lewis sat just a few seats away from the Riveros holding one of the country’s flags and wearing the Latin America team shirt. She’s Venezuelan and lives only an hour away from Williamsport.

“I’ve been praying for them to come,” Lewis said. “I’m very pleased that (their visas were) granted, because these are 12-year-olds that deserve to play their game.”

She comes to Volunteer Stadium every year when a team from Venezuela plays.

“I’m just here like a team mom, honorary team mom, so that they can feel supported, that they have people behind them,” Lewis said.

Manager Luis Bermudez said the team has been keeping in touch with those 2,204 miles (3,547 kilometers) away in Barquisimeto through their smartphones, and he’s grateful to the fans Venezuela did have in the stands.

“We’re very happy we have all their support,” he said through an interpreter.

On Friday, Venezuela will play Canada.

“I’m so happy to be here,” Francisco Rivero, who scored twice on Wednesday, said after the win. “It’s a great feeling.”

Monica Arcuri became the 24th girl to play in the Little League World Series on Wednesday when her Australia club played Panama.

She started at first and rounded out the lineup for the team from Brisbane. This tournament also features the fifth female coach and a female umpire, Traci Duez, who was at second base for the Panama-Australia game. The Little League Softball World Series concluded last week with record viewership.

“For a young lady whether she chooses to play softball or baseball, we want her to have those choices, you know, and if she switches at a certain point, that’s OK, too,” Wilson said. “We just want her to participate.”

Amanda Vogt is a student in the John Curley Center for Sports Journalism at Penn State.

AP sports: https://apnews.com/sports

Venezuela's baseball team participates in the opening ceremony at the Little League World Series, Wednesday, Aug. 13, 2025, in South Williamsport, Pa. (AP Photo/Caleb Craig)

Venezuela's Abraham Rodriguez celebrates after being brought home on a walk against Puerto Rico, during the second inning of a baseball game at the Little League World Series, Wednesday, Aug. 13, 2025, in South Williamsport, Pa. (AP Photo/Caleb Craig)

Venezuela's Alam Parra (4) celebrates a run with teammate Francisco Rivero (17) during the fifth inning of a baseball game against Puerto Rico at the Little League World Series, Wednesday, Aug. 13, 2025, in South Williamsport, Pa. (AP Photo/Jared Freed)

Venezuela's Juan Reyes celebrates a win against Puerto Rico following a baseball game at the Little League World Series Wednesday, Aug. 13, 2025, in South Williamsport, Pa. (AP Photo/Jared Freed)

Venezuela's Fabricio Perdomo Canelon (18) tosses a ground ball to teammate Juan Reyes (10) during the sixth inning of a baseball game against Puerto Rico at the Little League World Series Wednesday, Aug. 13, 2025, in South Williamsport, Pa. (AP Photo/Jared Freed)

BEIJING (AP) — Breaking with the United States, Canada has agreed to cut its 100% tariff on Chinese electric cars in return for lower tariffs on Canadian farm products, Prime Minister Mark Carney said Friday.

Carney made the announcement after two days of meetings with Chinese leaders. He said there would be an initial cap of 49,000 vehicles on Chinese EV exports to Canada, growing to 70,000 over five years. China will reduce its tariff on canola seeds, a major Canadian export, from about 84% to about 15%, he told reporters.

“It has been a historic and productive two days,” Carney said, speaking outside against the backdrop of a traditional pavilion and a frozen pond at a Beijing park. “We have to understand the differences between Canada and other countries, and focus our efforts to work together where we’re aligned.”

Earlier Friday, he and Chinese leader Xi Jinping pledged to improve relations between their two nations after years of acrimony.

Xi told Carney in a meeting at the Great Hall of the People that he is willing to continue working to improve ties, noting that talks have been underway on restoring and restarting cooperation since the two held an initial meeting in October on the sidelines of a regional economic conference in South Korea.

“It can be said that our meeting last year opened a new chapter in turning China–Canada relations toward improvement,” China's top leader said.

Carney, the first Canadian prime minister to visit China in eight years, said better relations would help improve a global governance system that he described as “under great strain.”

He called for a new relationship “adapted to new global realities” and cooperation in agriculture, energy and finance.

Those new realities reflect in large part the so-called America-first approach of U.S. President Donald Trump. The tariffs he has imposed have hit both the Canadian and Chinese economies. Carney, who has met with several leading Chinese companies in Beijing, said ahead of his trip that his government is focused on building an economy less reliant on the U.S. at what he called “a time of global trade disruption.”

A Canadian business owner in China called Carney's visit game-changing, saying it re-establishes dialogue, respect and a framework between the two nations.

“These three things we didn’t have,” said Jacob Cooke, the CEO of WPIC Marketing + Technologies, which helps exporters navigate the Chinese market. “The parties were not talking for years.”

Canada had followed the U.S. in putting tariffs of 100% on EVs from China and 25% on steel and aluminum under former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Carney’s predecessor.

China responded by imposing duties of 100% on Canadian canola oil and meal and 25% on pork and seafood. It added a 75.8% tariff on canola seeds last August. Collectively, the import taxes effectively closed the Chinese market to Canadian canola, an industry group has said. Overall, China's imports from Canada fell 10.4% last year to $41.7 billion, according to Chinese trade data.

China is hoping Trump’s pressure tactics on allies such as Canada will drive them to pursue a foreign policy that is less aligned with the United States. The U.S. president has suggested Canada could become America's 51st state.

Carney departs China on Saturday and visits Qatar on Sunday before attending the annual gathering of the World Economic Forum in Switzerland next week. He will meet business leaders and investors in Qatar to promote trade and investment, his office said.

Associated Press business writer Chan Ho-him in Hong Kong contributed to this report.

Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney, center, arrives to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping, at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian, Pool)

Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney, left, meets with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press via AP)

Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney, left, shakes hands with China's President Xi Jinping at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press via AP)