1944 Amateur World Series
 | |
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Country | Venezuela |
| Venue(s) | 1 (in 1 host city) |
| Dates | 12 October – 18 November |
| Teams | 8 |
| Final positions | |
| Champions |  Venezuela (2nd title) |
| Runner-up |  Mexico |
| Third place |  Cuba |
| Fourth place |  Panama |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Games played | 40* |
The 1944 Amateur World Series was the seventh Amateur World Series (AWS), an international men's amateur baseball tournament. The tournament was sanctioned by the International Baseball Federation (which titled it the Baseball World Cup as of the 1988 tournament). The tournament took place, for the first time, in Venezuela. It was contested by four national teams playing twelve games each from October 12 through November 18 in Caracas. Venezuela won their second AWS title, though in controversial fashion.
Tournament summary
Controversy surrounded the tournament with umpiring decisions. The Dominican Republic led Venezuela going into the 9th. In the top of the inning, Venezuela rallied to take the lead. In the bottom of the inning, the umpire called the game early due to bad light, reverting the 9th inning and making the Dominican Republic the winner.
More controversial umpiring played a role in a Cuba–Venezuela game in the final phase of the event. After a Venezuelan errored the ball during a close play at first, a photographer came over and threw the ball to one of the Venezuelan players, which led to an out. The Cuban manager protested the call and was told by the umpires that photographers were allowed to intervene in play. Due to this, Cuba withdrew from the Cup and their remaining game was forfeited; they were credited with a third-place finish nonetheless.
Cuba's withdrawal was closely followed by that of Mexico, who also withdrew from the tournament after more controversial umpiring decisions in favour of Venezuela, forfeiting the final round and finishing second. Mexico manager Chile Gómez declared the umpiring in Venezuela "the worst I've seen."[1]
Standings
First round
| Team | W | L |
|---|---|---|
| Mexico
|
6 | 1 |
| Panama
|
5 | 2 |
| Venezuela
|
5 | 2 |
| Cuba
|
4 | 3 |
 Dominican Republic
|
4 | 3 |
 Colombia
|
2 | 5 |
 Puerto Rico
|
1 | 6 |
 Nicaragua
|
1 | 6 |
Second round
| Team | W | L |
|---|---|---|
| Cuba
|
2 | 1 |
| Mexico
|
2 | 1 |
| Venezuela
|
2 | 1 |
| Panama
|
0 | 3 |
Final round
| Team | W | L |
|---|---|---|
| Venezuela *
|
2 | 0 |
| Mexico
|
0 | 2 |
* Venezuela won by forfeit.
Honors and awards
Statistical leaders
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References
- ^ "Umpire Hero to Venezuelans". The Sporting News. 30 November 1944. p. 16. Retrieved 1 September 2024.
- ^ a b "Historia de la Copa Mundial/World Cup History I-X (1938-1948)". Baseball de Cuba (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 12 December 2011.
Bibliography
- Bjarkman, P. A History of Cuban Baseball
- Cup History