Jennie Finch throws shutout in final international start, US wins 3-0

Finch throws shutout in final international start

OKLAHOMA CITY — After throwing one last shutout wearing the USA uniform, Jennie Finch stood near the dugout as her son Ace came running from the outfield to greet her.

“Did we win?” the 4-year-old asked her.

“We did, bud,” she said after picking him up.

“Now can we be loud?”

“We can be loud on the bus, yes,” Finch said, passing along the spoils of a 3-0 win against the USA Futures team at the World Cup of Softball.

It’s those family moments that are drawing Finch away from the U.S. softball team after a 10-year career in which she’s won an Olympic gold medal and become the face of the sport. She planned to retire from international softball after the U.S. played Japan later Monday night in the World Cup championship game, allowing her to focus on her family and her plans to have more children with husband Casey Daigle.

“We’ve got one more game to do tonight,” Finch said. “We’ve got to take care of business tonight.”

Finch struck out 12 pitching against the best players who didn’t make the national team and allowed only three singles — including two that didn’t make it out of the infield — in her last international start.

U.S. coach Jay Miller says Monica Abbott will be in the circle for the World Cup championship game Monday night against Japan. Finch also plays first base and could still come on in relief of Abbott.

The team has planned a special ceremony to honor Finch after that game.

“Monica’s going to start tonight, but you never know how the game goes,” Miller said.

“Not a bad way to go out,” he added. “It’s sort of bittersweet with that being her last game. Hopefully, she can play first tonight and get some big at-bats.”

Alissa Haber singled with two outs in the second, then stole second base before coming around to score on Vicky Galindo’s double to the right-center field gap.

Mendoza then tacked on a two-run shot to center field in the third to stretch the lead to 3-0.

That was plenty of cushion for Finch, who didn’t allow a hit until Shawna Wright lined a single to right field to start the fifth inning. Pinch-runner Jamia Reid stole second and then advanced on Molly Johnson’s dribbler, but was stranded at third when Finch struck out Niki Williams and Brittany Lastrapes.

In between, Lauren Schutzler reached on a bunt single that catcher Ashley Holcombe fielded along the third-base line, forcing Reid to head back to the bag.

Jessica Iwata had the only other hit against Finch, an infield single in the sixth, as the Americans (5-1) bounced back after a loss to Canada a night earlier.

Finch also shut out Japan in her only other start at the World Cup and hasn’t given up a run in 18 2-3 innings.

“She threw another shutout for us here this week, and I thought she had command from the first inning on and just dominated the ballgame,” Miller said.

In an emotional last day wearing the red, white and blue, Finch finished the game out by getting Williams to strike out swinging on a 3-2 pitch.

“They are the future of USA Softball and the best of the best. I knew we had our work cut out for us. That’s what you focus on and even that last pitch, of course I knew it could be my last pitch,” she said, stopping to collect herself.

“I knew that I had to get that last out. I was focusing on kind of the task at hand versus my last pitch.”