Cooper Thissen is pretty much untouchable on the pitcher’s mound and at the ping-pong table.
When the Davenport Northwest baseball team arrived in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, for the Little League World Series on Aug. 15, Thissen retreated to the rec room set up for players, filled with game machines and ping-pong tables.
Thissen, an avid table-tennis player, began taking on his competition.
One by one, players from around the world marched over. And one by one, they walked away with a loss.
Thissen estimates he’s played about 200 games of ping pong this week, losing only a handful of times.
“It’s kind of a hidden talent of mine,” Thissen said in a phone interview with the Des Moines Register on Aug. 21.
Thissen is better known for his baseball talent, and that was on full display Aug. 21. The left-hander from the Quad Cities delivered one of the most dominant performances in LLWS history on Friday. He stuck out 15 batters, belted a home run and tossed 5 1/3 innings as part of a combined no-hitter in his team’s 1-0 win over Sweetwater Valley of Bonita, California.
“It was very exciting,” said Thissen, whose father Greg coaches Davenport Assumption. “Winning the game and the last strike was amazing. The whole crowd and all our families cheering us on was great.”
Thissen was the biggest factor in the win. It was obvious early on that the day belonged to him. He struck out the side in the top of the first inning and then led off the bottom of the frame by smacking a solo home run to give his team a 1-0 lead. It turned out to be the only run of the game. It was all that Thissen and reliever Anthony Johnson Jr. needed.
Thissen’s only blemish was his four walks, two of which came in the sixth inning as Davenport Northwest was trying to polish off its victory. Thissen couldn’t stay on the mound after reaching the maximum pitch count of 85. By the time he left the bump, only one opposing player had put the ball in play against him.
Johnson Jr. faced three hitters, walking one to load the bases and then getting two strikeouts (both looking) to end the game.
Thissen quickly became a social-media and LLWS star as he almost single-handedly guided his team to a victory in its opening game.
“That was probably about as close to a one-man show as you could see,” Davenport Northwest coach Mark Erwin said.
Erwin had never coached Thissen before this season, but the coach heard great things about him.
“I knew the very first practice that this guy’s a little different,” Erwin said. “I don’t say different in a bad way. Just special. A special player.”
Special indeed. He impressed the ESPN audience with a fastball that was clocked at 74 mph, which is the equivalent of a 96 mph fastball from Major League distance. He also possesses a devastating curveball.
Thissen also was unhittable in the Midwest Region tournament, striking out 27 batters out of a possible 29 outs.
Erwin called Friday’s outing the best of Thissen’s season.
“Especially in this moment, in the limelight,” Erwin said. “California is a good team.”
Tough competition seems to be no trouble for Thissen, either on the baseball field or at the ping-pong table. While he’s just as successful with his paddle, Thissen said baseball is his best sport.
Davenport Northwest plays at noon CT Sunday against the Metro Region champion. After that, Thissen and his teammates will watch Sunday night’s Atlanta Braves vs. Milwaukee Brewers game to be played in Williamsport.
Thissen is hoping to meet Braves slugger Ronald Acuna Jr. and Brewers ace Jacob Misiorowski.
“They’re both studs,” Thissen said.
Just like Thissen was on Friday.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Cooper Thissen untouchable on pitcher’s mound and at ping-pong table
Reporting by Tommy Birch, Des Moines Register / Des Moines Register
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Tommy Birch, Des Moines Register | USA TODAY Network
