The Little League World Series begins Wednesday afternoon, but it won't really have all of Houston's attention until Thursday night when Pearland faces Hollidaysburg, Pa., on ESPN2.

Pearland, which is making its fourth trip to South Williamsport, Pa., should have the entire region on its side as there's not another United States team closer than 800 miles to Houston — shout out to the squad from Nolensville, Tenn., a mere 850 miles from Pearland. Mexico's representative in the 20-team field is much closer as it hails from just across the border in Matamoros.

The Pearland players already have been given the red carpet treatment by Jim "Mattress Mack" McIngvale and the Houston Astros, so imagine what happens if they become the first Houston team since 2000 to win the United States championship.

Here's everything you need to know about the local team before it begins play in the Little League World Series ...

Every game in the Little League World Series will be broadcast on ESPN, ESPN2 or ABC. Pearland’s first game is at 6 p.m. Thursday on ESPN2. A win there would put it back on ESPN2 at 6 p.m. Monday. If Pearland loses Thursday’s opener, it’s next game would be on ESPN2 at 6 p.m. Saturday. The United States championship game will be at 2:30 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 27 on ABC. The tournament championship game will follow at the same time the next day on ABC.

Yes, degenerates, you can bet on these Little League games. The odds at BetOnline.ag have Pearland as a -285 favorite (you have to bet $285 to win $100) to win Thursday’s opener. The site doesn’t have betting odds posted for who will win the whole thing, but only Honolulu, Hawaii at -600 is a bigger favorite in the opening round of the United States bracket.

Pearland hasn’t lost a game this season, running through the postseason tournaments with a perfect 14-0 record. Only one game — a comeback 6-4 win over Mississippi in the regionals — was decided by fewer than four runs. Pearland outscored its opponents 42-0 at the district tournament, 51-14 in four wins at sectionals, 29-5 in three games at state and 48-10 in four games at regionals. In those 14 games, Pearland scored at least 10 runs nine times. Pearland allowed more than five runs just once.

Coach Aaron Cummings said the overall athleticism is what sets his team apart. It also has a good mix of hitting and pitching. Kaden Shelton, who bats second and had a team-best nine RBI at the region tournament, provides a lot of power, while Austin Cummings lends a steady bat and mound presence. In the region tournament, Cummings went 5-for-11 at the plate and threw 7.1 scoreless innings. The lineup also is full of speed led by center fielder Landon Karel, who constantly forces the action on the basepaths.

Jake Zurek leads the rest of the Pearland Little League All Stars during a warm-up drill before practice on July 26. For the first time since 2016, Pearland will participate in the Southwestern Region Little League championship tournament in Waco.

In Little League, all 13 players on the roster must get in the game. For most teams, that means some wasted at-bats. It hasn’t been that way for Pearland with every player who isn’t starting being able to contribute. “These are 13 boys playing together,” Pearland coach Aaron Cummings said. “We’ve told them that everybody is going to have their moment.”

Pearland was at the center of a heartwarming moment that caught the country's attention last week. In the final of the region tournament, Pearland starting pitcher Kaiden Shelton hit Tulsa's Isaiah Jarvis in the helmet with a pitch. Jarvis was down for a while, but eventually made his way to first base. Shelton, however, was shaken up. He had become friends with Jarvis during the teams' stay in Waco and was having trouble keeping his composure on the mound. Seeing this, Jarvis walked out to the mound to hug Shelton and give him some words of encouragement. Former Cincinnati Reds closer Danny Graves, who was calling the game for ESPN, called it “the best thing that I’ve ever seen in Little League baseball.”

All of Houston has rallied behind Pearland with Gallery Furniture owner Jim "Mattress Mack" McIngvale, the Houston Astros and H-E-B all donating $20,000 each to help cover the team's and families' expenses in Williamsport, Pa. McIngvale also took the players and their families to an Astros game when they got back from the region tournament and brought them on the field to watch batting practice and meet several Astros players.

This is Aaron Cummings’ likely final stint as the coach of the Pearland All-Stars. He’s coached the team in years past when his sons were playing, and this is the final year for his son Austin, who plays first base and pitcher. When he isn’t trying to lead 13 kids around a baseball diamond, Aaron Cummings works at PSC Group, a local petroleum company. His assistants are Andrew Solomon and Rob Zurek. Solomon has been invaluable to Cummings this week as he’s had experience in Williamsport with previous Pearland teams.

Pearland head baseball coach Aaron Cummings gets the water bucket after winning the Southwest Regional Little League baseball championship game in Waco, Texas, Tuesday, Aug. 9, 2022.

Pearland can get to the United States championship game with just three wins, assuming it’s able to stay in the winner’s bracket. A win over Hollidaysburg, Pa., on Thursday would give Pearland three days off before it had to play again, and a win in that Monday game would put it in next week’s United States semifinal game. The U.S. title game is Saturday, Aug. 27.

Pearland is just the 15th local team to make it to the Little League World Series, and it will try to be just the third team to win the whole thing, which Westbury Little League did in 1966 and Houston Little League did in 1950. It’s been 22 years since a local team – Bellaire in 2000 – won the United States championship. Pearland has been here three other times and has experienced success. The 2010 and 2015 Pearland teams both made it to the United States championship game. The 2014 team made it to the finals of the consolation bracket.

Matt Young is a trending sports reporter at the Houston Chronicle.

Matt has been a sports editor/writer at the Chronicle since 2015. He's proudly from Alief and occasionally sits alone in his four-cornered room staring at candles. Reach him at matt.young@chron.com.