Japan To Face Off Against Team USA In World Baseball Classic Final
Last night, Team Japan and Team Mexico faced off in the other Semifinal Game of the World Baseball Classic with a chance to meet Team USA in the Final on Tuesday night. We already know how talented the USA is, and the heroics from Trea Turner over the past couple days that helped bring them to the WBC Final, but Japan and Mexico both have loaded rosters as well. Either opponent would pose a problem for the USA in the title, especially considering Team Mexico hammered the USA in pool play by a score of 11-5. Unfortunately, though, for Randy Arozarena and company on the Mexican National Team, that rematch was not meant to be in this tournament. It wasn’t easy to come to that conclusion though.
While The United States took down Cuba in a laughable 14-2 rout on Sunday evening, the Japan-Mexico Semifinal was an instant classic; one of the great games in international baseball history. It had everything you could’ve wanted for from a baseball game: robbed homeruns, game tying bombs, great pitching performances, and a dramatic finish. Early on in the game, the starting pitchers took center stage as Patrick Sandoval and Roki Sasaki each tossed 3 scoreless innings to start their nights. The 4th inning, though, saw a homer by Mexico’s Luis Urias that put Japan down by 3. It would take them until the 6th inning to answer, but it would be via a 3-run-homer of their own, courtesy of Masataka Yoshida, who just signed with the Boston Red Sox this offseason. 6 innings down, dead tied at 3.
The setup for the dramatic finish was there, but Randy Arozarena sparked Team Mexico to what looked to be a potentially easy finish, helping Mexico build a 2-run lead in the top of the 8th. Japan got one back in the bottom of the 8th, and after a scoreless top of the 9th, needed 1 more to tie the game up, 2 to walk the game off and advance to the finals. Of course, the first man to the plate for Japan was Shohei Ohtani, who laced a double on the first pitch he saw. Yoshida then drew a walk, and the stage was set for Munetaka Murakami to play the hero for Japan. Murakami, who is one of the best professional players in Japan right now, had been uneffective in the WBC to this point, but at one of the biggest moments in Japanese baseball history, the star came through:
?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 21, 2023JAPAN WALKS IT OFF! JAPAN WALKS IT OFF! 🇯🇵🇯🇵🇯🇵 pic.twitter.com/K5VBlpIyTC
— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX)
JAPAN WALKS IT OFF! JAPAN WALKS IT OFF! 🇯🇵🇯🇵🇯🇵 pic.twitter.com/K5VBlpIyTC
— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) March 21, 2023
What a moment for Japan, and what a way to set up an awesome title game vs. The United States. Tuesday night at 7pm, a champion will be decided. Regardless of who wins, it’s sure to be an outstanding display of international baseball.
