Japan, undefeated three-time world champion in the baseball classic

Japan defeated the United States 2-3 on Tuesday to win the V World Baseball Classic undefeated and become three-time champions in the finals held at LoanDepot Park in Miami.

10 years ago, the Dominican Republic went undefeated in the Classic, and this Tuesday, the Japanese team equaled that feat by finishing this edition with a 7-0 record.

The Japanese were crowned champions in the first two editions of the World Classic in 2006 and 2009. The United States did so in the last one, played in 2017.

Japan confirmed that they have a great team by finishing as the tournament leader in scoring, while also conceding the fewest goals among the eight teams that advanced to the quarter-finals.

In the sudden-death round, the United States bats combined for 38 hits, with eight home runs and a total of twelve extra-base hits, and produced 25 runs, but today, despite stringing together nine hits, they were ineffective.

The final match of the V World Classic started 25 minutes late due to closing events.

Left-hander Shota Imanaga started on the mound for Japan, while Merrill Kelly, of the Major League Baseball D-backs, took the mound for Team USA.

Trea Turner, the American figure in this Classic, began to excite his team when he hit a home run in the second inning, his fifth of the tournament, to make it 1-0 against Imanaga.

Team USA’s offense got going and JT Realmuto and Tim Anderson singled out Imanaga who was struggling but then regained control of the game.

Japan also showed its cards. Munetaka Murakami knocked it out of the park against Kelly to make it 1-1 in the second inning with a fly ball to right-center.

The one suffering now on the mound was Kelly as Kazuma Okamoto and Sosuke Genda struck him out to take the first two bases. Additionally, he walked Yuhei Nakamura.

With the bases loaded, manager MarK DeRosa switched pitchers: Aaron Loup came in for Kelly, who left the burning ranch in two innings.

Lars Nootbaar grounded out to Loupa, but Okamoto grounded out to second and Japan took the lead.

Manager Hideki Kuriyama mimicked DeRosa and started the third with a new pitcher and sent Shosei Togo to the mound for Imanaga.

Togo released Trout, Paul Goldschmidt, but lost Nolan Arenado and Kyle Schwarber. It was Turner’s turn, but Togo obeyed and kicked him out.

In the fourth episode, the Japanese are back on the attack. Kazuma Okamoto hit a solo home run off Kyle Freeland to make it 1-3.

But the United States was not about to give up so easily.

In the eighth inning, Schwarber, who had been shut up, hit a ‘Bambinazo’ that made it 2-3 and restored faith in DeRosa’s troops.

However, the final came against star reliever Shohei Ohtani, who went 1-for-3 with the loss in the game, and the tying run eluded Team USA as they failed to lift the trophy for the second straight time.

While Japan, the gold medalist at the last Olympic Games, started the celebration on the diamond for the third title they reached undefeated and confirmed that their empire at the World Classic is hot and extended by winning three of the five editions of the tournament. EFE