It wasn’t the ‘Earth Defense Force’ for nothing. The World Baseball Classic (WBC), which had an all-star team in the major leagues, defeated Cuba in the semifinals. The winner of the Japan-Mexico match to be held on the 21st faced the United States for the championship cup without time to celebrate the victory.
The U.S. national baseball team won a 14-2 victory over Cuba in the 2023 WBC semifinals held at Londipo Park in Miami, USA on the 20th (Korean time). The U.S., which had previously won a dramatic come-from-behind victory over Venezuela in the quarterfinals, passed even the semifinals lightly, securing at least the silver medal.
The difference in power was obvious. The U.S., which dominated the entire batting order from No. 1 Mookie Betts to No. 9 Trey Turner, stormed the Cuban mound. The number of hits was 14, 2 more than Cuba, but he scored 14 points in 8 innings by exploding 4 cannons whenever necessary. In particular, Turner collected 4 RBIs with 3 hits, including a multi-home run, and played the role of the feared ninth hitter. 온라인바카라
Only three pitchers were enough. St. Louis Cardinals’ one-club man Adam Wainwright, who started the game, blocked off 4 innings with 5 hits and 1 run despite his age. Miles Mycolors, who took over the baton, also blocked 4 innings with 1 run, and Aaron Loop cleaned up the 9th with no runs.
Cuba, which once won every world championship and reigned as the ‘strongest in Amaya’, had no choice but to feel the gap in ability that had widened so far. Despite hitting 12 hits, the lack of cohesiveness and the collapsed mound hindered him. With this victory, the U.S. qualified to challenge for the second consecutive championship since the WBC was founded. The first was Japan, which won the tournament in 2006 and 2009.
The opponent to face the United States in the final will be determined through the second match of the semifinals between Japan and Mexico on the 21st. Japan is the only one of the 20 participating countries that has yet to lose once, but Mexico, which defeated the United States and Puerto Rico in the group stage and quarterfinals, is also a formidable opponent. Among the two, Meryl Kelly, who is familiar to Korean fans after playing four seasons in Korean professional baseball, is mentioned as the starting card for the U.S. to face the winning side.