Australia 12 - 2 China
Mercy rule was used for the first time in this WBC at the expense of China. Australia smells blood in the water now. They're 2-0. China at 0-3 are headed to another first round exit.
Australia got solid pitching throughout but it was the offense that gave the goods the most. Rob Glendenning went deep again as he stakes a nice case for Pool B MVP. Rixon Wingrove swung the biggest stick though, driving in four. Three more players drove in multiple runs in the onslaught.
Poor pitching and high walk rates did China in again. The hitting was better but nowhere near enough to keep up with the Aussies. First baseman Jie Cao was notable going 2-3 but little else was generated in the loss.
Australia gets Japan next. Win and they're in for sure. If they lose, they can still get in by beating the Czechs. They are in a great position. China are pretty much out. They will try to avoid a winless WBC against Korea.
Panama 2 - 0 Italy
Pool A has seen its share of high scoring dogfights, but this one was a pitcher's duel. Panama absolutely required a win and they pulled through with a shutout.
Harold Arauz combined with three relievers to produce the clean sheet. The most impressive of these was Javy Guerra who touched triple digits. Dodgers hot prospect Jose Ramos came up big with a solo homer in the second that ultimately decided things. Allan Cordoba also drove in a run.
Italian pitching was solid but the offense got stuck in the Panama Canal. Blue Jays fans will recall Sam Gaviglio. He pitched three innings and gave up a run in the loss. Nicky Lopez and Sal Frelick had two hits but the offense generated little else.
Panama finished up 2-2 and will wait on the remaining results to see if they qualify for round two. Italy have had back-to-back letdowns and absolutely must win against the Netherlands to avoid elimination, and even that wouldn't guarantee anything. They depend on outside results just like Panama now.
Japan 10 - 2 Czech Republic
A decade and a bit after the tragic loss of his father in the 2011 earthquake and tsunami, Roki Sasaki pitched for his country in the World Baseball Classic and was dominant, striking out eight in 3.2 innings. Samurai Japan is now 3-0 and likely to advance.
Pitching again was strong for Japan. Sasaki was electric save for an unearned run and a hit by pitch. Mister Hiroya Miyagi gave us a rare five inning save. Offensively, Maya Yoshida drove in three more. He will likely be named Pool A MVP at this rate. Shohei drove in another and was lifted for pinch hitter Shugo Maki who homered. Everyone seemed to chip in something today.
For the Czechs, you have to give some credit to Ondrej Satoria, a technician for an electrical company, for hanging in there with this elite Japanese lineup as long as he did. He even struck out Shohei Ohtani. Martin Cervenka, the Czech born player who came closest to reaching MLB, (he got as far as AAA) drove in a run also. The Czechs were generally overrated though this time around but they did earn the respect of their Japanese opponents.
Japan will look to close out a perfect round one against Australia, who also has designs on the knockout stages after shocking Korea and smashing China. The Czechs get a desperate Korea team next that need to win to stay alive.
Taiwan 9 - 5 Netherlands
Team Taiwan strikes again! Stand and salute! Yu Chang fired off a second inning grand slam in his latest Babe Ruth imitation to sink the Dutch. He is quickly becoming a national hero after some controversy around having not yet completed military service in home country.
A 1-0 Dutch lead was erased in a wild second inning punctuated by the aforementioned Yu Chang. Rakuten Monkeys star and reigning CPBL MVP Lin Li cashed in a pair also. Taiwan pounded out eight between the second fourth innings and never looked back. Pitching was still suspect but much better. That said, take a bow Wu Che-Yuan. That hug with Mariano Rivera must have transferred an energy to him. He did not get the win, only a hold, but 4.1 one hit, scoreless frames against the likes of Xander Bogaerts and Jurickson Profar is incredible.
The Dutch pitching fell flat today after an impressive first two games. Lars Huijer and David West combined to concede seven runs in just 2.1 innings. Sir Didi drove in two and pinch hitter Ray Didder homered but it was not enough to erase the poor pitching.
The hosts play Cuba next to close out Pool A at home. They need a win to feel good about their chances of advancing. A loss and they are likely out. Still, much better than 2017 for Team Taiwan. The Netherlands still control their destiny. A win against Italy puts them back in the driver's seat. A loss however could see them crash out in round one for the first time since 2006.
Puerto Rico 9 - 1 Nicaragua
The two-time finalists welcomed Nicaragua to the WBC to kick off the group of death and emerged victorious. The final scoreline is a bit deceiving though. Nicaragua put up a nice fight in a game that felt like a carnival from hours before first pitch to the final out.
The Boricuas managed only a run through four innings before exploding on J.C. Ramirez in the fifth. Francisco Lindor, Emmanuel Rivera, M.J. Melendez and Christian Vasquez all drove in multiple runs, two to be exact. Stro was strong across 4.2 innings, as he always is in big games as Blue Jays fans well know and remember.
For Nicaragua, starter Carlos Rodriguez was impressive against a very tough lineup, being the equal of Marcus Stroman through four frames. Unfortunately, things fell apart for Nicaragua in the fifth. Diamondbacks prospect Elian Miranda made history, homering off Stroman in the fifth to open Nicaragua's account at the WBC.
Puerto Rico get a tough test in Venezuela next. Both of these are powerhouses, and yet whoever loses could possibly be staring elimination in the face. That is the group of death. Nicaragua will look to make history against 2017 WBC darlings Team Israel who will look to prove that was no fluke.
Colombia 5 - 4 Mexico
So you wanted another upset? Here you go! Mexico came in with enormous expectations and they have taken a big blow right off the bat. (no pun intended) A ten inning, 5-4 loss puts them in a rather precarious position early.
The Colombians struggled early against Julio Urias but got him for a Jorge Alfaro RBI double and a Reynaldo Rodriguez two run blast in the fifth. They took another lead, 4-3, in the seventh that Mexico also erased but it was the ghost runner in Alfaro that ultimately came around to score the winning run on an awkward hop that ate up Luis Urias. San Diego's Nabil Crismatt gave them four solid innings and chef Guillermo Zuniga was serving up triple digits in the ninth and tenth innings to keep Mexico at bay and ultimately get the win.
Julio Urias cruised through four for Mexico but ran into trouble in the fifth. Luis Cessa gave up another run but besides this the Mexico bullpen was good but unlucky with the ghost runner scoring on a ball that had a bit of English on it. Randy Arozarena homered for his adopted country and Isaac Paredes drove in a run and stole a base.
Mexico get Team USA next, looking to take put their frustration on the defending champs to further open up Pool C. Colombia will ride this high into battle against Team GB after a day off. Looks like Pool C is getting good.
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