WBC Wrap-Up: Walkoffs and comebacks
· Yahoo Sports
Friday was a day for blowouts. Saturday was a day for comebacks, and featured the first two walkoffs in WBC history.
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- Ronald Acuña Jr.: 0-for-3, 2B, BB. He hit the ball hard twice, but too high to get anything to show for it.
- Ozzie Albies: 2-for-4, HBP, the first walkoff homer in WBC history. His two outs were exceedingly weakly hit.
- Chadwick Tromp: 1-for-4 with some very nifty defense.
On we go to the games…
Japan 8, Korea 6. These two teams played a bit of a barnburner while you were sleeping. Korea BABIPed their way to three runs off Yusei Kikuchi in the opening frame, but a two-run shot from Seiya Suzuki and a solo homer by Shohei Ohtani knotted the game at three… and then another Suzuki homer and a Masataka Yoshida homer made it a 5-3 game… only for Hyeseong Kim to hit a two-run bomb of his own to tie the game. Unfortunately for Korea, Yeong Hyun Park and Young Kyu Kim boarded the struggle bus, issuing four total walks and pushing the go-ahead run across the plate; a two-run single by Yoshida tacked on, and Korea couldn’t come through with three more runs as Hyeseong Kim struck out while representing the go-ahead run in the eighth.
Canada 8, Colombia 2. In one of the less-exciting games on the slate, Canada took a lead on an Owen Caissie two-run shot early, and then put the game out of reach with a four-run eighth. Favorite son Michael Soroka did okay (2/1 K/BB ratio in three frames), and Colombia’s pitching was terrible, with more walks (seven) than strikeouts (six).
Netherlands 4, Nicaragua 3. This game looked like it was going to be a disaster for the Oranje, until Albies (and a lucky bounce) bailed them out at the last minute. Netherlands scored first when Xander Bogaerts and Albies were both hit by pitches, but their pitching repaid the favor by walking in the tying run in the fifth. Both teams repeatedly threatened to break the deadlock and failed, until Jeter Downs whacked a two-run shot with two outs in the eighth that looked like it could give Nicaragua their first-ever WBC win and put the Oranje in a sticky situation in terms of pool standings. Things looked even more dire when Nicaraguan hurler Angel Obando completed his third inning of work in 1-2-3 fashion, and then got the first two outs of the bottom of the ninth…
…but then Cedanne Rafaela poked a single, and Xander Bogaerts hit a routine bouncer that should’ve ended the game, except it bounced off the third-base bag and went careening over the third baseman. Obando’s next pitch to Albies was a 95 mph fastball down the middle, and Albies pounced, stunning the Nicaraguan side and their fans and redeeming the terrible Oranje effort to that point.
Italy 8, Brazil 0. Enzo Sayawama did a great job starting for Brazil with four innings of 3/1 K/BB ratio, scoreless ball, considering the competition mismatch. When he departed, though, Italy pounced with three homers, including two from 2024 first-round pick and current Phillies prospect Dante Nori. (I gotta say, eligibility for Team Italy cracks me up, it’s like, “has ever been to Staten Island, Connecticut, or Rhode Island” or “has ever eaten a Tour of Italy at an Olive Garden” or something. When you’re here, you’re eligible to represent Italy at the WBC.) The Italian pitching ledger absolutely overwhelmed Brazil’s bats with 15 strikeouts, including eight from starter and Angels prospect Sam Aldegheri, who was actually born in Italy.
Puerto Rico 4, Panama 3. Another game that seemed like it was going to go the way of a big upset, but the favored team ultimately walked it off. Panama took a 2-1 lead into the bottom of the ninth, but a bullpen switch to Alberto Baldonado backfired massively, as he walked three, including pushing across the tying run. For some reason, this game was played with the ghost runner in extras, and both teams scored their gift run in the tenth, which set up Darrel Hernaiz to hit the WBC’s second-ever walkoff homer on the first day as the first. Panama’s loss spoiled a great outing by former big leaguer/current KBO hurler Ariel Jurado; one-time Blue Jays prospect (now with the Twins) Luis Quinones was dominant for Puerto Rico late, striking out five across two frames.
Venezuela 11, Israel 3. Luis Arraez is going on a WBC power binge again, hitting two dingers in this one. Venezuela put up a four-spot in the first (including a Eugenio Suarez homer) and added a five-spot in the sixth; journeyman Enmanuel de Jesus (now with the Tigers) dominated the opposing bats.
USA 9, Great Britain 1. I guess this technically counts as a comeback, because Nate Eaton homered off Logan Webb to begin the game. For some reason, Team USA couldn’t do anything against Tyler Viza and Najer Victor, but obliterated the guys that followed after that. With a 6/7 K/BB ratio for Great Britain pitching and a 17/0 K/BB ratio for USA pitching, it’s kind of wild that this one didn’t end with the mercy rule.
Taiwan 5, Korea 4. Korea took another hard-fought loss, this time in extras. Homers from Yu Chang and Tsung-Che Cheng gave Taiwan a 2-0 lead, but Do Yeong Kim turned it around with a two-run homer that gave Korea a 3-2 lead in the sixth. After a few fruitless rallies, Stuart Fairchild knocked a two-run homer for Taiwan to turn the game around again, but Do Yeong Kim played hero again with a game-tying double with two outs in the eighth. Taiwan scored their free runner in the tenth with a squeeze bunt, while Korea couldn’t follow suit as Hyeseong Kim’s grounder led to a tag out at home. Do Yeong Kim had another chance to swing the game, but fouled out to end the contest.
Seven more games are on tap for Sunday. Will we see another walkoff?