World Baseball Classic

In the end, Japan triumphed, becoming only the second team—after the Dominican Republic in 2013—to go unbeaten in the WBC competition. Although the field is ...

Both the Dominican Republic and the United States won in 2013 and 2017, respectively. [Team USA](/topic/team-usa), [Samurai Japan](/topic/samurai-japan), and the Dominican Republic. [Korea](/topic/korea), and [Puerto Rico](/topic/puerto-rico)twice were also runner-ups. Due to its third-place finishes in 2013 and 2017, it is the first team to advance to the semifinals all four years. The [United States](/topic/united-states)and [Japan](/topic/japan)appeared in the finals in a field of 20 teams, living up to their reputations, while the [Dominican Republic](/topic/dominican-republic)was unable to go past the pool round. Although the field is filled with talented athletes, only the Dominican Republic, Japan, and the United States have advanced to the finals so far.

MIAMI — (AP) — Shohei Ohtani's strikeout of Mike Trout, Trea Turner's go-ahead, eighth-inning grand slam against Venezuela, Japan's walk-off semifinal win ...

Manfred said it is too early to determine whether there will be tweaks to the format. “Obviously, a lot of countries are getting better at the game of baseball,” U.S. “I thought Colombia, man, the arms they were running out there, they weren’t name guys, but everyone was sitting 92 to 95 (mph) and had pretty decent stuff.” All failed to advance past the group phase. The figures represent the percentage of television households tuned to a telecast. Japan drew three of the four most-watched WBC games ever back home going into the championship game, getting a 48.7 rating for the quarterfinal against Italy, 44.4 for the first-round game against South Korea and a 42.5 for the semifinal vs. “But we all love our countries and want to represent our countries. “One of the things that was really important this time around was Fox stepping up to broadcast the games,” baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred said. ... We have an opportunity to represent our countries and learn from our peers. 1," the headline read in Japanese. Played in Miami, Phoenix, Tokyo and Taiwan, the star-studded WBC will finish with revenue of $90 million to $100 million, Major League Baseball said. We don’t get that opportunity to really play wherever the Olympics are at,” Kyle Schwarber said before the Americans lost to Japan 3-2 in Tuesday night’s final, when Ohtani fanned Trout to seal Japan’s first title since 2009 and third overall.

The World Baseball Classic generated its most-watched game telecast ever on U.S. TV, with Tuesday night's USA vs. Japan Final on FS1.

The quarterfinal between Japan and Italy drew a 48.7 TV rating in Japan, making it the most-watched game in WBC tournament history. It was up 69% from the last WBC Final in 2017. That made it the most-watched WBC game telecast ever on American TV.

Viewership was up 69 percent from the 2017 WBC Final with a combined audience of 5.2 million.

Perhaps they build a schedule that has the ability to flex the final onto the main network. [Classic will return in 2026](https://theathletic.com/4333821/2023/03/21/mlb-rob-manfred-world-baseball-classic/), which sets the league up for a nice payday whenever it brings 2026 to market. A week prior, those shows averaged 3.71 million and 1.85 million viewers, respectively (I haven’t seen Tuesday night’s numbers on those shows). [MLB](https://theathletic.com/mlb/) The Show coming to life. The World Baseball Classic final — which ended with [Shohei Ohtani](https://theathletic.com/mlb/player/shohei-ohtani-PYXhWEdNdM6bQVDP/) striking out [Mike Trout](https://theathletic.com/mlb/player/mike-trout-KJGSXFXlt4bQ7ryA/) on a sweeping slider to clinch Japan’s 3-2 win over the United States — peaked at 6.5 million viewers on FS1 and FOX Deportes in the final 15 minutes. MLB confirmed the

LOS ANGELES : The riveting World Baseball Classic (WBC) final that saw Japan beat the U.S. 3-2 on Tuesday in Miami drew a combined audience of 5.2 million ...

LOS ANGELES : The riveting World Baseball Classic (WBC) final that saw Japan beat the U.S. Around the world, the five largest viewership gains in comparison to 2017 were Taiwan (+151 per cent), Mexico (+103 per cent), Canada (+44 per cent), South Korea (+36 per cent) and Puerto Rico (+11 per cent). 3-2 on Tuesday in Miami drew a combined audience of 5.2 million in the U.S., a record for a WBC game, Major League Baseball said on Wednesday.

MIAMI: Shohei Ohtani delivered a fairytale 3-2 victory for Japan over the United States on Tuesday (Mar 21) as the Asian powerhouses won the World Baseball ...

It was a storybook ending." "It's got to be up there. Advertisement

The final at-bat: Shohei Ohtani struck out Los Angeles Angels teammate Mike Trout on a full count to end it. You can't make this stuff up. 88 mph slider down ( ...

[Here's all of them](https://twitter.com/Jared_Carrabis/status/1638365196929335299?s=20). [obliterated one](https://twitter.com/MLBONFOX/status/1638363838587314177)off Yu Darvish to pull the Americans within one. [tied things up](https://twitter.com/MLBONFOX/status/1638329328512430080?s=20). [fourth bomb](https://twitter.com/MLBONFOX/status/1638326502579138560?s=20)in three games, and fifth of the tournament, [tying a WBC record](https://twitter.com/MLBStats/status/1638333194670931974). - 100 mph fastball swung through (2-2) - 100 mph fastball swung through (1-1)

TOKYO -- Japan won its third World Baseball Classic on Wednesday, beating the U.S. 3-2 for its first title since winning the second WBC tournament in.

Japan's national baseball team defeated the United States on Tuesday night in Miami to win the World Baseball Classic for the third time.

Or you may create one on the Disqus system. Ohtani did not win the game on his own. Sho Ishii, 29, watched the game on a large screen at a public viewing event near Tokyo Tower. Fans in Japan celebrated as Ohtani threw the final pitch early Wednesday Tokyo time. He won the tournament’s Most Valuable Player award for his hitting and pitching during the two-week event. Some experts consider them the two best players in the world.

Cubs outfielder Seiya Suzuki had to withdraw from the World Baseball Classic and his Japan teammates held up his jersey after winning the championship.

They communicate every single day, and they stay within the boundaries but try to push those if he's feeling better." He's trusting the trainers and staying on path. I know it's driving him crazy, but he's sticking to the plan.

The World Baseball Classic came down to a Shohei Ohtani vs. Mike Trout showdown. Here's how it played out -- and what to make of the thrilling finale.

[Mike Trout](https://www.espn.com/mlb/player/_/id/30836/mike-trout) -- for the World Baseball Classic title. In the ninth, Darvish pitched the eighth inning, nearly giving up the lead, and paved the way for Shohei Ohtani, who walked to the bullpen after sliding into second base on a double play. The U.S. to one run in the first two innings and the bullpen took it from there. The win gives Japan its third WBC title and ends Team USA's quest for a repeat crown.

As it happened: Japan won 3-2 over Team USA at Miami's LoanDepot Park to capture their third World Baseball Classic championship.

He then bounces out to the pitcher and that’s five innings in the book. Is that Ohtani heading to the bullpen? Yamada promptly steals a base on the first pitch to Genda, surprisingly the first in this game! He finally gets a strike on the corner on the next pitch. The new Japanese pitcher is Taisei Ota, from the Yorimuri Giants, he has 1-3 record, 2.05 ERA and he has just walked a pinch-hitting Jeff McNeil and a single to Betts to start the top of the 7th inning. The next pitch is way off the corner. He had this to say: “You get to see the best Japanese player ever.. Williams’s next pitch is in the dirt, blocked by Realmuto. The next pitch is a ball. He works a full count, fouls the next pitch off. OHTANI HAS STRUCK OUT TROUT TO GET THE SAVE IN THE WORLD BASEBALL CLASSIC FINAL! It was a pleasure covering it for The Guardian.

TOKYO -- Japan's victory in the World Baseball Classic rang in a new era for the national team, showing the rise of power hitters like two-way phenome.