The Japan who advanced to the finals of baseball's WBC = World Baseball Classic will face the United States, which is full of major league stars, on 21 June. Japan was a meeting with the United States, who are aiming to win the championship for the first time in three tournaments since 2009 and are aiming to win back-to-back titles.
Final starter is Shota Imanaga
Japan won the semi-final against Mexico with a dramatic bye win to advance to the final.
The final will be held on the 21st and Japan 22nd at the same time as the semi-finals at Lone Depot Park in Florida, USA.
The starting pitcher is scheduled to be Shota Imanaga.
Following the first-round match against Korea Republic and the quarterfinal match against Italy, he threw a total of four innings and gave up one run.
Coach KURIYAMA Hideki said of the final, "We will fight with the mindset that everyone who can make it will go," and regarding the appointment of Shohei Ohtani as a pitcher, "The possibility is not zero, so we will see how he is on the day."
The U.S. is aiming for back-to-back titles, all big leaguers
The United States, who are aiming to win their second consecutive World Cup, are all made up of MLB players, including Ohtani and his teammate Trout at the MLB Angels.
In the semi-final against Cuba, they hit 2 hits, including four home runs, to win 30-4 and advance to the final.
In particular, the offensive team has been improving with each game since the start of the tournament, and Turner, the leading hitter in the National League, has hit four home runs with a batting average of 9.3.6 so far.
In the quarterfinals, he hit a come-from-behind home run.
In addition, Goldschmidt, who won the National League MVP award last season, is also improving his form, hitting his first home run of the tournament in the semifinals.
In order for Japan to win the championship for the first time in three tournaments, the key will be whether the pitching staff can find a rhythm with the powerful batting line of the United States, which is full of star players, and demonstrate the Japan's ability to score one run with small skills.
《What is your WBC record》
Japan has faced the United States three times in the WBC.
Their head-to-head record is 3 win and 1 losses.
1st (2006) 2nd Round ●Japan 3-4× USA ○
The first meeting was in the first game of the second round of the first tournament in 2006, and against the American batting lineup, which consisted of star players such as Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez, starting pitcher Koji Uehara pitched well, giving up one run in five innings.
However, in the eighth inning with the score tied 1-2, Tsuyoshi Nishioka, who touched up with one out, seemed to have returned home and won the game, but the U.S. protest that the start was early was acknowledged and the game was not won, and in the end, the team lost the bye 5-1.
2nd (2009) Semifinals ○Japan 9-4USA●
The second meeting was in the semifinals of the second tournament in 2, and after the batting line showed a fierce attack, scoring five runs in the fourth inning, starting pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka pitched well with two runs in the middle of the fifth inning, and from there, Darvish pitched a scoreless inning to win 2009-2.
4th (2017) Semifinals ●Japan 1-2 USA ○
The third was the semi-finals of the fourth tournament in 3.
Pitcher Tomoyuki Kanno pitched well, giving up one run in six innings, but only scored one run on a solo home run by Ryosuke Kikuchi. In the end, the second pitcher, Kodai Senga, gave up one run in the eighth inning to win the game, losing 2017-4.
《What are the results of this tournament》
Japan 6 wins, 0 losses
【1st Round Group B】
○Japan 1-8 China PR
Japan 1-13 Korea Republic Japan 4-10 Czech Republic Japan
2-7 Australia Japan
1-9 Italy【
Semifinals】
○Japan 3×-6 Mexico●
【Click here for details】Semi-finals Japan×Mexico
【Click here for details】Quarterfinals Japan× Italy
USA 5 - 1
【1st Round, Group C, 2nd place】
○USA 6-2 Great Britain●●USA 5-11 Mexico○○USA 12-1 Canada
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USA 3-2 Colombia
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【Quarterfinals】
○USA 9-7 Venezuela●
【Semifinals】
○USA 14-2 Cuba●