"...Japan moves on,” said Mexico manager Benji Gil. “But the world of baseball won today."
As the 2023 World Baseball Classic comes to a close with narrow 3-2 victory by Team Japan over Team USA, Gil's comment could not be more true. If you took the time to tune in to the WBC, even casually, you know what I mean. If you didn't, you missed some excellent baseball.
We did get the coveted Shohei Ohtani vs. Mike Trout showdown. We also got Trea Turner's unbelievable hot streak. We got Randy Arozarena, Masataka Yoshida, Lars Nootbaar and so many others. We got Team Mexico announcing themselves as a baseball powerhouse, and even Great Britain - Arial font jerseys and all - putting themselves in the conversation as legit.
The World Baseball Classic has been compared to a World Series-like atmosphere, and it was that. It's been also put down by Twitter-bros clamoring for arguments, or likely Yankees, Mets, and now Astros fans. The latter is wrong.
We got to watch has-beens and never-quite-weres, along with upcoming and current stars, all donning the colors of their home (or adopted) countries. The stakes were high, the pride was evident and the passion was contagious.
I can't wait for 2026!
