The first World Baseball Classic game in six years hits the diamond in Taichung, Taiwan, as Cuba and the Netherlands open play in the world baseball competition.
Padres star Xander Boagerts headlines the Netherlands, while White Sox outfielder Luis Robert and former big leaguer Yoenis Céspedes face the Cuban team’s big bats. The two teams form Group A along with Chinese Taipei, Panama and Italy. The top two teams from Group A will face the teams from Group B in the quarter-finals.
Here are the best plays of the game!
Cuba vs Netherlands
Out of the jam!
Cuba built some early momentum on Netherlands starting pitcher Tom de Blok loading the bases in the first inning. But de Blok escaped trouble to get a necessary double play ball up the middle to get out of the inning.
Sound the horns!
The WBC venue was a neutral venue for both teams, but that didn’t take away from the crowd’s energy at all. And when baseball hits the world stage, you’ll see and hear all kinds of new things. For example: the point horn.
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