The United States is back on top of the baseball world.
Thanks to a brilliant performance from starter Marcus Stroman and great run support, Team USA defeated previously unbeaten Puerto Rico, 8-0, to win its first World Baseball Classic title in front of more than 51,000 fans at Dodger Stadium.
With his mother born and raised in Puerto Rico, Stroman wasn’t sure who he was going to suit up for, but after thinking about it, Stroman said he felt like he needed to play for Team USA.
And it’s a good thing he did because the Toronto Blue Jays’ ace was the difference Wednesday night as he took a no-hitter into the seventh inning to lead Team USA to it’s first WBC championship.
Glory, achieved. https://t.co/OZAdjFwysD #WBC2017 pic.twitter.com/2IhVTHugPs
— MLB (@MLB) March 23, 2017
What’s an American celebration without the eagle? pic.twitter.com/2MUcItZwYt
— WBC Baseball (@WBCBaseball) March 23, 2017
Thank you to this team for representing USA Baseball in #WBC2017 with such passion and pride. We played #ForGlory?? and brought it home! ?? pic.twitter.com/HXD0A5KG7k
— USA Baseball (@USABaseball) March 24, 2017
On offense, Team USA was led by Ian Kinsler who hit a two-run home run in the third inning and Brandon Crawford added a two-run single as part of a three-run seventh to blow the game open.
After falling earlier in the tournament, Team USA had to claw it’s way back for a shot at the title and did just that as they took down the Dominican Republic, Japan, and Puerto Rico.
The WBC started back in 2006 with Japan taking the crown in 2009 too. The Tournament is set to take place every four years. The Tournament takes place across a number of different venues, beginning with Seoul, Tokyo, and Miami before the top teams made their way to Los Angeles for the Championship Round.
Past World Baseball Classic Champions
2017: USA
2013: Dominican Republic
2009: Japan
2006: Japan
