Japan has everything to retain the World Classic title
Japan arrives at the World Baseball Classic with Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto on its luxury roster
With a luxury roster, which includes the best player on the planet and the Most Valuable Player of the last Major League World Series (MLB), and a fairly accessible first round group, Japan starts the World Baseball Classic in an unbeatable position to seek to defend the title he won three years ago.
Two-way player extraordinaire Shohei Ohtani and starting pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto, both of the two-time MLB champion Los Angeles Dodgers, headline Japan’s luxurious roster, which will face Taiwan, South Korea, Australia and the Czech Republic, in Group C of the first round starting Thursday in Tokyo.
The “Samurai Team” also includes outfielders Seiya Suzuki (Chicago Cubs) and Masataka Yoshida (Boston Red Sox); infielders Kazuma Okamoto (Toronto Blue Jays) and Munetaka Murakami (Chicago White Sox) and pitchers Yusei Kikuchi (Los Angeles Angels) and Tomoyoki Sugano (Colorado Rockies).
But also, to the outfielders Kensuke Kondoh (SoftBank Hawks) and Shota Morishita (Hanshin Tigers); third baseman Teruaki Sato (Hanshin Tigers) and pitchers Hiroto Takahashi (Chunichi Dragons) and left-hander Hiroya Miyagi (Orix Buffaloes), who are among the best in the Japanese major leagues (NPB).
In total, manager Hirokazu Ibata has returned half of the warriors who helped him win the title in 2023, the third for his country (also in 2006 and 2009), in five editions.
The two best teams in the round-robin in the Japanese capital advance to Miami to face, in direct elimination games in the quarterfinals, the two qualifiers from Group D, which is made up of Israel, Nicaragua, the Netherlands, the Dominican Republic and Venezuela.
Ohtani, who has won four Most Valuable Player trophies (all unanimously) in the American Major Leagues, is the center of attention in Japan and the tournament, even if this time he will be limited to serving as a designated hitter and will not be able to act as a pitcher.
In it World Baseball Classic Previously, Ohtani batted .435 with four doubles, a home run, nine runs scored and eight runs batted in and as a pitcher he was 2-1, 1.86 with 11 strikeouts and two free walks in 9.2 innings. He finished the final by striking out his then Angels teammate, Mike Trout, to save Japan’s 3-2 victory over the United States.
Now, the responsibility of pitching will fall to others, especially his Dodger teammate, Yamamoto, who had a heroic performance in the last two games of the last World Series against the Blue Jays to secure the first two-time MLB championship in almost three decades and the Most Valuable Player award.
In it World Baseball Classic In 2023, Yamamoto was 1-0 with a 2.45 ERA and fanned 12 batters in 7.1 innings, improving his bonuses to seek the jump from Japan to the United States. Nine months after celebrating winning the world championship in Miami, Yamamoto signed a 12-year, $325 million contract, the record for a pitcher, with the Dodgers.
Japan should not have any major problems getting one of the two tickets distributed by its group and, basically, it will not have tough competition until it arrives in Miami to face, most likely, the Dominican Republic or Venezuela. But for that match he could have Yamamoto making his second start, who is building an image as a reliable pitcher for the big moments.
