Tag: World Baseball Classic

Australian pitcher shared a fun video on his very relatable mindset as he struck out Shohei Ohtani

“Act cool, Todd.”

Striking out Shohei Ohtani is no easy feat, but Australian pitcher Todd Van Steensel was able to do just that during the World Baseball Classic.

While the World Baseball Classic may be over, and Ohtani now a world champion after striking out teammate Mike Trout in the final, Van Steensel gave fans a unique insight into his mindset during the tournament. Specifically, when Van Steensel struck out Ohtani during pool play of the World Baseball Classic.

The video is a fun little breakdown of Van Steensel’s internal thought process in the moment, from fanboying over Ohtani to his pitching processes to get the strikeout. Plus, of course, Van Steensel had a hilarious inner celebration after getting Ohtani to swing and miss on a fastball.

Pretty insightful commentary!

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A compilation video of fans in Japan celebrating the World Baseball Classic win was so cool to watch

It means so much to them.

For much of the World Baseball Classic, there were critics in the U.S. who liked to dismiss the entire tournament as a meaningless exhibition. The chorus of naysayers was particularly loud following injuries to Edwin Diaz and Jose Altuve.

But all you had to do was take a look at the packed stadiums and raucous atmospheres to see that these games were meaningful. The scene in Japan on Wednesday was further proof of just that.

When Shohei Ohtani struck out Angels teammate Mike Trout to win the WBC title for Japan, it was approaching noon on Wednesday in Tokyo — a time when schools, airports, pubs and watch parties were packed with people watching the game.

The scene across Japan looked like this in a compilation video of the final out.

Just awesome. And I especially love how the reactions were uniquely respectful — compared to what you’d see in the U.S.

As Ohtani explained, Japanese players look up to MLB stars, so it was extremely impactful to be able to defeat Team USA. It wasn’t a meaningless tournament at all to them.

MLB fans on Twitter also enjoyed seeing the reaction video.

One wild stat showed just how special Shohei Ohtani’s strikeout of Mike Trout truly was

An absolutely mind-blowing stat.

Tuesday’s final of the World Baseball Classic came down to a matchup that was straight out of a movie script. It was a one-run game with two outs, and two of the greatest talents to ever play baseball — who also happen to be MLB teammates — were facing each other with a championship on the line.

Shohei Ohtani vs. Mike Trout. How could it get any better than that?

Well, Ohtani found a way.

We’ve heard plenty about Trout’s legendary career, especially written here at For The Win. Despite playing for the lowly Angels, Trout is statistically one of the best players in baseball history. But Ohtani is a true generational unicorn — an elite two-way player not seen since the Babe Ruth era — and he managed to strike out his Angels teammate in a way that few pitchers have ever managed to pull off.

Ohtani struck out Trout in an at-bat that had three swinging strikes. In Trout’s entire big-league career, he’s only had 24 such at-bats (a strikeout with three swinging strikes in the plate appearance) out of 6,174 plate appearances. And Ohtani managed to do that in the first time they had ever faced each other.

That’s just an incredible stat that speaks to Ohtani’s greatness — along with Trout’s.

MLB fans were justifiably impressed by that fact.

Pedro Martinez showered Shohei Ohtani with so much praise in a classy moment

This was just such a touching moment between Pedro Martinez and Shohei Ohtani

There are some other names you could throw into the ring at this point, but it certainly feels like Shohei Ohtani is the best player in baseball. And he proved that once again on Tuesday night in the World Baseball Classic.

Ohtani gave us an absolute classic of an ending to the WBC by striking out his buddy and teammate, Mike Trout, who some would also argue is the best player in the world. Yet, still, he struck out swinging with Ohtani up at the plate for Japan.

It was an incredible performance from the Angels pitcher that had all of us in awe.

That’s what was just so impressive about it. If there was ever a moment that so clearly demonstrated Ohtani’s dominance, this was it. What’s so crazy about it is that this just isn’t something that happens — not to Mike Trout. He’s almost never left swinging at the plate. Until Ohtani.

 

So after the game, of course, Ohtani does postgame media with the MLB Network crew. But what happened next felt so special.

He goes over to the crew’s table and gets ready to take questions. And Pedro Martinez just begins showering the superstar with love and praise for everything that he’s done for baseball. It’s an amazing moment.

“Shohei, I want to say…on behalf of baseball…we want to thank you for the effort, for the discipline, for everything that you have done for baseball and what you represent for baseball. I just want to personally thank him for all you do. All you do. We are really proud and thankful and grateful for what you do. You are a special human being. So we want to thank you and recognize it.” 

That’s such a cool moment, man. On so many different levels.

Sure, you could look at this as a player getting praise for what was a masterful performance in the WBC. But this is so much more than that. This is an absolute star of a previous generation in Pedro Martinez showering the star of the current generation in Ohtani with love.

That’s something you don’t often see in sports. There are times when older players can feel a bit jaded about the current era. It happens for a dumber of different reasons. It can be money, rule changes, or whatever. We’ve seen it across a number of sports.

So it’s just extremely nice to see Ohtani get this sort of love. As fans, we absolutely love to see it.

11 awesome photos of Japan’s dramatic 2023 World Baseball Classic victory

Japan’s World Baseball Classic celebrations were absolutely epic.

What a night for baseball!

On Tuesday, Japan bested the United States 3-2 in the 2023 World Baseball Classic final, stopping Team USA from going back-to-back in the tournament. The game was an exhilarating end to a truly awesome tournament, as while the United States took an early lead, Japan battled back to take lead and eventually the win.

And, of course, the cherry on top was Shohei Ohtani striking out Los Angeles Angels teammate Mike Trout in the ninth inning to seal the win for Japan. Talk about a storybook ending to one of the most exciting few weeks of baseball we’ve seen in some time.

As the dust settles on the 2023 World Baseball Classic, here are the best photos from Japan’s incredible championship win.

Hear Japanese broadcasters’ electric call of Shohei Ohtani striking out Mike Trout to win WBC

Goosebumps!

In a magical ending to a stellar World Baseball Classic on Tuesday night, two Los Angeles Angeles faced off for the victory: Shohei Ohtani on the mound and Mike Trout at the plate. Just totally perfect.

Following Mookie Betts grounding into a double play in the top of the ninth, Trout stepped up and looked like he was swinging for the fences as Team USA’s one last chance. But Ohtani was on fire against his MLB teammate and struck Trout out as Japan topped the U.S., 3-2, in a thrilling ending to a 2023 tournament that’s become an instant classic.

While baseball fans on Twitter were overjoyed by the storybook ending, surely one of the best reactions to Ohtani’s final pitch and Japan’s victory over Team USA came from these Japanese broadcasters:

Absolutely electric!

Shohei Ohtani struck out Mike Trout for the most storybook ending to the World Baseball Classic

WHAT AN ENDING!

The scriptwriters could not have written this one any better.

With everything on the line during the ninth inning of the 2023 World Baseball Classic final between the United States and Japan, baseball fans got everything they ever could have wanted. At long last, the memes were made real, as Los Angeles Angels teammates Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout faced off against one another in a pivotal moment.

With no one on, two outs, and the United States down 3-2 in the top of the ninth, Ohtani struck out Trout in the most storybook fashion to help Japan win its third World Baseball Classic in history.

That, my friends, is sports drama at its finest.

The matchup between Ohtani and Trout was everything baseball fans could have asked for and more. And to have Ohtani strike out Trout on a full count, no less, was peak sports drama and theater. No contest.

Baseball fans could not have been happier with the way the 2023 World Baseball Classic ended.

Shohei Ohtani told his Japan teammates to ‘stop admiring’ Team USA in a rousing pregame speech

What a speech from Shohei Ohtani.

The World Baseball Classic might not hold the same level of prestige that the World Series does to the general public, but this tournament definitely matters to the players.

We’ve seen how players from all over have reacted to playing in the World Baseball Classic, and Shohei Ohtani is clearly no different. On Tuesday, ahead of Japan’s tilt against the United States in the World Baseball Classic final, Ohtani had a message for his teammates and countrymen.

In a rousing pregame speech to his Japan teammates, Ohtani told his peers to “stop admiring” the United States, because if they want to surpass them, they have to put those feelings away and just win.

Quite an inspiring pep talk! It’s awesome to see the respect and admiration both teams have for one another at the end of an incredible tournament.

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Fans ripped John Smoltz’s ‘grandstanding’ remark about Randy Arozarena’s HR-robbing celebration

Why does he hate baseball?

One of the great aspects of the World Baseball Classic has been the opportunity to watch just how much these games mean to the players. Every moment seems extra important, and that pride brings out a personality you just don’t see in many MLB games.

That’s what makes it awfully disappointing that the U.S. audience is stuck with John Smoltz as the Fox color commentator. Smoltz is notoriously old school and often sounds like he’s in physical pain whenever a player dares to flip his bat or show emotion.

That kind of attitude was on display during Monday’s World Baseball Classic semifinal between Japan and Mexico. When Randy Arozarena robbed Kazuma Okamoto of a home run in the fifth inning, Smoltz seemed more annoyed with Arozarena’s fake-out celebration than he was impressed with the actual catch.

Smoltz said that Arozarena was grandstanding — a negative way of describing what had occurred.

In the full exchange, play-by-play announcer Joe Davis asked, “How much fun is Randy Arozarena to watch?” Smoltz was silent before quipping, “Not good for a play-by-play announcer, though.” However, Davis was all over the call as the catch happened live.

It was fine for a play-by-play announcer and actually a great call from Davis.

Smoltz seemingly couldn’t just enjoy a sensational catch and fun moment from one of the WBC’s most entertaining players.

Baseball fans also didn’t appreciate the “grandstanding” remark from Smoltz.

Japan phenom Roki Sasaki and his 102 mph fastball had MLB fans begging their teams to sign him

That bidding war is going to be WILD.

Monday night’s World Baseball Classic semifinal between Japan and Mexico was one of the more exciting games of the entire tournament. But from the very beginning, MLB fans were tuning in to watch one player (and no, it wasn’t Shohei Ohtani).

Japan pitching phenom Roki Sasaki made his first start on U.S. soil in Japan’s eventual 6-5 win, and the 21-year-old didn’t disappoint.

Sasaki sparked global attention last year when he threw the first NPB perfect game since 1994 and threw an additional eight perfect innings the following start before getting pulled due to pitch count. He boasts a fastball that tops out at 103 mph and an already-elite splitter.

Monday was the first time many MLB fans had a chance to see Sasaki pitch against top competition, and it didn’t take long for their jaws to collectively drop. He started the game with a strikeout of Randy Arozarena, blowing a 102 mph fastball right by him.

Nearly every fastball he threw was at least 100 mph. He wasn’t messing around.

Of course, the night wasn’t perfect for Sasaki. His one mistake — a splitter that floated over the heart of the plate — ended up being a three-run home run for Brewers infielder Luis Urias.

But this was still a 21-year-old with absolutely elite stuff on the mound. Sasaki likely won’t arrive to MLB until he is 25 (so after the 2026 season), but there is a chance that he follows Ohtani’s lead and asks to go through the posting process early.

If that happens, he’ll have no shortage of suitors. MLB fans were already clamoring for their teams to get in on the Sasaki sweepstakes.