Team USA falls short of World Baseball Classic crown

The GIST: Team USA’s quest to repeat as World Baseball Classic (WBC) champs came up just short as the stars and stripes lost 3–2 to Team Japan in last night’s gold medal game. Although the U.S. lost, the WBC’s success is a major win for America’s pastime.

As it happened: Shortstop Trea Turner started the scoring and continued his WBC hot streak with a massive home run in the second inning, but Team Japan’s offense wasted no time responding to USA's depleted pitching staff.

• Then the face of baseball, LA Angels unicorn Shohei Ohtani, entered from the bullpen in the ninth inning to secure the final three outs — with the last coming against his Angels teammate Mike Trout — and lift Japan to their third WBC title. What an ending.

Zooming out: After a six-year hiatus due to COVID-19, the highly anticipated WBC more than delivered with big moments, MLB starpower and the unrivaled passion of athletes playing for their country.

• While brutal injuries to top MLB talent like NY Mets pitcher Edwin Díaz and Houston Astros second baseman Jose Altuve caused some to question the future of the event, this year’s tourney made clear: there’s nothing quite like the WBC. Let ’em play ball.