Japan Wins World Baseball Classic

Last night's WBC Championship game is being labeled as one of the best played and most intense baseball games in recent memory. While it was a great game, whether you think its excitement was on par with the World Series depends on your perspective. Personally, I feel that the World Series is the biggest baseball event, but I can certainly understand how important this game was for the countries that contested it.

In case you missed it, in front of nearly 55,000 screaming fans in Dodger Stadium, Japan defeated South Korea 5-3 in 10 innings. How great it was also to see all the passionate fans packed into stadiums in Seoul and Tokyo to watch the game. Achieving something that the US players wouldn't be able to do by winning, the Japanese players - led by Ichiro Suzuki (4-4 with the game winning hit) - became national heroes by defeating their Pacific Rim rivals and claiming their second WBC title.

This competition represented everything that sports should be about, even if the American fans don't show an interest in it.

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Japan Advances to WBC Final

Japan defeated USA 9-4 in semifinal play in the World Baseball Classic, setting up a final game showdown with South Korea. After giving up a leadoff homerun to Brian Roberts, Daisuke Matzusaka was able to shut down the US bats and send the squad that most had tabbed as favorites back to Spring Training for their respective MLB teams. Plagued by errors in the field and inconsistent pitching, Team USA - playing in Los Angeles - once again failed to reach the finals of the WBC.

Japan moves on to face South Korea at 9:30pm ET on ESPN and will attempt to win its second WBC Championship.

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Do Americans Care About the World Baseball Classic?

Does anyone care about the World Baseball Classic? In the USA, we didn't care....until last night. In a game that was only being broadcast on ESPN Deportes, Team USA scored a huge comeback victory to beat Puerto Rico 6-5 in an elimination game. The players went crazy and the US moved on to the semifinals for the first time in the event's history.

Now the story is all over the news, but I ask....what if the US had lost, or even won without the stunning comeback? Would it be talked about? I'm willing to say the answer is NO, which is a shame.

This competition embodies great spirit, and it is hugely popular in other countries. But Americans are not so accepting of contests involving "outsiders". It is thought that since it is not the ultimate level of competition that Major League Baseball is, that the WBC should be taken lightly. The players are world class, and do take it seriously, despite a more relaxed environment.

Personally, I love being able to turn on the tube and watch a few innings of baseball after a long winter. But, I understand why it is not hugely popular in the US. There is no sense of pride that comes from defeating Venezuela or the Netherlands in baseball, which is considered to be "America's pastime". Besides, it's March - and the focus of the sports world is on college basketball - and rightly so.

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