Mexico and Japan will clash in the semifinals of the 2023 World Baseball Classic (WBC). Mexico coach Benji Gill talked about Japan after the quarterfinals were confirmed.

Mexico won 5-4 in the quarterfinals against 2023 WBC Puerto Rico held at Rondipo Park in Miami, Florida on the 18th.

Mexico recorded 3 wins and 1 loss in Group C in the first round of the finals, advancing to the quarterfinals at the top of the group. The United States, which competed in the same group, also recorded 3 wins and 1 loss, but Mexico took first place according to the winner-to-win rule.

With this victory, Mexico created a new history. In 2013 and 2017, Mexico, which suffered the pain of being knocked out in the first round in a row, defeated Puerto Rico and succeeded in advancing to the WBC semifinals for the first time in history.

After the game, coach Gil said, “We thought the game against Puerto Rico would be a great game. We wanted everyone who played baseball to enjoy this game, and I believe they enjoyed it.”

Mexico got off to a bad start as ace Julio Urias hit two homers in the first inning and contributed four runs. But there was a game changer. Isaac Paredes set the stage for a reversal with a solo homer in pursuit and a timely hit to tie the game with 2 RBIs.

“We had a rough start, but we moved together as a team. We hit a one-run homer, but the game was still going and we had a lot of innings to go. We responded and we got the results,” Paredes said.

“Everyone was ready to go out and play to their heart’s content. Anything can happen in baseball,” said Alex Verdugo, who went 1-for-3 with 1 hit, 1 RBI and 1 walk as the second hitter.

Mexico will play the semi-final against Japan on the 21st at the same venue after a two-day break. The upward trend in Japan, the ‘winner candidate’, is unusual. Shohei Ohtani, Masataka Yoshida, Lars Nutba, and Loki Sasaki showed overwhelming performance and passed the first round of the finals with all four wins. In the quarterfinals, they defeated Italy 9-3 and calmed the storm.

Coach Gil praised Japan, saying, “It’s a great team with big stars. We know players who are playing in the major leagues, and there are also excellent players in Japan.”

At the same time, coach Gil said, “I respect Japan very much, but I am focused on winning. We are a very dedicated team and we will do our best. We will win the semi-final and advance to the final.” 안전놀이터