Shohei Ohtani versus Mike Trout is how the WBC wanted to finish

It was every thing you dream of as a younger little one taking part in baseball within the yard.

3-2 rely. Two outs. Ninth inning.

And a world championship on the road.

That was what we noticed within the ninth inning of the championship recreation of the World Baseball Basic on Tuesday evening. Japan, with a 3-2 lead within the championship recreation, turned to baseball’s unicorn, Shohei Ohtani, to shut out the win.

After leadoff hitter Jeff McNeil labored a stroll, daring to put off a 3-2 fastball slightly below the strike zone, Ohtani induced a floor ball from leadoff hitter Mookie Betts to erase the stroll, and push Japan one out away from a championship.

Standing in Ohtani and Japan’s manner?

Ohtani’s teammate in MLB, Mike Trout. One of many recreation’s greatest hitters.

Ohtani began Trout with a slider, the pitch he appeared to have essentially the most command of throughout the inning. However the first pitch slider was low, giving Trout the 1-0 benefit.

That’s when Ohtani turned to his fastball.

He put a 100-mph fastball proper down the center of the plate, and Trout gave it every thing he had along with his swing. However the ball settled within the mitt of catcher Yuhei Nakamura, night the rely at 1-1.

Trout gave a nod to his teammate earlier than settling in for the subsequent pitch.

This was one other fastball from Ohtani that missed outdoors. Benefit Trout once more, at 2-1.

On the subsequent pitch, Ohtani once more dialed up the fastball. One other 100-mph heater proper down the plate.

One other swing-and-a-miss. One other nod from Trout to his teammate.

With the rely now 2-2, what would Ohtani do? Would he return to the fastball, or attempt to sneak one other slider by his teammate?

Ohtani needed to punch him out with the heater, and put every thing he had into the subsequent fastball. It hit 102 on the radar gun, however bounced low and out of doors.

3-2. Two outs. Ninth inning. A championship on the road.

After which? The nastiest slider you would possibly ever see:

Ballgame.

For good measure, right here is the decision from Japanese TV:

To place Ohtani’s WBC run, and his standing as the sport’s true unicorn, in perspective, think about these numbers:

However let’s return to the ending.

The at-bat, and the battle between MLB teammates, delivered the sort of second WBC organizers have been dreaming of, capping off an amazing event. Since its launch in 2006, the WBC has not been with out criticism. Whether or not the timing of the occasion — and the accidents that now we have seen on this 12 months’s installment — in addition to the necessity for the occasion itself, the WBC has seen its share of critics.

However on Tuesday evening, the WBC delivered every thing its organizers and proponents imagined. Two of the sport’s greatest gamers, staring one another down, within the ninth inning with every thing on the road.

The sort of second you dream of as a baby, now on a worldwide stage.