Cleveland Sports Forum

The Best Hitter You've Never Heard Of

Jose Abreu is putting up godlike numbers in the closed-off world of Cuba

By Jonah Keri on February 22, 2012

A .453 batting average; .597 on-base percentage; .986 slugging percentage. Thirty-three homers and 93 runs batted in … in 212 at-bats.

You look at the numbers, squint, and then look again. These are Baseball Stars numbers, a video game creation, with abilities cranked up to the max. There's no way a professional baseball player could have done this.

Except someone did. His name is Jose Abreu. He just might be the best hitter in the world. And you've probably never heard of him.

Abreu plays for Cienfuegos in Serie Nacional, Cuba's top baseball league. He put up those unfathomable numbers last year, despite Serie Nacional's schedule only lasting 90 games. Not that Abreu played in all of those games. He missed 23 contests with bursitis in his shoulder. In other words he cranked 33 balls out of the park in 67 games. That's a pace of 80 homers over a 162-game schedule.

That 2010-11 campaign capped a meteoric rise for Abreu. The hulking first baseman (he's listed at 6-foot-3, 240 pounds but is almost certainly bigger than that) broke in as a 17-year-old in 2004. Abreu wasn't great in that first brush with pro ball. He struck out six times more often than he walked, didn't hit for much power, and was so defensively limited that he DH'd all year. But he also hit .271 that season, a respectable result even in a league slanted toward offense. That he did this at age 17 was all the more remarkable.

As Abreu matured, so did his numbers. By his third season, he was one of the league's better hitters. He hit .337/.423/.538 that year, numbers that would make him an MVP candidate were they posted on an MLB roster. Baseball Prospectus co-founder Clay Davenport devised a stat called Equivalent Average (EqA), which takes all of a hitter's contributions (power, on-base ability, etc.), compares those results to league norms, and calibrates them on a scale that mirrors batting average. A .260 EqA is about average, .300 is very good, .350 is fantastic, .400 is astronomical. Abreu posted an EqA of .308 during the 2005-06 season … the year he turned 19.

It's in the past two and a half seasons that Abreu's become a bona fide superstar. In 2009-10, he hit .399/.555/.822, good for a .396 EqA. Through 54 games this year, he's crushing Serie Nacional pitching to the tune of .371/.526/.724, leading the league in OBP and ranking second in slugging.

But last season's numbers were the ones that broke the scale. Davenport runs translations for Serie Nacional players, just as he does for Japanese league players, minor leaguers, and others not in the majors. He considers the competition in Serie Nacional to be equivalent to high-A ball in North America's minor leagues — the Carolina, California, and Florida leagues. After comparing a player's performance to the rest of his league, Davenport then must establish how players from that league did when they graduated to higher levels. Once he has a good idea of how players typically change between leagues, he translates an average major league player to Serie Nacional. The Cuban player's translation thus comes from looking at how far above or below the average major leaguer he would be.

Miguel Cabrera was the best hitter in Major League Baseball in 2011. Jose Abreu, even after adjusting his numbers to reflect A-ball competition, blew Cabrera out of the water.

"I don't know that I'd name him the 'best hitter in the world' based on a 60-game performance," said Davenport. "But yes, I'd say there's a chance."

To understand how you might be hearing Jose Abreu's name for the first time, it's worth getting to know how baseball is covered in Cuba, and who has access to its inner workings. The answers to these questions: It isn't, and virtually no one outside Cuba.

Michael Lewis traveled to Cuba in 2008 for a Vanity Fair story on Cuban baseball. To do so, he enlisted the help of a retired Canadian high school teacher named Kit Krieger; gaining entry into Cuba as an American journalist on assignment without the help of a government-friendly Cuban baseball zealot like Krieger would have been nearly impossible. Per Lewis, Cuban journalists don't cover the sport all that closely, either, eschewing interviews with players and managers in favor of their own opinions. Which is fine, of course. But those of us who want to learn about Cuban baseball get surprisingly reliable, well-kept stats … plus very few details about style of play, or anything specific that happened in a game.

Even if you're a major league scout trying to get into Cuba to see a player in person, best of luck. "I've seen guys try it," then-Braves scout Chuck McMichael told Lewis. "I've seen guys try to get a radar gun in. And they get put right back on the plane going out."

What those scouts know, but don't get to see in person, is the canyon-sized gap between the best and worst Serie Nacional players, and the uneven competition that dominates league play. That Abreu broke into the league at age 17, for instance, is hardly an aberration. Many Cuban players get the call at an early age. In a nation of just over 11 million people, you won't find many top-shelf players … especially in areas outside Havana and other baseball hotbeds. Players play for their native provinces in Serie Nacional competition. If a given province can't find elite players in their prime years, throwing kids or broken-down older players on the field becomes their next-best option. For elite sluggers like Abreu, recent A's signee Yoenis Cespedes, and this season's home run leader, Alfredo Despaigne, that can mean facing an electric arm like Aroldis Chapman one day, a gray-haired junkballer the next.

Player age itself is a sore subject when it comes to Cuban players. The ages of Orlando Hernandez and his half-brother Livan upon their defections to the U.S. quickly became a running joke. El Duque supposedly pitched his final game just before his 42nd birthday, but there are people in the game who'll swear he was closer to 50 than 40 when he hung 'em up. Livan Hernandez is supposedly eight months younger than Derek Jeter, which is as plausible a story as getting an elaborate Jeter-themed gift basket from Crabtree & Evelyn. The Cuban government has little incentive to make its prized players seem younger than they are and thus more attractive to major league teams. Still, concerns about age-fibbing persist.

There are other factors complicating Serie Nacional results. The league recently switched to Mizuno-150 baseballs, much livelier models than the Mizuno-200 or Rawlings balls found in other countries. Throw in recent defections by Chapman, Yunesky Maya, and a number of useful pitchers who never signed with major league teams, and you have an environment ripe for Bondsian numbers. When Abreu and Cespedes both broke the single-season home run record last season, it came at the expense of Despaigne's record, set just two years earlier.

"The talent pool is so restricted," said Ben Badler, a writer for Baseball America who follows Serie Nacional. "Guys who, if they left Cuba and tried to sign with a major league team, either wouldn't get signed or wouldn't make it out of rookie ball. Some would become solid organizational players. Then you've got someone like Jose Abreu, who could step into a major league uniform tomorrow and immediately be an above-average major league player."

OK, so just how far above average are we talking?

David Forst, assistant general manager for the Oakland A's, has some thoughts on the subject. Over the past few years, the A's have repeatedly lost free-agent bidding wars, even after making the highest bids. They offered Lance Berkman a two-year deal; he took a one-year deal instead, then hit like a fringe MVP candidate for the Cardinals. They offered Rafael Furcal four years; he took three to play for the Dodgers. Adrian Beltre snubbed Oakland, twice. So desperate were the A's to get somebody to take their free-agent money that they gave a broken-down Ben Sheets $10 million two years ago. Predictably, he got hurt, making just 20 starts that season. He hasn't pitched in a major league game since.

It's against that backdrop that the A's agreed to a four-year, $36 million deal for Cespedes. We've documented the 26-year-old outfielder before: He has tools on top of tools on top of tools. He's an athlete so impressive, his agent produced the single best 20-minute video in the history of Western civilization, an orgy of flexing, stand-up sit-ups, violent swings, and star wipes. There are some talent evaluators who've seen Cespedes take weak swings in international competition and who doubt the integrity of Serie Nacional stats enough to declare him a future bust. Others, including the A's, see a five-tool package at a prime age for major league performance, and envision a future star. Oakland will take a chance on someone like Cespedes, and scout someone like Abreu as aggressively as a Cuban player can possibly be scouted, knowing the team needs to take chances on high-variance players to overcome its disadvantages in revenue streams and signing of established major league stars.

Forst confirms that A's scouts can't get anywhere near Cuba to see live Serie Nacional action. But he also notes that Cuban players gain much more exposure in international competition now than they did 10 or 15 years ago. Abreu has played in five major international tournaments in the past two and a half years, and that's after getting cut from the 2009 World Baseball Classic roster. Thanks to those tournaments, the A's have compiled multiple scouting reports on him.

Oakland and other teams agree that Abreu isn't nearly the all-around athlete that someone like Cespedes is. He's a first baseman at best and maybe a DH if and when he makes the big leagues. He doesn't run well. His body is not exactly chiseled. His stats have been inflated somewhat by intentional walks (a league-leading 32 in 2009-10, and 21 last season) and hit-by-pitches (30 in 2009-10, 21 last season, though Abreu might have an easier time sustaining high HBP numbers than league-leading intentional walk totals in the majors). Even Abreu's hit tool, while playable, might not be superstar-level.

"Is he Barry Bonds? No," Forst said. "If you do a comprehensive survey of the clubs, they'd say he is not the best hitter on the planet."

But?

"There are legitimate comparisons to Ryan Howard."

So the wildly optimistic view is that it's possible — not likely, but possible — that Abreu might be as good at — or better at — than Miguel Cabrera. And the more realistic and pervasive view is that he could hit like Ryan Howard, a star first baseman entering year one of a five-year, $125 million contract who has launched 262 homers over the past six seasons.

Which is, in a word, stupefying.

There's so little in the sports world now that's unknowable, so few arguments that can't be settled by a quick trip to Baseball-Reference and its sister sites. As Chuck Klosterman asked last week on the B.S. Report: "Aren't we almost accustomed to watching sports in a way that's no longer supposed to be subjective?"

He was talking about Jeremy Lin. But in Lin's case, anyone could drop by Harvard's field house for a game, even catch him occasionally on TV. We had information from the NBA's scouting combine and summer tournaments. Though he didn't see much live game action, Lin got plenty of run in practice, where coaches got to see him match up against starting point guards. Yes, he's been a gigantic, pleasant surprise, a breath of fresh air for a Knicks team that needed it, in a season that nearly never happened. But Lin came out of nowhere to make two straight Sports Illustrated covers because NBA talent evaluators screwed up and teams wouldn't give him a chance, not because the information wasn't out there for people to see.

Scouts do have information on Abreu. But in many respects, it's flawed and difficult to interpret. The only time a team can see him live is in those international competitions. Yes, there's value in tracking his performance in the Baseball World Cup or Intercontinental Cup play. But when he's facing a baseball-rich country one day, Liechtenstein the next, you can only tell so much. There are some video reports out there, which certainly help. And there are those stats. Those dazzling, breathtaking stats.

Try as he might, Davenport's Cuban translations remain much less reliable than what he can do with, say, Japanese league players. He has more examples of players coming over from Japan. He also has far more examples of major league players going to play in Japan (a lot) than he does major leaguers going to play in Cuba (zero). There are huge psychological barriers that any player coming from a foreign league must overcome, getting used to a brand-new culture, or just resisting the convenience and temptation of American fast food, especially on a minor leaguer's per diem. With Cuban players, there's an added mental hurdle: knowing you've abandoned your family for a shot at the big leagues.

"In a general way, the place [stats] don't take us is to knowledge of the future," said sabermetric pioneer and Red Sox senior advisor Bill James. "Much of what we do is 'predicting the future,' but it's not really prediction; it's merely projecting present realities into the future."

When it comes to Abreu, scouts can't be sure what those realities are. And for regular schmoes like us who have little or no access to scouting information, those realities are damn near impossible to figure out.

That might soon change. Fidel Castro has retired from politics. The Cold War is long over, and the U.S. has already started to loosen restrictions on travel to Cuba. If Cuba's the last refuge for baseball's unknown, it might not be for much longer.

So let's enjoy Jose Abreu while we still can. Let's dream on a hitter so big, so powerful, he just might be better than anyone else on Earth. The information explosion has made us more knowledgeable sports fans than we could have ever imagined. But it's OK to root for a mystery. Especially if it's one of the last ones we ever see

It's gold medal or bust for Team USA in Classic

Team takes new approach under Torre after disappointments in 2006 and '09

By Barry Bloom / MLB.com | 2/28/2013 3:15 P.M. ET

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. --

The players who comprise Team USA will begin gathering from all over the country on Sunday, with the first workout as a group at Salt River Fields on Monday afternoon.

The World Baseball Classic is set to begin in Asia this weekend, and the U.S. will set out on its quest to win the tournament for the first time next Friday night at Chase Field against the highly competitive and archrival Mexico. The Americans play Italy and Canada in succession at the home of the D-backs the following two days.

The U.S. didn't make it out of the second round in 2006, and it lost in the semifinals in '09 to Japan, which won the first two tournaments. Baseball was born in the U.S., and it is America's game. With Joe Torre having come out of retirement to manage and construct the team, the goal this time is to really prove it.

"The team they put together, I think, is a great team," said Shane Victorino, the Red Sox right fielder who's among a group of six members of the 2013 American team with previous experience in the Classic. "That's where it all starts. I think Torre really wants to win it all and do what it takes to win it all. That, in itself, I think, is a good start. From there, we've just got to go out there and let it happen, have fun doing it."

Victorino, left-fielder Ryan Braun of the Brewers, shortstop Jimmy Rollins of the Phillies, third baseman David Wright of the Mets and reliever Heath Bell of the D-backs all played for manager Davey Johnson in 2009 and were eliminated when they lost to Japan, 9-4, at Dodger Stadium. That team was defeated three times in the tournament, twice by Venezuela.

First baseman Mark Teixeira of the Yankees was on the 2006 team that was managed by Buck Martinez and didn't make it out of the second round at Anaheim because of a run differential won by the Japanese. The rules regarding advancing in the tournament have since been changed. The U.S. lost three times in that Classic: to Japan, Canada and the deciding game, 2-1, to Mexico.

Considering the results the first two times around, many wondered if the U.S. players took the tournament as seriously as some of the other teams, particularly Japan, Cuba and Korea. The latter are the two squads the Japanese defeated in the finals -- Cuba, 10-6, at San Diego's Petco Park in 2006, and Korea, 5-3, in a titanic 10-inning affair in Los Angeles four years ago.

"We definitely take it seriously, but there's a lot of talent out there," Teixeira said. "It's baseball, too. Any time you play a short tournament or a short series, anything can happen."

"It means a lot to us," Wright added. "Some of these other teams, they're actual teams. It's not just a bunch of individuals. We're going to try to become a team, but you have a bunch of individuals that are with different teams now. We have to come together in less than a week to form a team. Sometimes that's difficult to do."

The first two U.S. squads were more like "Dream Teams," with a pair of All-Stars at every position. As they say, there weren't enough baseballs or at bats to go around. This time, Torre has avoided that by picking a solid starting eight with two backup catchers, Victorino in the outfield and Willie Bloomquist of the D-backs and Ben Zobrist of the A's as utility players.

Torre also called each of the prospective team members to gauge their enthusiasm for the tournament and their desire to win. He didn't want anyone on the 28-man roster who was undecided about playing. It says a lot that since the provisional rosters were announced in January, only one of those initial 27 players has dropped off the team. And that was Braves starter Kris Medlen, a last-minute addition who decided that it was more important to stay home because his wife was having a baby.

When Yankees 40-year-old left-hander Andy Pettitte and Tigers star right-hander Justin Verlander declined invitations, the 15-man pitching staff was filled out by Nationals left-handers Gio Gonzalez and Ross Detwiler.

This time around, Torre may not have the top talent at every position, but he has guys who want to play, and that may be half the battle. Will that be what it takes to win?

"I think we just have to stay together," said Bell, who in 2009 was a last-minute roster replacement for Joe Nathan. "The last time we had a good group of guys, but when we went from the second round in Miami to L.A., we had about three or four guys leave the team. That broke the nucleus, the core of the guys pulling for each other. Suddenly we were just a bunch of superstars instead of a tight-knit team. This time we have to stay together and we have to just do the little things. That's why Japan has won the last two times. They're fundamentally sound. They do the little things."

The fact that Team USA has such a short shelf life is also a big part of the problem. After the workout on Monday, they'll have exhibition games against the White Sox at Camelback Ranch on Tuesday and the Rockies at Salt River Fields on Wednesday night.

After another off day, the tournament starts in earnest. Meanwhile, the Chinese, Dutch and Italians have been training already for weeks, plus the Japanese and Koreans always get together early. Major Leaguers don't join their teams until Monday, and the three Asian teams don't have any this time around.

For teams like the U.S., Dominican Republic and Mexico, it is what is, Torre has said, but it's just another obstacle for his own team to overcome.

"You're only together for a short period of time, but you build a bond and camaraderie and chemistry pretty quick," Braun said. "You get to know each other because a lot of guys have played together in All-Star Games and stuff like that. We were definitely disappointed in the results last time. Everybody's goal was to win the tournament. That's certainly our goal and our focus this year."

Jose Abreu, Cuban baseball's Barry Bonds, will play in 2013 World Baseball Classic

By Dan Moore on Jan 17 2013, 8:32a

Jose Dariel Abreu, whose completely absurd National Series stats aroused awe a few years ago, will be playing for Team Cuba in the 2013 World Baseball Classic.

Most Cuban baseball stars aren't famous until after they defect, but Cuba's 2013 World Baseball Classic roster features one exception: Jose Abreu (or Jose Dariel Abreu), who has spent the last several years utterly dominating Cuba's National Series. Think 2001-2004 Barry Bonds. Here's a look at the first baseman's numbers in Cuba, where he made his debut at the country's highest level as a 17-year-old (which is not entirely uncommon.)
Via Clay Davenport and beisbolcuba.com. Keep in mind that those (*) 2012-13 numbers are ongoing. For some context, take a look at Aledmys Diaz's numbers—that's the shortstop the Cardinals will be watching closely when he works out for MLB teams later this month—or Yoenis Cespedes's.

Or you can look at the translations—Jose Abreu earned his brief stateside fame when Davenport ran the first widely available attempt to translate Cuban numbers to MLB equivalents. His system suggested Cespedes was a .291/.357/.542 hitter at his very best, and a .258/.319/.471 MLB hitter in his Cuban career. For Abreu's .453 season, the translator spit out .358/.468/.754. The year before that? .316/.435/.634.

Numbers big enough that Jonah Keri could suggest that he might be the best hitter on earth without turning in his Sabermetric Approved card. Unfortunately, the simple fact that Abreu will be appearing in the World Baseball Classic in 2013 means he won't be appearing in Major League Baseball in 2013. But we should probably keep an eye on Jose Abreu while we can.

Jose Abreu

Having watched Jose Abreu play the past three years, I'd have to say that he is a very good ballplayer. I would equate him to Yoenis Cespedes but I think Barry Bonds in the steroid age is a stretch. He's no Mark McGuire, Sammy Sosa, or Barry Bonds.
Yoenis Cespedes

There is another player that I would like to add to that Cuban list of players and his name is Alfredo Despaigne. Abreu and Despaigne have been battling one another for the past three seasons to see who is the best hitter in Cuba at present. Both wil be playing in the Classic.
Alfredo Despaigne

Vieira sends Brazil to Classic 00:00:5711/19/12: Thyago Vieira fans Carlos Lee and Ruben Rivera to save the game for Brazil, sending them to the World Baseball Classic

Defending champs Japan ready for Brazil in Classic

Veteran Japanese squad to face Classic newcomers in first-round action

By Jason Coskrey / Special to MLB.com | 3/1/2013 11:39 A.M. ET

FUKUOKA, Japan --

Two-time defending champion Japan wrapped up its preparations for the 2013 World Baseball Classic in good spirits on a cool, rainy Friday afternoon in Fukuoka.

"It finally starts tomorrow," Japan manager Koji Yamamoto said. "I'm hoping our guys are able to do what they usually do."

The Japanese team worked out for about two hours at Fukuoka Institute of Technology on the eve of its opening game against Brazil on Saturday. Before that, Brazil spent a couple of hours putting the finishing touches on its own game plan.

The Brazilians, managed by Hall of Famer Barry Larkin, will be competing in the Classic for the first time, having upset Panama in the qualifying round to reach this stage.

They couldn't have asked for a tougher opening opponent.

"The Japanese team, as expected, is a very solid team," Larkin said. "Good pitching, a lot of team speed, a very well-coached team, a good, disciplined defensive team. The strategy is for us to just go out and execute our game plan. Go out there and pay particular attention to the small details, and try to win every single pitch."

Japan is expected to send Masahiro Tanaka to the hill in the opener. The right-hander is one of the top pitchers in Japan, but he is coming off subpar performances in exhibition games against Nippon Professional Baseball's Hiroshima Carp and Australia.

"No matter how I pitch, I want to hold the opponent to zero runs," Tanaka said. "I want to be aggressive and pitch at a faster pace."

Opposing him will be Rafael Fernandes, a member of the Tokyo Yakult Swallows who should be somewhat familiar with the Japanese team.

"We feel that he gives us our best opportunity to win the game," Larkin said. "He is ready for the challenge. It's a great opportunity for him. He's very proud to represent our country of Brazil in the game against Japan."

Fernandes isn't the only Brazilian with a working knowledge of Japan. A number of Brazil's players, most notably the Swallows' Yuichi Matsumoto, play in either Nippon Professional Baseball or the Japanese Industrial League.

It remains to be seen how much of an advantage that will be.

"I think I've only faced Yuichi during interleague play," said Tanaka, who pitches for the Pacific League's Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles. "So they don't know me very well, do they?"

One question mark for Japan is the health of captain Shinnosuke Abe. The catcher missed Japan's final exhibition game, a 6-1 win over NPB's Yomiuri Giants on Thursday, with an injury to his right knee. Yamamoto was noncommittal about Abe's status for the opener.

"We'll decide after watching how he does during batting practice," Yamamoto said. "As far as we saw today, he looked fine."

Abe also sounded a positive note after practice.

"It was better than I thought," Abe said of the knee.

Larkin expects a challenge, no matter who takes the field.

"It's just part of the game of baseball," Larkin said. "Regardless of injuries, I know it's going to be a very focused Japanese team, a very disciplined Japanese team. Regardless of the people they put out there, in order to beat them, any opponent is going to have to play a clean ballgame."

Larkin is more concerned with how his team performs.

"The key for us to win, period, no matter who we're playing, is to execute the game plan," Larkin said. "It's to follow the philosophies, it's to execute in game-type situations. It doesn't make a difference who we play, where we play or when we play. The only thing we can control is what we do as individuals. For us to win, each individual is going to have to do their particular job."

Wang leads Chinese Taipei to victory in Classic opener

By Debby Wu / special to MLB.com | 3/2/2013 5:32 A.M. ET

TAICHUNG, Taiwan --

Six shutout innings from Chien-Ming Wang and timely hits from sluggers Cheng-Min Peng and Chih-Sheng Lin helped Chinese Taipei to a comfortable 4-1 win against Australia in the opener of the 2013 World Baseball Classic on Saturday.

Kicking off Pool B play, Chinese Taipei gained an early lead in the bottom of first. Dai-Kang Yang of Japan's Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters led off the inning with a single to left, advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt and scored when Peng singled through the right side.

The Taiwanese team's fierce offense continued in the bottom of third and forced Australia to replace starter Chris Oxspring with reliever Dushan Ruzic.

Houston Astros farmhand Che-Hsuan Lin lined a single to center and went to second when Peng walked. Chih-Sheng Lin hit a ground-rule double to left, scoring Che-Hsuan Lin. When Szu-Chi Chou grounded out, Peng scored another run, giving Chinese Taipei a 3-0 lead.

Peng put the icing on the cake for Chinese Taipei with a solo home run off Australian reliever Warwick Saupold in fifth.

Peng currently plays for Taiwanese professional baseball's Brother Elephants, and Chih-Sheng Lin won the domestic league home run title with the Lamigo Monkeys last season. Both power hitters played a key role in Chinese Taipei's landslide wins in the Classic qualifying round in November.

Chinese Taipei's smooth victory was partly aided by its strong defense, with three double plays early in the game. Former Yankees ace Chien-Ming Wang started and maintained his cool in the six innings he tossed, and he was credited with the win. He gave up only four hits, struck out two and relied on his renowned sinker to subdue the Australian lineup.

"I knew before the game that if Wang could pitch at least five innings -- and he actually stayed on for six -- we would be very likely to win," Taiwanese manager Chang-Heng Hsieh said. "Three double plays certainly helped, and our sluggers all performed well."

After missing the qualifying round, Wang said he was very happy to be back with the national team after a long absence.

"Our infielders and outfielders all helped out today," said Wang, who was unable to secure a new contract with the Nationals last year and is currently a free agent. "Right now I am hoping to give my best to Chinese Taipei ... I am not thinking about getting a [Major League] contract at the moment."

Wang was replaced by Yao-Hsun Yang of Japan's Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks, followed by former Dodgers reliever Hong-Chih Kuo. Former Cubs farmhand Hung-Wen Chen closed the game with a 1-2-3 inning.

Faced with an overpowering Taiwanese offense, Australia ended up using seven pitchers in the game. The loss went to Oxspring, who surrendered three earned runs on five hits in 2 2/3 innings.

The Aussies earned some consolation when Stefan Welch clubbed a solo home run off Yang in the top of the seventh.

Australian manager Jon Deeble sang the praise of Wang after the game.

"I thought he threw the ball well," Deeble said. "That field, the conditions today were very conducive to his pitching with the wind blowing. It was tough to hit the ball hard to left field."

Despite the loss, Deeble said he remained confident of his team's chances.

"We played a good game. We saw good pitching. If we keep doing what we are doing ... I've got a lot of confidence going into the next game. That has not changed," Deeble said.

The teams played in front of a sold-out crowd of 20,035 at Taichung Intercontinental Stadium.

Chinese Taipei is scheduled to play the Kingdom of the Netherlands on Sunday, while Australia will face Korea on Monday.

[No Surprise here]

Japan rallies past Brazil in Classic opener

By Jason Coskrey / Special to MLB.com | 3/2/2013 10:44 A.M. ET

FUKUOKA, Japan --

If the first game of Pool A was any indication, the 2013 World Baseball Classic is going to be extraordinary.

It was a cardiac affair, as injured Japan captain Shinnosuke Abe stepped to the plate as a pinch-hitter with the bases loaded in the eighth inning of a tie game and sent a bullet up the middle that allowed the go-ahead run to score and helped the two-time defending champions stave off upset-minded Brazil, 5-3, in a dramatic opener at Fukuoka's Yafuoku Dome.

"We had a great chance right there, and I [wanted] to get a good swing on the ball," Abe said. "It was right after a walk, and I thought the pitcher wanted to throw a strike, so I tried to be aggressive."

Abe's status was uncertain less than an hour before the game, when manager Koji Yamamoto announced a right-knee injury would keep the catcher out of Japan's starting lineup.

Yamamoto said he'd consider using Abe as a pinch-hitter, and he held on to his trump card until just the right moment.

The upstart Brazilians took a 3-2 lead into the eighth, but Seiichi Uchikawa got Japan off and running with a leadoff single. Cleanup hitter Yoshio Itoi laid down a bunt to move the runner along, and pinch-hitter Hirokazu Ibata tied the game with an RBI single to right.

"Itoi laid down the sacrifice, and I was just trying to hit it to the opposite field if I got the right pitch," Ibata said.

Hisayoshi Chono followed with an infield single, and Takashi Toritani drew a walk to load the bases. Abe then rifled a hard-hit ball up the middle that second baseman Felipe Burin dove to knock down. Burin's play kept the ball in the infield, but Brazil wasn't able stop Ibata from coming home to put Japan on top, 4-3. Nobuhiro Matsuda tacked on an insurance run with an RBI single later in the inning.

"It was a very tough battle," Yamamoto said. "The Brazilian team really played tenaciously. We struggled to get the momentum."

It was a heartbreaking turn of event for the Brazilians, who had Japan on the ropes.

"This is a very confident ballclub that we have," Brazil manager Barry Larkin said. "We have some definite philosophies that we try to execute out there. Once again, we gave ourselves a chance to win a ballgame, but Japan just kept coming, kept coming, and they just stayed at it."

Leonardo Reginatto was the star for Brazil, driving in a pair of runs on a 3-for-4 night that included a two doubles. Paulo Orlando was another standout for Larkin's squad, finishing 2-for-4 with a pair of runs scored.

"It was a tough loss," Reginatto said through a translator. "We are very proud of ourselves."

Japan pitcher Tadashi Settsu earned the win in relief, allowing one run on two hits and striking out four in three innings. Kazuhisa Makita worked the ninth to earn the save.

Japan ace Masahiro Tanaka got the start, but was done after two unremarkable innings and allowed an unearned run on four hits.

"His first inning was rough," Yamamoto said. "In the second, although he was facing the bottom of the order, it still was not solid pitching. Considering all those things, we decided to pull him out. We'll think about what we do concerning him from now."

Tanaka, who had subpar performances in a pair of warm-up starts prior to the Classic, might've had an even worse night if not for the pair of inning-ending double plays his defense turned for him.

Brazil starter Rafael Fernandes didn't last much longer. He walked three batters, hit one and threw a wild pitch as he struggled with his control for the majority of his three-inning sint. Fernandes allowed one run on two hits and walked three.

The Brazilians got off to a fast start with Orlando leading off the the bottom of the first with a single and advancing to second on a throwing error by second baseman Toritani. Orlando moved to third on a fly ball from Burin, and Reginatto drove in the team's first run with an RBI single through the left side of the infield.

Fernandes left a ball out over the plate to start the third, and Hayato Sakamoto punished him with a hard-hit single to center. Katsuya Kakunaka moved the runner over with a sacrifice bunt, and Fernandes plunked Uchikawa to put men on first and second.

Itoi singled to right to score Sakamoto from second. Fernandes labored through the rest of the inning, but was able to escape without allowing another run.

Japan pulled ahead, 2-1, on a sacrifice fly by Sakamoto in the top of the fourth, but Brazil clawed its way back during the bottom half against Toshiya Sugiuchi.

Reginatto doubled to lead off the inning and came home on a single to center off the bat of Reinaldo Sato.

Orlando laid down a perfect bunt for a one-out single in the fifth, then caught catcher Ryoji Aikawa flat-footed with a delayed steal. His efforts were rewarded when the red-hot Reginatto doubled into center to drive Orlando home and make the score 3-2.

The Brazilians have a quick turnaround with a game against Cuba on Saturday at 10:30 p.m. ET, which leaves little time to dwell on what might have been. Japan is scheduled to face China on Sunday at 5 a.m. ET. All games can be watched live on MLB Network and ESPN Deportes.

[Brazil nearly pulled off an early stage upset over Team Japan. I'm sure Brazil missed Yan Gomes in this battle]

Dutch blank powerful Koreans in early upset

By Debby Wu / Special to MLB.com | 3/2/2013 12:22 P.M. ET

TAICHUNG, Taiwan --

Behind an outstanding team pitching performance and an offense led by Washington Nationals outfielder Roger Bernadina, the Kingdom of the Netherlands upset pool favorite Korea, 5-0, in an action-packed opening-round game Saturday.

It was a stunning shutout loss for Team Korea, which finished second in the 2009 Classic, as it struggled to convert runners on bases into runs and was also done in by subpar pitching and a disheveled defense.

Korea used seven pitchers in the game, giving up a total of 10 hits. Four fielding errors also cost the team a run.

The Kingdom of the Netherlands scored the only run it would need in the bottom of second. Former Braves All-Star outfielder Andruw Jones led off with a double to left. He got to third following a sacrifice bunt from Xander Bogaerts, then scored on a sacrifice fly to right by Curt Smith.

Korea put pressure on the Dutch defense in the top of fourth, but ended the inning with two runners left on base. Korea started its action after Yong-Kyu Lee walked, reached second on a single by Tae-Kyun Kim and moved to third following Dae-Ho Lee's flyout right. The threat ended, however, when Hyun-Soo Kim grounded out.

Korea more or less repeated the same struggles in the clutch in sixth and seventh, leaving runners on bases in both frames.

Holland increased its lead in the bottom of fifth with a series of hits. Dashenko Ricardo and Simmons singled consecutively, and Jonathan Schoop's loaded the bases. Ricardo scored after Bernadina grounded into a force out, and Balentien singled to left to score Simmons.

The Dutch squad scored two more runs in the bottom of seventh, with Bernadina contributing an RBI single and later scoring following a throwing error by Kang, who hurt his foot when he appeared to be spiked on a play at the plate and was forced to leave the game.

Dutch starter Diegomar Markwell was credited with the win after tossing four shutout innings, giving up only two hits and striking out a pair.

Dutch skipper Hensley Meulens praised his players after the win.

"We played a good game of defense, and we got a very, very good start from Diego," Meulens said. "The big boys did their job today. "Big, big performance for this club."

Korean starter Suk-Min Yoon, who gave up two runs on four hits and a walk in 4 1/3 innings pitched, was saddled with the loss.

An obviously disappointed Korean manager Joong-Il Ryu apologized to his club's fans after the game.

"I have to say sorry to Korean fans, as we played an awful game," Ryu said. "This is one of the worst games we have ever played. Our pitchers were in terrible [situations], and that affected our defense indirectly, too."

[First upset of the Classic belongs to the Dutch. This was a dominant showing by Team Netherland both on offense and defense. The defense was sparked by top prospects Xander Bogaerts (3B), Andrelton Simmons (SS) and Jonathan Schoop (2B).]

Cuba kicks off its Classic quest against Brazil

By Jason Coskrey / Special to MLB.com | 3/2/2013 1:13 P.M. ET

FUKUOKA, Japan --

Cuba has enjoyed a wealth of baseball success on the global level, but the nation has yet to add a World Baseball Classic title to its trophy case.

Manager Victor Mesa and his team hope to take the first step toward remedying that when they face Brazil on Sunday in their first game of this year's Classic. Fans can watch the game on MLB Network and ESPN Deportes on Saturday at 10:30 p.m. ET (Sunday at 12:30 p.m. local time).

The Cubans played their final warmup game Friday night at Fukuoka's Yafuoku Dome, and the team picked up a 10-8 victory over Nippon Professional Baseball's Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks.

"That was a good final game before the actual World Baseball Classic starts, and we are very pleased," Mesa said through a translator. "We got a lot of confidence from winning."

Cuba was beaten by Japan in the final of the 2006 tournament and was eliminated in the second round in '09. This year, Mesa is determined to guide his squad at least to the final round at AT&T Park in San Francisco.

"Our main goal is to go to the U.S.," Mesa said. "I have no doubt we can go to America. We have confidence."

The Cubans will be opposed by a Brazilian team that took two-time defending World Baseball Classic champion Japan to the limit in a 5-3 loss in its Classic debut on Saturday.

"It was a closely contested match," Brazil manager Barry Larkin said on Saturday. "There were strategies on both sides and the better team tonight won the ballgame."

Brazil will send Andre Rienzo to the mound against the powerful Cubans. Rienzo was in camp with the White Sox before heading to Japan to join his countrymen.

Brazil may be facing one of baseball's elite, but its performance against Japan showed that playing against the world's best teams on baseball's top international stage isn't going to faze the team.

"We played against [Nippon Professional Baseball's] Orix and SoftBank, and that experience gave us confidence," Brazil third baseman Leonardo Reginatto said through a translator. "We got used to playing in Japan and in front of a big audience. We also have experience from playing in Panama [during the qualifying round]."

Ismel Jimenez will take the mound for Cuba, hoping to erase the memory of the Cubans' game against SoftBank, during which its pitchers gave up eight runs and walked eight batters.

That poor showing wasn't enough to shake Mesa's confidence ahead of the Classic.

"We do have confidence in, and rely on, our pitchers," Mesa said. "No matter what the situation is, they can pitch. That's our strong point. We are very optimistic.

"We have no doubts. In the past, when we played Japan in November [in a two-game exhibition series], we had some worries. From then, we've had great preparation."

Cuba rides into the tournament on a high after putting up 10 runs against the Hawks in its final tuneup. The runs were a welcome sign for a team that had been inconsistent at the plate despite the presence of sluggers such as Jose Abreu and Alfredo Despaigne.

"A lot of reporters might worry about what we did in the last couple of games, but the bottom line is we have been winning," Mesa said. "Winning games makes everyone happy."

[No secret here. After watching the Cubans the past four years, I like this ballclub to go all the way. Cuba is loaded with talented players. They will miss Cespedes, Soler, and Puig in the outfield but Despaigne, Heredia, Bell, and Cepeda should be more that capable replacements. Their achilles heal is pitching. Their strength is hitting. Defense is average. I'm hoping to see a Cuban-USA finals.]

Rienzo hopes to turn heads for Brazil

White Sox prospect leads surprising Brazilians into Classic

By Jonathan Raymond / Special to MLB.com

03/02/2013 9:13 AM ET
Brazil opened up the World Baseball Classic against Japan in Fukuoka late Friday night. The heavy underdog Brazil led 3-2 before surrendering three eighth-inning runs and falling, 5-3. The subject of this feature, the first of MiLB.com's series on prospects in the Classic, is White Sox right-hander Andre Rienzo who did not pitch vs. Japan but is expected to pitch against Cuba on Saturday night.
Brazil is undeniably a soccer country. The image of a yellow-and-green-clad Brazilian weaving and darting down a pitch is as prominent in the country's global image as the Carnival festival or Rio de Janeiro's Christ the Redeemer statue.

Home to Pele, Ronaldo and five World Cup championships, Brazil is in many ways the international soccer standard-bearer.

But if Andre Rienzo and the rest of Team Brazil can continue its surprising World Baseball Classic run, beisebol (as it's written in Portuguese) just may steal a bit of attention this spring in the world's most futbol-crazy nation.
Andre Rienzo went 7-3 with a 2.53 ERA across three levels last season. (Yuki Taguchi/Getty Images)

When utilityman Yan Gomes debuted for Toronto on May 17 last year, he became the first Brazilian-born player to appear in a Major League game. But if Brazil is to produce a player with a higher profile, Rienzo will likely be the man. The 24-year-old is Chicago's ninth-ranked prospect by MLB.com, after putting together a season in which he posted a 2.53 ERA in 103 1/3 innings across three levels, going from Class A Advanced Winston-Salem all the way to Triple-A Charlotte. The right-hander finished 7-3 with 113 strikeouts and 42 walks.

It was Rienzo's best season as a pro, the culmination of a climb from the Rookie-level Appalachian League, where he began his American career in 2009. Unlike Gomes, who moved to the United States as a child, went to high school in Florida and then the University of Tennessee to become a Blue Jays Draft pick, Rienzo had to draw attention while coming up through the system in Sao Paulo in his home country.

It was no easy task. Brazil has an organized baseball structure, called the Brazilian Baseball and Softball Confederation (CBBS), but it is young -- having been founded in 1990 -- and it does not offer the kind of well-trodden path to the pros that, say, neighboring Venezuela boasts.

"There's no professional game [in Brazil]. You play like two days a week, for fun, never for money," Rienzo said. "It's difficult because there's no help. Each player has to pay the gas for his car, his food -- the teams don't pay. It's tough. You pay to play the game. In Sao Paulo there's maybe one team per city. Sometimes guys play for a team where they're living two hours away from the field."
Rienzo said that he wound up a ballplayer in a soccer-crazed nation simply because his brothers played it before him.

He said that at any of his games there could be one scout, someone unaffiliated with a Major League team but who could contact a club's Latin American scout if talent emerged. In November 2006, Chicago, which had signed Paulo Orlando -- an outfielder for Brazil in the World Baseball Classic and another Sao Paulo native -- the year before, inked Rienzo, then 18, and pitcher Murilo Gouvea out of Sao Paulo. Gouvea is now in the Houston system.

"There was one guy in Brazil, and he didn't sign you, just see you and tell the White Sox, 'Hey, I have some players here that are interesting to watch.' People don't know about it too much," he said.

The transition from a less baseball-savvy environment has been difficult at times, as last year Rienzo was suspended 50 games for testing positive for a banned substance. He admitted to MiLB.com to taking the substance, Stanozolol, saying, "Yes, I took some supplements in Brazil. I never took anything I didn't think I couldn't take. I learned you never take anything without knowing everything that's in it. Now I need to be more responsible. I'll only take something from [America] and not from Brazil."

After the suspension, he resumed his breakout year last season and now finds himself as the ace of perhaps the World Baseball Classic's biggest underdogs.

After Orlando, Rienzo and Gouvea, others have slowly followed out of the CBBS. Four Brazilians signed by Major League teams, all but one under the age of 20, played in the Venezuelan Summer League last season and another, Baltimore's then-17-year-old Rafael Moreno, appeared in the Dominican Summer League.

About half of Brazil's roster, though, is comprised of Japanese-Brazilians, the majority of whom play in the Japan Amateur Baseball Association, a kind of Minor Leagues for Japanese baseball. Brazil, with about 1.5 million Japanese-Brazilians, is home to the largest population of Japanese people outside of Japan itself.

With Brazil grouped in Pool A in Fukuoka, Japan, they may figure as a kind of second home team.

"Brazilian baseball is bigger in Japan than in Brazil," Rienzo said from Fukuoka, laughing. "The people love you. In Brazil, nobody knows you; here they know who you are. It's big, it's huge."

It is this eclectic mix that surprisingly forced itself into World Baseball Classic pool play out of qualifying. Rienzo started the team's first qualifying game against a Panama squad that was both hosting the qualifying round and headlined by Carlos Ruiz, Miguel Tejada and Carlos Lee. He held that lineup to two runs -- one earned -- over 3 2/3 innings and the Brazilians went on to win, 3-2.

They followed that up by handling an Edgar Renteria-led Colombia team, 7-1. And then, in the do-or-die group qualifying final, a rematch with Panama, they eeked out a 1-0 victory in the tournament's most dramatic game yet.

With global heavyweights Cuba and Japan in their pool, the Brazilians will need some more of that magic in Fukuoka.

"You go to Panama and they have huge names, Colombia too. But people started believing [in us] there. They see we have great players. Nobody expected that.

"Nobody believed in Brazil [against Panama]. But you just do your job. It's nothing big, just team ball. That's one of the reasons for why Brazil is here, do the simple things, every game. Respect the game, every single day. Nobody talks about losing here, it's just, 'Win, win, win.' Maybe we have a chance, maybe not, but Brazil will play hard."

Cuban ace Jimenez quiets feisty Brazil squad

By Jason Coskrey / Special to MLB.com | 3/3/2013 1:14 A.M. ET

FUKUOKA, Japan --

Cuba manager Victor Mesa has been the picture of confidence since setting foot in Fukuoka for the 2013 World Baseball Classic.

It probably had a lot to do with the guy he was sending to the mound for Cuba's opener.

Starter Ismel Jimenez set the tone early, and the Cuban lineup buried Brazil under a barrage of singles to earn a 5-2 win Sunday afternoon at Fukuoka's Yafuoku Dome.

"First of all, I'm happy because we won," Jimenez said through a translator. "Everyone [felt] strongly that we wanted to win, and we did."

Jimenez lived up to his billing as Cuba's ace, striking out six, while allowing four hits and walking none in 4 2/3 scoreless innings.

Despite the litany of sluggers up and down the Cuban lineup, Mesa's club was hitless through four innings and managed only one extra-base hit, a double by Yasamany Tomas in the seventh.

Two of Cuba's singles came from the bat of shortstop Barbaro Arruebarruena, who finished 2-for-4 with a pair of RBIs. Designated hitter Frederich Cepeda was also 2-for-4.

"Some of the players aren't playing as we had planned," Mesa said through a translator. "I know baseball is a tough game and even if it looks easy, it's difficult. Bottom line, I am happy because we got a [good] result."

Brazil was hoping to pull off a shocker less than 24 hours after nearly upsetting two-time defending Classic champion Japan.

"It was a competitive ballgame," Brazil manager Barry Larkin said. "Guys went out there to fight. Unfortunately, we came up short today."

The Brazilians barely had time to catch their breath, wrapping up a 5-3 loss to Japan at 10:30 p.m. local time Saturday before kicking things off against Cuba at 12:39 p.m. Sunday afternoon. Now they'll need to win their finale against China and get help in order to qualify for the second round.

For a while it looked like Brazil was going to pick up where it left off against Japan.

Starter Andre Rienzo, a right-hander in the White Sox organization, did what he could, allowing a pair of runs on one hit. He struck out two, but walked four.

"Rienzo struggled with his control early, but then he was able to settle down," Larkin said. "He was kind of in a groove when he got to that 65-pitch limit [in the fifth inning]." Rienzo shook off a shaky start and had retired nine straight before walking Jose Fernandez to lead off the fifth. Eriel Sanchez couldn't get down a sacrifice bunt attempt, but a single by Arruebarruena gave the Cubans runners on the corners.

Guillermo Heredia followed with an RBI groundout during the at-bat that pushed Rienzo over the first-round's pitch limit. Alexi Bell made the score 2-0 with an RBI single to left against reliever Ernesto Noris.

Cepeda and Jose Abreu led off the sixth with singles and Alfredo Despaigne was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Pinch-hitter Raul Gonzalez hit into a fielder's choice that brought one run in, and Arruebarruena plated two more with a single.

The Brazilians pushed across a pair of unearned runs in the sixth to pull within three.

Brazil's Juan Muniz was hoping to spark a rally with a leadoff double in the seventh, but he was ruled to have missed the bag at first and was later ruled out on appeal.

Whatever positive energy the Brazilians had fizzled at that point, and they just didn't have enough to challenge Cuba from that point on.

"I was very impressed with the pitching," Larkin said of the Cubans. " certainly knew the players were going to be aggressive -- good defensive ballclub, free-spirited ballclub. When you come to play against Cuba, you're going to have to come and bring your best. That's what I expected, and that's exactly what I saw today."

[White Sox prospect Andre Rienzo did his job for Brazil holding the powerful Cuban offense to 1 run on 1 hit, 4 walks, and 1 hit batter in 5 innings holding them hitless and scoreless through 4 innings. Barry Larkin has done a fantastic job with this Brazilian team. Brazil went into the late innings of both the Japanese and Cuban games going up against both team's aces back to back. The Brazilians really miss Yan Gomes who had to settle for a 5'-4" catcher with no offensive game and limited defensive skills. Can one man make a difference in this game? In most cases I think not. For this particular team, I think so. Rays prospect Leonardo Reginatto (3B) has been impressive both offensively and defensively for Brazil]

Chinese Taipei in driver's seat after win over Dutch

By Debby Wu / Special to MLB.com | 3/3/2013 7:09 A.M. ET

TAICHUNG, Taiwan --

Chinese Taipei emerged as the group leader with two wins in Pool B after it defeated the Kingdom of the Netherlands, 8-3, allowing only one hit in Sunday's 2013 World Baseball Classic first-round game.

Although it trailed early on shabby pitching, Chinese Taipei soon overturned the deficit with its unstoppable sluggers hard at work. The club's six pitchers only gave up one hit during the game, but too many walks contributed to a sloppy second inning and an early disadvantage.

Up next, Chinese Taipei will face Korea and the Kingdom of the Netherlands will play Australia. The top-two teams from the group will advance to Tokyo to play along with Pool A's top two in the second round beginning March 6.

Thanks to Sunday's victory, Chinese Taipei would win the group with a win in its final game and could still advance with a loss. The Dutch, on the other hand, wouldn't clinch a second-round berth with a win, but they'd still be in solid shape.

In Sunday's game, Chinese Taipei opened with subpar pitching. In top of the second, starter Yao-Lin Wang of the Chicago Cubs organization opened the frame by striking out Wladimir Balentien, but then walked three batters consecutively. He was then replaced by Wei-Lun Pan of the domestic club Uni-President 7-Eleven Lions.

Pan couldn't to contain the crisis, hitting Kalian Sams with a pitch. Then he gave up Holland's only hit of the game, a two-run single to center by catcher Dashenko Ricardo.

He resumed his cool later on, and was credited with the win.

Dutch starter Tom Stuifbergen also turned slightly shaky in the second. Chih-Sheng Lin led off the inning with a single to left, and then Stuifbergen walked Szu-Chi Chou. Hung-Yu Lin lined out to right, but then Chien-Ming Chang, of domestic club EDA Rhinos, singled on a ground ball to left and scored Chih-Sheng Lin. Stuifbergen regained his poise in third with a 1-2-3 inning.

But that did not last long as Chinese Taipei's power hitters helped the team push ahead in the bottom of the fourth. Chih-Sheng Lin walked to open the inning, reached third after Chou doubled on a line drive to center and scored when Yung-Chi Chen singled to center.

Chinese Taipei loaded the bases when Stuifbergen walked Chang intentionally, but Stuifbergen hit Hung-Yu Lin with a pitch, scoring Chou. That brought Minnesota Twins prospect Shairon Martis to take over on the mound, where he gave up a pair of sacrifice flies to before getting out of the inning.

Stuifbergen was responsible for the loss.

Hung-Yu Lin and Dai-Kang Yang made it even sweeter for the home fans in the bottom of sixth. Lin lined a ground-rule RBI double, and later in the inning Yang belted a two-run homer.

Chinese Taipei manager Chang-Heng Hsieh showed ambitions to not only advance, but to win the group outright as well.

"We have won two games now. Although this is not a guarantee yet that we can go to Tokyo, we now stand good chances," he said. "I want to be at our best to play against Korea [on Tuesday] and get three wins in the first round."

Dutch manager Hensley Muelens attributed the loss to strong pitching by Chinese Taipei late in the game.

"They pitched well," he said. "Our guys were a bit over-aggressive ... swinging at breaking balls. That was the formula for them to tame our bats today," Meulens said.

[I thought the Dutch would have put up a stronger battle but the Chinese Taipei team has some pretty skilled offensive hitters. The work solidly on defense and although they had a hiccup in their pitching game, proved in the end that this is the team to beat in this pool.]

Japan's pitching keeps China in check

By Jason Coskrey / Special to MLB.com | 3/3/2013 10:11 A.M. ET

FUKUOKA, Japan --

Japan was expected to blow China out of the water, but another up-and-down performance by the Japanese hitters allowed the Chinese to somehow remain within arm's reach.

However, a long-awaited dominant performance by starter Kenta Maeda made sure that was as close as they got. Maeda kept the Chinese guessing long enough for his slow-starting offense to catch fire during a four-run fifth inning, as Japan defeated China, 5-2, on Sunday night at Fukuoka's Yafuoku Dome.

Maeda was coming off a subpar performance against Australia in an exhibition game, but rebounded in a big way, limiting China to one hit and striking out six over five scoreless innings to pick up the win.

"I had a week since the last outing, so I was able to make adjustments," Maeda said.

Japan will have the next two days off, with Cuba as the last remaining obstacle between them and the top spot in Pool A. Japan faces Cuba on Wednesday in a game that can be seen live on MLB Network and ESPN Deportes.

"We're in good shape," Japan manager Koji Yamamoto said. "I wish we could've scored a little earlier, but I'm satisfied."

hinese starter Xia Luo, 20, was the losing pitcher, but had a surprisingly good outing, holding Japan to one run over 3 2/3 innings. Luo, who struck out two and walked two, was forced to leave the game in the fourth after reaching the first-round's 65-pitch limit.

"He was moving the ball around and he was changing speeds," China manager Jon McClaren said. "He was getting ahead of them, and when you get ahead, I don't care what level you are."

Luo's night was even more impressive considering no one -- least of all the pitcher himself -- expected him to take the mound.

"He didn't know until game time he was pitching," McClaren said. "He probably heard on the Internet. We shuffled our pitching around a little bit. He stepped up to the plate and did a great job."

Japan's fortunes changed when Luo was the bench and reliever Dawei Zhu on the mound in the fifth. Seiichi Uchikawa burned Zhu for an RBI single early on, and Yoshio Itoi added a three-run double.

"This was a do-or-die game, and I'm glad we won," Itoi said.

Unlike the Chinese, Japan's relievers didn't run in too many problems. Tetsuya Utsumi, Hideaki Wakui and Hirokazu Sawamura were perfect over the sixth, seventh and eight innings, combining to strike out six over that span.

Japan's final pitcher, Tetsuya Yamaguchi, ran into trouble in the ninth, giving up two runs while allowing a pair of singles and throwing two wild pitches.

Shortstop Ray Chang, who was the hero of China's victory over Taiwan in the 2009 Classic, finished 0-for-4 and drove in a run in the ninth on an RBI groundout. Lei Li accounted for the Chinese's lone extra-base hit when he connected for a double off Maeda in the fourth.

"Team China is young and we don't have much experience," Li said through a translator. "We have very limited opportunities and have players who are a little nervous, but we never gave up during the game."

Luo had one of his few missteps when he walked Itoi with one out in the second. Itoi stole second, took third on a groundout by Hisayoshi Chono, and scored on a two-out single to left off the bat of Sho Nakata.

Nobuhiro Matsuda led off the fifth with an infield single and advanced to second on Hayato Sakamoto's sacrifice bunt. Kazuo Matsui drew a walk to put two on, and Uchikawa singled to right to score Matsuda from second, making the score 2-0.

Shinnosuke Abe then drew a walk that loaded the bases, and Itoi cleared them with his double to center, making the score 5-0.

Meng Weiqiang and Cui Xiao singled to start the ninth. And after a Delong Jia strikeout, the pair advanced a base when Yamaguchi threw a wild pitch to Li.

Yamaguchi struck Li out on another wild pitch, but Li made it safely to first while Meng scored and Xiao went to third. Chang's RBI groundout brought in another run, before Yamaguchi struck out Wei Dong to end the game.

China is scheduled to face Cuba on Monday at 4:30 p.m. locally and 2:30 a.m. ET.

[Team Japan and Team Cuba are still the class in this pool. Japan is performing much as expected. They have an excellent defensive squad well-schooled in the fundamentals of this game. The starting pitching has been a problem during the exhibition games with the relief corps as their strength. If Japan expects to keep winning, the starters will have to come through. Expect low scoring games and a lot of small ball from the Japanese. They lack power but have hitters that can handle a baseball bat.]

Balloon launch at Hanshin Tigers baseball game (last 30 seconds or so)

Shots of the crowd at a Hanshin Tigers game in Spring 2012. This was a regular season game, but the stadium was almost completely full. Each player has a chant or song that the crowd performs when they come up to bat. The dedication of the fans and the energy in the stadium were incredible! During the 7th inning stretch it is tradition to release balloons. The long balloons have whistle tips on the end in celebration for the team.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=miDy_tnazdc

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8t2-UZycPTc

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JOEZ- I have had some fun watching some of these games on MLB TV.