I did it like Korea' Canada advances to the 2R for the first time in history as No. 1 in Group A! Cuba's first 1R elimination shock [2026 WBC]

*This content was translated by AI.

Canada, the strongest lineup ever, beat Cuba to reach the second round of the World Baseball Classic (WBC) for the first time in history.

Canada defeated Cuba 7-2 in the final Group A match in the first round of the 2026 WBC finals at Estadio Hiram Bison in San Juan, Puerto Rico on the 12th (Korea Standard Time).

With three wins and one loss, Canada ranked first in Group A and advanced to the quarterfinals according to the winner's winning principle. The host Puerto Rico is the same 3-1 record, but the loss to Canada led to the quarterfinals as the second-ranked team in the group.

Canada, like Korea, which overcame the pain of elimination in the first round of three tournaments with a dramatic quarterfinal, has washed away the pain of elimination (minority) in the past. Canada has participated steadily since the first tournament in 2006, but has never advanced to the quarterfinals. In particular, Freddie Freeman, a leading hitter, participated in the last tournament and was eliminated even though he participated in a relatively good group, leaving a regret.

On the other hand, Cuba, which was the runner-up team in the first tournament, suffered the pain of being eliminated from the quarterfinals for the first time in history due to its weakening team power. Cuba, which rose to fourth place in the last tournament, was so competitive that only one major leaguer was Yoan Moncada (LA Angels).

It won two consecutive games against relatively weak teams such as Panama and Colombia, but lost to Puerto Rico and Canada in succession to finish third in Group A.

On this day, Canada consisted of Otto Lopez (striker), Josh Naylor (designated hitter), Tyler O'Neill (right fielder), Abraham Toro (third baseman), Owen Casey (left fielder), Matt Davidson (first baseman), Bo Naylor (catcher), Denzel Clark (middle fielder), and Eduardo Julien (second baseman). The starting pitcher is Carl Quantryl.

Against this, Cuba formed a lineup of Alexander Vargas (striker), Yoan Moncada (third baseman), Ariel Martinez (left fielder), Alfredo Despaigne (designated hitter), Joel Janki (first baseman), Eddy Café (second baseman), Yoelkis Gibert (right fielder), Andris Perez (catcher) and Roel Santos (midfielder). The starting pitcher is Livan Moinello.

The first place was Canada's. With one out in the top of the third inning, O'Neill and Toro hit back-to-back hits. The ball fell out of Casey's at-bat and became second and third base, and immediately a 1-0 Canadian lead was made with an RBI single in right field sacrifice fly.

We exchanged a point in the fifth inning. With two outs in the top of the fifth inning, Toro hit a superior solo shot. However, Cuba also made third base with no outs due to a failed pitcher check following a walk by leadoff hitter Yanki in the bottom of the fifth inning. Gibert brought Janki home with a ground ball to second base to make up for one point.

The direction of the game was decided in the sixth inning. In the top of the sixth inning, Davison, the leadoff hitter, ran to third base due to an opponent's error and wild pitch. Bonailer scored an extra point with an RBI timely double to the right fence.

For Cuba, it was regrettable that the continuous mistakes were made. Clark advanced to first base with a strike not out, stole second base and made second and third bases with no outs. Here, Lopez made it 5-1 with a two-run timely hit to the left.

After that, Cuba only recovered one point. In the bottom of the sixth inning, with one out and runners on the second and third bases, Martenis hit a timely RBI single to the right.

Canada confirmed the victory with Josh Naylor's timely RBI single to left-center in the top of the eighth inning with two outs and runners on first base, and Casey's timely RBI single to the right in the top of the ninth inning with no outs.

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*This content was translated by AI.