Shohei Ohtani emerged from the bullpen and fanned Los Angeles Angels teammate Mike Trout for the final out in a matchup the whole baseball world wanted to see, leading Japan over the defending champion United States 3-2 Tuesday night for its first World Baseball Classic title since 2009.
Ohtani, the two-way star who has captivated fans across two continents, beat out an infield single in the seventh inning as a designated hitter, and walked down the left-field line to Japan’s bullpen to warm up for his third mound appearance of the tournament. He walked big league batting champion Jeff McNeil before getting Mookie Betts to ground into a double play.
