Samurai U18 coach Mabuchi is relieved to defend his 3rd place after beating South Korea.

Looking back at the tournament, “it won’t be baseball if you say it’s a second-half game.”

On the 18th (19th Japan time), Japan’s high school national team “Samurai Japan” defeated South Korea 6-2 in the 3rd place game of the “30th WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup” held in Sarasota, Florida, USA. and won the bronze medal. After the match, manager Shiro Mabuchi said, “At least I can go back to Japan now. If I didn’t get a medal, I couldn’t go home.”

In the first inning, Japan had a good chance with 1 out, 1st and 3rd, and Yuta Utsumi, an infielder (Koryo), hit Nakamae in time and managed to take the lead. In the second inning, receiver Shion Matsuo (Osaka Toin) scored five timely runs, extending his lead.

They exacted revenge against arch-nemesis South Korea, who suffered a crushing 0-8 defeat in the Super Round opener, and won their first medal in two tournaments. After the match, manager Mabuchi praised the Nine saying, “There were injuries and I couldn’t use the players the way I wanted.

Thinking back to the tournament he played in the United States, he said: “The way we play is the 7 innings system. I’ve come to understand that the last 3 innings will be the last game. If I say it’s a second half game, it’s not going to be baseball. I have to think about it. I managed to get the bronze medal. It’s a fight that I thought I could use as a reference when the Japanese national team came. But at least I can go back to Japan now. If I didn’t have a medal, I would already be here. I was doing it because I thought I couldn’t go home.” he declared.

(Full-Count Writing)