World Baseball Classic Day 8: USA, Canada theme is “Just win, baby!”
By Bill Felber
World Baseball Classic: Mexico 2, Great Britain 1
The Mexican team positioned itself to advance Tuesday night by hanging on against Britain, which will finish last in its bracket but first in pluckiness.
As they did in upsetting Colombia one night earlier, the Brits show full-bore gameness against their favored opponents in Phoenix. What they could not do was ensue a win by scoring more than once against Taijuan Walker and a succession of five Mexico relievers.
Walker started and held Britain to one hit over four innings. The only Great Britain run scored in the sixth when Chadwick Young doubled and scored on B.J. Murray’s two-out single.
The fatal flaw in Great Britain’s plan turned out to be the five runners left on base, two of them in scoring position.
Mexico got on the board in the second thanks to Alexis Wilson’s infield single, and broke the 1-1 tie in the seventh when Wilson singled again, scoring Alan Trejo, who had singled and advanced on a wild pitch.
Jesus Cruz and Cardinal ace Giovanny Gallegos retired the final six British hitters to turn that one-run advantage into a win.