World Baseball Classic: Cuba 4, Australia 3
In the tournament’s first quarterfinal game, Group A champion Cuba sent Australia packing for home with a 4-3 win.
The victory advances Cuba to the tournament semifinals next week in Miami, where Cuba will play the winner of a game Thursday between Japan and Italy.
It also continues a tournament comeback that saw the Cuban team left for dead following losses in its first two Group A games in Taiwan to Netherlands and Italy. Cuba won its final two games, then survived a five-way tiebreaker by having the best ratio of runs allowed to innings pitched.
Wednesday night in Tokyo, the victors used a three-run fifth inning that broke a 1-1 tie and provided just enough margin to hold off the Aussies. A single, a walk and a hit batter loaded the bases for DH Alfredo Despaigne, who got one run home on a sacrifice fly. Erisbel Arruebarrena followed with a line single into left that provided what proved to be the winning margin.
Trailing 4-1, Australia made a game of it in the sixth when Rixon Wingrove homered with Aaron Whitfield aboard. A hit batter and catcher’s interference gave Australia a pair of two-out runners, but Alex Hall flied out to end the threat.
Over the final three innings, Cuban pitchers held Australia hitless on two bases on balls.