Baseball players beat China 8:5 at the WBC, Mužík's home run also helped

World Baseball Classic – Group B in Tokyo: Czech Republic – China. Pictured are Czech players in Japan on March 10, 2023.

Tokyo – Czech baseball players made their debut at the prestigious World Baseball Classic (WBC) tournament and beat China 8:5 in Tokyo Group B today . Coach Pavel Chadim's men were in control of most of the duel in Tokyo Dom, although they lost by a point after an unsuccessful sixth inning, but they decided with four points in the final ninth, three of which were scored by a home run by Martin Mužík.

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Photogallery: World Baseball Classic 2023

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“This was a demonstration of absolute team cohesion and faith until the last moment,” Chadim said in a press release. With the win, his team took a significant step towards staying among the elite. The teams in fourth place in groups of five will be guaranteed a start at the next WBC in 2026.

The baseball players have three more games ahead of them. On Saturday, they will challenge the favored Japanese (11:00 CET), then they will face the Koreans and the Australians. The two best teams will advance to the quarterfinals.

The Czechs had a sharp start, Vojtěch Menšík fired the first pitch of the game and then ran for a point just like Eric Sogard. In the third inning, Matěj Menšík made it 3:0 with a home run, and pitcher Daniel Padyšák supported the team with an excellent performance – he did not give the Chinese batters a chance for four innings.

In the fifth inning, pitcher Martin Schneider “gave up” three free hits and the Chinese pushed for the first point, but an inning later after Filip Smola's at-bat, William Escala made it 4:1.

Schneider had to be substituted in the bottom of the sixth inning as he quickly exhausted his pitch count, and the coach pulled him after 49 pitches to use the player in future games. If Schneider had thrown 50 or more pitches, he would have been required to rest for four days according to the WBC rules.

Nineteen-year-old Michal Koval had one pitch to end the sixth inning, but he did not do well in the seventh. The opponent hit four times and equalized. The experienced Marek Minařík came to the pitching “hill”, but he gave up one run after a missed ball and the Czechs lost 4:5.

In the eighth inning, the baseball players came up empty, but in the ninth they struck. Catcher Martin Červenka got a free yard, Menšík leaned into a two-pitch at-bat, and the Chinese changed pitchers. The man sent his first pitch over the fence and pulled off three points. After that, substitute runner Marek Krejčiřík scored after Smola's bat. Minařík was already playing the match and the Czechs were celebrating their victory. “No celebration. We will have dinner, sushi and a new day is ahead,” said Minařík.