World Baseball Classic – Group B in Tokyo: Czech Republic – China. Martin Mužík pictured in Japan on March 10, 2023.
Tokyo – According to his business card, baseball player Martin Mužík's greatest strength is powerful hits, and the player from Hluboká nad Vltavou fulfills this to the letter, especially in a national team jersey. In the fall, he “shot” the Czech Republic to historic World Baseball Classic progress with a home run, and today, in the team's premiere at the prestigious event, he secured a victory over China (8:5) with a hit over the fence in the last inning.
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“It's a great feeling that we won. It's a great joy that we took the victory back, even though it looked bad (at 4:5). We are happy. Belief in ourselves and in the other players drives us forward. We rely on each to the other,” said the twenty-six-year-old first sweeper Mužík in a press release.
An admirer of the American star Mike Trout, who is one of the best batsmen in the famous millionaire MLB and already has 350 home runs, decided the fall finale of the qualification in Regensburg with a two-point catch. Thanks to Mužík's blow, the Czechs beat Spain 3:1 and won tickets to the WBC. And he added another winning home run now in Tokyo. “It took me back in time a bit,” Mužík acknowledged that he had experienced the dejà vu.
In Tokyo Dom, the baseball players were aiming for a win, but after an unsuccessful seventh inning, they lost 4:5. In the last inning, Martin Červenka and Matěj Menšík reached the bases, who was then replaced as a runner by Jakub Grepl. Mužík followed in the order, who had not batted once in the match before and now had his last chance. “I thought it was time for me to hit something,” said Mužík.
Before he started, the opponent replaced the pitcher. And the Czech player, who spent the winter months in Australia, where he earned money as a gardener in addition to baseball, kept his concentration. And immediately he sent the first pitch over the barrier. The ball sailed into left field and it was uncertain whether it would end up out of bounds. “I said to myself: 'Don't turn, don't turn, don't let it end up next to you'. It was a few meters away,” coach Pavel Chadim sighed.
The man said that he didn't know what it was that lately he hits home runs in important games for the national team. “It kind of comes naturally,” he shrugged with a smile and added: “It's some kind of muscle memory you have. Either you're trained or you're not.”
2,000 fans watched the match in the stadium and between them about two hundred Czechs. “They flew from the Czech Republic to all over the world to support us. This is incredible. It means a lot to us. They gave us energy and pushed us to win,” the baseball player told the official website tournaments.
