In its last outing, Israel put up 15 runs, as Nate Freiman and Tyler Krieger combined for seven RBI while Ike Davis had three hits.
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Australia’s pitcher Matthew Williams reacts on the mound as Japan’s Sho Nakata rounds bases after hitting a solo home-run during seventh inning.
In the fourth inning, both teams’ fired-up batters continued the assault, with both sides grabbing two runs to make it 8-5. Israel extended their lead to 6-0 in the third inning when Lavarnway hit the first home run of the WBC with a man on.
Team Israel will play the opening game of the second round against a yet-to-be-determined opponent on Saturday night at 10pm in Tokyo.
Israel sits at number 41 in the global baseball world rankings and is the only team in the tournament not in the top 20.
Adding to Team Israel’s plucky can-do spirit is its unofficial mascot: the “Mensch on a Bench”, a large, mustachioed stuffed toy that reclines in their dugout.
Kurz says that in the 2-1 game against hosts South Korea, “the guys didn’t buckle”.
Israel, which came into the classic ranked 41st in the world – the only team in the tournament not in the top twenty – has beaten third-ranked Korea, fourth-ranked Chinese Taipei, and seventh-ranked Netherlands to continue its improbable run.
This was the first time that American Jewish baseball players, including several current and former MLB players, are representing Israel in a world championship.
He’s thrown more innings than any Israel pitcher, through it’s first two WBC games.
Jason Marquis, who started against South Korea and the Netherlands, is a 15-year Major League Baseball veteran; Corey Baker, who started against Chinese Taipei, is in the Cardinals’ system; reliever Josh Zeid, who got the win against Korea and the save against the Dutch, has almost 700 innings of professional ball to his name. But this year, the skills of our hitters, pitchers and offense were comparably low. Santos then scored on Alexander Ayala’s double to left. So will first-game starter Rick Van Der Hunk, who pitched four scoreless innings in the opener. And Israel mostly got by on bloops and singles; of their 20 hits, just five were for extra bases – two doubles, one triple, and two homers. Israel made it 4 – 1 when Zach Borenstein grounded into a double play with bases loaded. Yoelqui Cespedes, the 19-year-old brother of Yoenis, drove in a run that inning as well.
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The Australian earned an early lead through catcher Allan de San Miguel’s home run in the second innings, stunning the crowd at the Tokyo Dome.
