Team USA tops Great Britain in 2023 World Baseball Classic opener originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
Team USA’s title defense journey in the 2023 World Baseball Classic swung to a hot start.
After falling behind 1-0 in the first inning, Team USA cruised to a 6-2 win over Great Britain in its Pool C opener.
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A shaky start for the U.S. saw Trayce Thompson launch a solo home run off Adam Wainwright on the second at-bat of the contest, but the gamestate from there smoothened.
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Team USA didn’t get on the board until the bottom of the third, when Paul Goldschmidt scored off a Nolan Arenado double. Then Kyle Turner singled to center, which saw Arenado score to take the 2-1 lead.
Then enter the Schwarbomb: Philadelphia Phillies’ Kyle Schwarber drilled a three-run homer to make it a 5-1 advantage in the fourth.
Team USA added its sixth score in the bottom of the sixth when Goldschmidt once again ran home off an Arenado double. Then in the top of the seventh, Great Britain narrowed the deficit by one when Anfernee Seymour grounded out to third, allowing D'Shawn Knowles to score. The last two innings featured no runs for either side.
Team USA will continue Pool C action on Sunday against Mexico at 10 p.m. ET at Chase Field, home of the Arizona Diamondbacks. Mexico lost its first game against Colombia 5-4 in 10 innings.
