HOUSTON.- Mexico He only needed six entries to impose his dominance in the World Classic of Baseball and seal a resounding 16-0 victory over Brazil via knockout.
The Aztecs set the pace from the first inning at Daikin Park and never relinquished control of the match, supported by solid pitching and an offense that punished the Brazilian pitching staff early.
The result was part of an unusual day in the tournament, in which two matches ended by knockout, after the Dominican Republic also sealed its victory by this rule hours before against the Netherlands.
The game ended before completing nine innings due to the championship’s mercy rule, which establishes a knockout when a team wins by 15 runs after five innings or by 10 runs after seven innings.
Throughout the history of the World Baseball Classic there have now been 15 games decided by the mercy rule. The inaugural 2006 edition produced the most results of this type, with four. The first occurred on March 10, 2006, when the United States defeated South Africa 17-0 in five innings in Phoenix.
In subsequent tournaments, knockouts have appeared more sporadically: four in 2009, two in 2013, three in 2017 and two in 2023, almost always during the group stage when powerful teams face developing teams.
The tournament day once again added another chapter to that list. Hours before the Mexican triumph, the Dominican Republic also won by knockout by beating the Netherlands, marking one of the few days in the history of the Classic with two games defined by this rule.
Taijuan Walker started the job from the mound and pitched 3.1 innings in which he struck out three opponents and walked two. The right-hander kept the South American offense at bay before handing over, in compliance with the tournament rule that limits a starter’s pitches to 65.
Brazil managed to break the mountain dominance in the fifth inning when Gabriel Maciel had the first hit of the game, but the hit did not change the course of the game.
The Aztecs capitalized on four runs in the first episode, when Jonathan Aranda drove in Randy Arozarena to open the scoreboard, while the “wave” began to travel through the Daikin Park stands.
Alejandro Kirk, the offensive figure of the day, also contributed early with an RBI double to ignite the Mexican fans with shouts of “Mexico, Mexico, Mexico”, while Alek Thomas added another with a single to extend the lead.
Jarred Duran joined the party in the second inning and sent the ball to the right grandstand of the Houston stadium to widen the lead and set the tone of the night for the ninth tricolor team.
While the Mexican relief team kept the Brazilians at bay, the Aztec bats responded again in the fourth inning with a cluster of runs that ultimately led to the outcome of the match.
Duran hit a two-RBI double and Kirk showed his power with a home run to left-center field to add more runs and put the score in knockout territory.
But when it seemed like the offense had slowed down, Thomas got the ball out in the sixth inning to add two more runs.
With the lead expanded and the pitching maintaining control of the game, Mexico sealed the victory in the sixth inning with another full-round hit, this time by pinch-hitter Julián Ornelas. Thus, the Mexican team signed one of the most resounding triumphs of its journey through the classics.
Mexico now must face the powerful United States team this Monday night.
