On to the WBC Final

That's your opinion on Darvish and not a fact.

I predict that the game will be like the last game of the Tokyo Round more or less.

Yeah, was surprised to see Darvish put in in the 9th today. I figure it's Hara's gut feeling after Darvish's performance last time against Korea, although I think he shut them down after a bad first inning.

Anyway, Iwakuma is really hot, so hopefully he can get it done. He got passed over for the Olympics, so it's his stage now.

I was watching the game last night and thought US was a little sloppy. Maybe they should put in more time to get in shape for the tournament the next time?

Anyhow, I was enjoying the game while chatting on PLNara's chat and I hear these noises outside my apartment, I go outside on my porch and look up and I see a man on the roof trying to break into my neighbour's apartment!! He sees me and takes off. I was watching this game in Europe where it was 3 AM or so. It was dark outside so I was pretty scared. Because I was up watching this game I think I did my neighbour a big favour by scaring away the thief! Had I been sleeping I do not know what would have happened. I saw the game until the final out, but was a little shaken by that incident.

The Asians have dominated this WBC. I think Hara is making the right decision by starting Iwakuma. Iwakuma, in my view, is the most consistent starter for Japan.

As for the game, I kind of feel as if Korea is going to win this time. I hope I am wrong, but they are looking solid.

I was watching the game last night and thought the US was a little sloppy.

Yeah, poor fielding hurt them a lot. I still don't think they take the WBC as seriously as the Asian teams, as Japan and Korea look much more prepared. I'm not making an excuse for the Americans, however, as they do often lack solid fundamentals.

It will be interesting to see what happens next time. When the world caught up with American basketball, they returned with a vengeance. I would like to see a more focused American team next time out, but it's still a matter of who decides to play and which teams let their players play at all. With all the injuries we had this time, I unfortunately only see teams being even more cautious.

Darvish is the best pitcher in the world. The last pitch he threw against the U.S. was clocked at 108 mph!

- The last pitch he threw against the U.S. was clocked at 108 mph!

You either heard that wrong or it was faulty equipment! The fastest pitch in MLB history is just over 100 mph, so I assure you Darvish didn't throw 108!

Yay. Japan wins it all.

Wow that final had it all. Great pitching, great hitting, the quality of baseball was ridiculously good. And it was two Asian teams! I found myself rooting for Japan and especially for Darvish at the end, the way he was pitching it was like something out of Dragon Ball Z.

I followed Korea and Japan throughout the whole tournament and loved watching them play. Their style was so different from all the other teams in the WBC. I can't count the number of times the announcers and commentators were just guffawed at certain moves and strategies by the two teams. A lot of times it was against "normal" baseball strategy, but it worked! The way the Koreans and Japanese carried themselves during their games is something that the rest of the future participants should try to emulate.

Well, Japan is better at making cars, baseball video games, and now they're arguably the best at playing the game of baseball. I just hope that this final opens up Americans eyes to the talent overseas.

It's funny how "normal" baseball strategy drastically differs on both sides of the Pacific. Commentators on either side of the ocean are always amazed by what teams from the other sides do.

Japan baseball is great!