Trea Turner homered twice and drove in or the second straight game as Team USA crushed Cuba 14-2 to advance to the finals of the World Baseball Classic.
Turner, who hit a game winning grand slam on Saturday to beat Venezuela, finished with three hits and four RBI’s. Paul Goldschmidt also homered and drove in four runs for the United States who will face the winner of Monday’s Japan vs. Mexico game. The final is set for Tuesday.
O' Trea can you see. 🇺🇸 #WorldBaseballClassic pic.twitter.com/bH5ja1l77R
— MLB (@MLB) March 20, 2023
Jose Altuve Update
Eight time All-Star second baseman Jose Altuve suffered a fractured thumb during Saturday night’s World Baseball Classic game between USA vs. Venezuela and according to the team will under surgery in the coming days.
The 32-year old Altuve was hit by a pitch by Colorado Rockies closer Daniel Bard and left the game immediately. Altuve, 32, was coming off another stellar season for the reigning champion Astros, having hit .300 with a .921 OPS in 2022. He’s never played fewer than 124 games in an individual campaign.
Though the club hasn’t provided a timetable for Altuve’s return, there’s no doubt that he’s facing a significant absence. Bryce Harper suffered a thumb fracture last year and ended up missing two months of the season. Every injury and recovery is different, but it would be reasonable to expect a similar path ahead for Altuve.
Altuve’s injury came days after New York Mets closer Edwin Diaz suffered a season-ending knee injury while celebrating on the mound following a victory
Stunning TV and attendance numbers for the WBC
The early results are in and it’s apparent that baseball fans around the world have given a big thumbs-up to the World Baseball Classic.
The WBC drew over one million fans in the first round, a 98 percent increase from 2017 when 510,056 fans attended that tournament’s first round slate of games.
The games in Japan have been exceptionally popular. Games at the Tokyo Dome sold out with an average attendance of over 36,000 per game. The WBC games drew TV ratings of 42.3 which are comparable to Super Bowl numbers in the US.
Despite the high profile injuries to Diaz and Altuve, it would appear the tournament is here to stay.
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