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MightGuy420x t1_jd67rag wrote

Ohtani vs trout was like the ending of a movie

335

AwesomeWhiteDude t1_jd683bt wrote

If this were a movie I would bash it for being too cliché.

Amazing tournament, amazing game.

I fucking love baseball.

72

BowwwwBallll t1_jd6a42o wrote

I just feel bad for Ohtani and Trout. After all this excitement, now they gotta suffer through 162 meaningless games.

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Ghiggs_Boson t1_jd6agou wrote

Superhero vs superhero. Ohtani even mentioned it in his pregame speech to his speech. Absolute greatness on display

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V-Right_In_2-V t1_jd6ai5j wrote

What a great game, and a great tournament overall. Best baseball I have watched in a long time. I love the single elimination game aspect of it

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TidusxX420 t1_jd6c4oh wrote

How can you not be romantic about baseball?

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Viper_Red t1_jd6ctdj wrote

I’m originally from Pakistan so had zero exposure to baseball growing up. Even after moving to the US, I didn’t really bother cause I thought the rules were too complicated.

But my Japanese friend asked if she could watch the game at my place so I learnt the rules specifically to watch this game and I was hooked since I actually knew the rules now. This was my first full baseball game and I think I’ll be watching MLB regularly once the season starts lol

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the_quark t1_jd6hc7w wrote

Replying to MightGuy420x (#2,299,420)

My kids and I were all "this had better not result in a walk, this either has to be a strikeout or a homerun." Was glad not to be disappointed, even though we were rooting for Team USA.

93

the_quark t1_jd6hgzc wrote

Replying to Doggleganger (#2,299,996)

They "temporarily" did it as part of the Coronavirus rule changes. But they just made it temporary.

And yeah, MLB sees all the excitement around Ohtani and their immediate response is "obviously no pitchers should hit."

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LesWhite t1_jd6imfp wrote

Yeah but USA wins in the BBC Final.

−13

pspahn t1_jd6jayv wrote

Replying to whostheme (#2,300,218)

I've described it before as like a symphony, so you've got it right. The building tension is what makes it so different, and there's no time limit, so even though things can feel slow, the tension still builds, and you have no idea when it will climax.

5

[deleted] t1_jd6jfdx wrote

I lost interest in MLB over the years, but this tournament pretty much brought me back to the sport, It wouldn’t surprise me if the WBC gets bigger than MLB. You can tell the passion when playing for your country as opposed to a paycheck.

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sabeshs t1_jd6jxc5 wrote

Are these 2 the best players in the MLB?

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Jac1596 t1_jd6nvov wrote

Replying to [deleted] (#2,300,295)

It’s already a huge deal in Japan and pretty much every country except the U.S which is pretty sad. The fans here simply don’t care as much and the players don’t care as much as the other nations. But I do hope it becomes more prestigious here as well. Team U.S fielded a fantastic roster but on the pitching side they still have a lot of room to grow where pitchers simply did not want to opt for it.

The other nations players like DR, Puerto Rico, Japan, Korea, etc. take it very seriously and I’ve seen from many players that this tournament means more to them than the World Series. And you can see it in how much passion they play with.

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wigam t1_jd6ufe2 wrote

How many countries are in the WBC?

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Kaihann t1_jd6v8ug wrote

How can Japan possibly have won when America always wins the World Series?

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dontthinkabtit t1_jd6zuwz wrote

Replying to whostheme (#2,300,218)

That slower pace that some people complain about with baseball is, almost paradoxically, the exact reason games like this one are so gripping. The face-off between pitcher and hitter, the rising tension and then the release and outcome is exactly what makes it a great sport.

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theocrats t1_jd72kwy wrote

Replying to wigam (#2,300,994)

I was surprised to hear England had a team. We play rounders as kids but we grow up and play adult sports. Never once seen or heard of rounders being played by adults

3

English84 t1_jd78w8u wrote

Good jolly game this rounders thing is

1

tommypopz t1_jd79ar8 wrote

Replying to theocrats (#2,301,387)

Not gonna lie it’s a lot of kids with parents born in the Caribbean when they were British colonies. Not complaining too much, there are some pretty good players in the squad. We even won a match, so have autoqualified for 2026!

3

thorpie88 t1_jd7ctek wrote

Replying to Jac1596 (#2,300,597)

I'm one of two Aussies I know that like baseball and I had coworkers ask me how the tournament was going for us. Just a shame our coverage was only for the Aussie games and nothing more

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jonasjlp t1_jd7i6lx wrote

Japan -3. Philadelphia Phillies -2

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GasOnFire t1_jd7iwus wrote

Replying to V-Right_In_2-V (#2,299,647)

I’m a sports fan but not a baseball fan. I think it’s the most boring sport to watch. I can’t even bring myself to watch the World Series anymore.

However, for whatever reason, I turned on this tournament and it hooked me. I hadn’t watched baseball in years and LOVED this. I still can’t put my finger on why though. It was great. I wish baseball hit like this all the time.

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HighKing_of_Festivus t1_jd7ku1k wrote

Replying to theocrats (#2,301,387)

They mostly used players who are children of UK citizens. Lots of players from independent leagues and a handful of minor league prospects and one major leaguer.

Also heard that the British baseball federation operates on an annual budget of $30,000, or something around that, so not all that surprising that it's extremely niche there. That said, qualifying for this and the next WBC comes with at least $600,000 over the next six years so maybe they'll expand at least a little bit

3

[deleted] t1_jd7lzjb wrote

Replying to nicgom (#2,302,380)

World Series ratings keep dwindling over the years. Not to mention the MLB season drags on forever. They should just cut back on the season and maybe alter it during WBC years to have this in the summer and do away with the meaningless ASG

3

cdbloosh t1_jd7nhqq wrote

Replying to Doggleganger (#2,299,961)

It actually made more sense for him to sign with an American League team, for the same reason. Using a DH in a game has always been optional (an option that, until Ohtani, teams basically took 100% of the time), so he could hit when he pitches in either league regardless.

But in the AL he could also DH when he wasn’t pitching, which he could not have done in the NL, he would have had to play the outfield on his off days.

He is by all accounts a pretty good outfielder but the general consensus was that playing outfield full time AND pitching every 5th day would have been too much of an injury risk.

So between the DH rule working in his favor, and the general preference that many Japanese players have to be on the West coast that I assume went into it too, he landed on the Angels.

As someone else said, both leagues have the DH now, but he had no way of knowing that at the time.

MLB also added an “Ohtani rule” a couple years ago that allows the starting pitcher to remain in the game as a DH once they have stopped pitching. It basically just allows a pitcher to DH for himself.

Previously once you chose to not use a DH, the DH was lost for the game, so Ohtani would have to stop hitting once he was no longer pitching. It’s a rule that basically only affects one guy and is pretty much only in place just to let everyone get what they want, which is to see that guy play more.

15

[deleted] t1_jd7o42a wrote

Replying to Jac1596 (#2,300,597)

Unfortunately, It takes place right in the middle of March Madness, So that’s where most of the focus is. But it did get the attention of casual sports fans and I am sure this could give the sport a much needed boost.

11

[deleted] t1_jd7oc4z wrote

Replying to thorpie88 (#2,302,008)

It became such a huge deal in México, that the two prestigious soccer matches over the weekend took a back seat to the WBC. Despite the media giving soccer 90% of attention.

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cdbloosh t1_jd7on3d wrote

Replying to fzkiz (#2,301,354)

They don’t have to. For about 50 years the American League had the DH rule, which allows a different guy to bat in the pitcher’s spot. Technically this is an option but until Ohtani it was an option that was literally always taken, because until Ohtani there hasn’t been a player who is world class at both pitching and hitting in over 100 years. The National League required the pitcher to bat.

As of a few years ago both leagues have the DH now.

MLB also recently implemented an “Ohtani rule” which basically allows the pitcher to DH for himself, meaning he can remain in the game as the DH once he is no longer pitching. Previously if he batted for himself, that would mean the team had chosen for the pitcher to bat instead of using a DH, which is a choice you can’t go back on, so he would have to be removed from the batting lineup once a new pitcher replaced him.

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kurt_go_bang t1_jd7r5bj wrote

Replying to thegoodreverenddoc (#2,300,097)

I think players celebrate to a fair level in MLB. Showing up the other players should still be looked upon unkindly if you push it too far.

We don’t need shit like what Arozarena pulled with his amazing catch in the Mex vs Jap game. That’s still low class assholery. I think even he knew he went too far after he calmed down.

2

kurt_go_bang t1_jd7s3br wrote

Replying to Kaihann (#2,301,041)

MLB is made up of the absolute top players from around the WORLD. Most of the players in the WBC are part of MLB, with the goal of winning the World Series.

Maybe not originally designed that way, it definitely reps a decent chunk of the world now.

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john_bear_jones t1_jd7z55q wrote

Replying to HighKing_of_Festivus (#2,302,557)

As someone who is familiar with the rules of baseball but not a dedicated fan, what is the importance of team chemistry in baseball in general (it seems like baseball, more than most other team sports, is closer to the whole being exactly a sum of its parts because individual players don't interact a whole bunch) and how specifically are the Angels mismanaging their roster?

6

morelikeaaronfudge t1_jd82iiq wrote

Replying to tommypopz (#2,301,778)

Judge has been the most valuable player in MLB since he debuted in 2017. He's been worth more than trout since that time. Trout is an all time great but he missed a lot of time since then and Judge has been so productive even before last year. He most definitely is near trouts level right now despite not being near him on the list of greatest players ever.

1

poptartosaurus t1_jd88ahe wrote

Replying to thegoodreverenddoc (#2,300,097)

I watched a lot of MLB last year and saw some pretty over the top celebrations without really any backlash from anyone or the opposing teams, especially during the playoffs. I think the unwritten rules are already a thing of the past. There’s probably more celebration in the WBC because every game is higher stakes, I saw the same amount of celebration during the playoffs last year when the stakes are similar

3

thewarfreak t1_jd8gaqa wrote

Epic game. Epic tournament. Let's go, USA in 2026.

2

tommypopz t1_jd8w648 wrote

Replying to dalnot (#2,304,300)

I don’t see why not, since the original player is both positions merged, that pinch hitter becomes the DH and the pitcher stays as is. I don’t know if we’ll ever see that happen though, since it’s rare enough in the first, and Shohei’s such a damn good hitter that you’d rarely pinch him. Plus, modern day managerial pitch limits being what they are, one’s likelier to stop pitching before they stop batting.

4

OsCrowsAndNattyBohs1 t1_jd9pwlv wrote

Replying to theocrats (#2,305,664)

Yes like American football where you cant be a 16 year old 65kg twink and play be at the top of the sport. That actually goes every single one of the big 4 leagues. You are never going to see someone under 18-19 years old and under 70kg in the NHL, NFL, NBA and MLB. American sports require a level of size and strength that teenagers dont have. You literally need to be a full grown adult to play American sports, you dont need to be to play soccer.

−1

OsCrowsAndNattyBohs1 t1_jd9ss03 wrote

Replying to theocrats (#2,308,993)

Do you deny that association football can be played at the highest level by 65kg children? Sure I know what rugby union is, league is superior anyways. And if you wanna talk about pads how about the suit of armor that cricket batters, baseball players literally just where a helmet with no face cover. Some dont even wear batting gloves and they face much higher velocities than cricket batters.

−1

theocrats t1_jd9uhab wrote

Replying to OsCrowsAndNattyBohs1 (#2,309,088)

Let the world decide which sport is better.

Anyway what weird machismo. Body weight and strength ≠ adult or athleticism.

Horses for courses. A 65kg footballer is still an athlete. Football requires more long distance running over long periods. Yank sports stop for adverts every 5 minutes, lots of time to get their breath back!

1

OsCrowsAndNattyBohs1 t1_jdayzdc wrote

Replying to theocrats (#2,309,639)

Never said they were all children simply that children can compete at the highest level of the sport. You are the one who brought up the "adult sports". Also to your previous comment, size and strength absolutely equals adult. Adults are stronger than heavier than teenagers pretty ismply. There is a reason you dont see teenagers at the highest level of strength and combat sports, certainly not 15-17 year olds.

0

spyson t1_jdbgcr0 wrote

Replying to GasOnFire (#2,302,475)

The talent in the MLB right now is very exciting and they are emerging as the new generation and face of the league. There's new life in baseball with this new generation as they are unbelievable.

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