The World Baseball Classic has just reached the final stretch, after some intense semi-finals, we now have the two teams that will be facing off to see who is the best in the world.
Two giants of baseball go head-to-head as we get to know who will be crowned in this world Championship.
The USA comes from steamrolling Cuba, and Japan took a tight win against Mexico in their semi-final.
The following is a preview of the Final match of the World Baseball Classic.
When:
Tuesday, March 21 at 07:00 PM ET at loanDepot park in Miami
Betting Odds:
USA -131
Japan -105
Where Can I Watch it?
Why bet on the USA?
On Sunday, Team USA took care of business against Cuba in a seemingly routine fashion in the first semifinal.
With the final score being 14-2, it was a showcase of just how well the Americans are doing at the plate in this tournament.
The starting pitcher for the USA baseball team will be D-Backs starter, Merrill Kelly. Until now he only has a discrete participation in the match vs. Colombia allowing two runs in three innings.
Why bet on Japan?
As for Japan, the two-time champions come into the final following a truly dramatic 6-5 comeback win against Mexico in the semis.
Having won all six of their games up to this point, the Japanese have been stellar throughout the tournament.
Now, about their pitching starter, Japan will use the southpaw Shōta Imanaga. He has had a couple of relief appearances in the tournament until now and allowed one run in 4 innings.
Final Betting Analysis?
It’s true that in terms of the head-to-head the Americans lead 2-1, but that’s the past and this is the present, something which Japan has shown they are very much in control of.
We expect a thrilling contest when these two – as the best nations in baseball – meet in the 2023 World Baseball Classic final.
First, off the bat, we expect this one to be a high-scoring affair. Between the two teams, they’ve put 36 runs on the board during the knockout stages with the Americans posting 21 and the Japanese 15.
Four of the USA’s last 5 games have seen them produce over 9.5 runs and the same can be said for the Japanese.
With both teams possessing serious firepower, it’s going to come down to which pitching rotation can hold firm.
With that scenario, we’re going with a 7-5 Team USA win.
If you bet $100 on a USA victory, you could get $76.34 for a total payout of $176.34.