World Baseball Classic, Round two, Pool one: Mexico – Cuba 4-7
CUB 101 030 200 7 11 0 MEX 001 100 011 4 7 0
It wasn’t a 16-4 pounding as in round one, but Cuba again defeated Mexico, this time by a score of 7-4, and stayed alive in the 2009 World Baseball Classic. They now will face the loser of today’s Japan-Korea game on Wednesday. Mexico is going home.
Each team scored twice in the first four innings. The outcome was decided in the fifth. Cuba loaded the bases with none out. Frederich Cepeda (3-4, BB, 4 RBI), who had a RBI single earlier in the third, ripped a line drive into center field for a double, clearing the bases for a 5-2 lead. Yoennis Cespedes provided some important insurance in the seventh with a two-run triple. Leonys Martin and Michel Enriquez scored two runs apiece.
Mexico was able to cut the deficit to three runs in the last two innings through solo homeruns by Jorge Cantu and Cristhian Presichi. But it was too little too late. After being down 0-2 early on, they evened the score with a Freddy Sandoval RBI single in the third and a RBI groundout by Scott Hairston in the fourth. However in the end the gap was too big to repeat a comeback.
Norge Vera (W 1-0) started for Cuba on the mound and allowed three hits, two runs and two walks in 4 2/3 innings. He struck out five. Pedro Lazo (S 1) closed it out with 4 1/3 innings of solid relief. He gave up just two runs on four hits, punching out six. Jorge Campillo (L 0-1) was hit hard, inducing eight hits, five runs and three base on balls in four-plus innings.
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