USA 010 011 002 5 7 2 Puerto Rico 400 002 00X 6 8 0
Puerto Rico scored four runs in the first and two in the sixth to beat Team USA 6-5 on Friday evening at PETCO Park in San Diego during second-round play at the 2017 World Baseball Classic. The finalist from 2013 remained the second undefeated team in the tournament besides Samurai Japan. With their second victory in the second round they already have been qualified for the semi-finals in Los Angeles next week.
Three RBI singles by Carlos Correa, Carlos Beltran and Yadier Molina plus a sac fly by Eddie Rosario gave Puerto Rico a 4-0 lead after just one inning. Team USA was not done though, cutting the deficit to a run until the middle of the sixth thanks to a RBI single by Eric Hosmer and solo shots by Buster Posey and Adam Jones.
A throwing error by Nolan Arenado after a ground ball by Angel Pagan however plated two more Puerto Rican runs in the bottom of the sixth. In the ninth the United States once again looked to turn the game around, but after Brandon Crawford’s two-run triple with two outs Josh Harrison struck out to end the game.