
Lightning failed to strike twice in New York as Emma Raducanu lost in the first round of the US Open: a straight-sets victim of veteran Frenchwoman Alize Cornet.

The Central Americans were also issued eight walks. Panama had 14 hits, led by Jonathan Arauz with two hits and three RBIs. Taiwan got another run in the eighth to make it 12-5. But Nien-Ting Wu hit a two-run homer and pushed the game to the full nine innings. Taiwan was down 12-2 in the bottom of the seventh and faced a loss under the 10-run mercy rule after seven innings. Panama won after going 0-5 in its first two WBC appearances in 20. The Netherlands took a 4-1 lead in the sixth when Josh Palacios singled home Gregorius, and Chadwick Tromp added a two-run single. Gregorius singled home Roger Bernadina to tie it 1-1 in the third. The game was a matchup between the two favorites in the group, giving the Dutch a big lift right out of the gate.Ĭuba went ahead 1-0 in the second on a double by Yadil Mujica to score Yoelkis Guibert. He played in part of eight seasons with Oakland, Boston, Detroit and the New York Mets.Ĭéspedes, playing as the DH, was hitless and walked twice as Cuba managed only three hits. 458 in that tournament and began his MLB career three years later with the Oakland Athletics. Former MLB player Yoenis Céspedes, who played for Cuba in the event in 2009, hit. This is the first WBC in which MLB players are eligible to play for Cuba. Japan has won it twice (2006, 2009) and the Dominicans once (2013). The United States won the last tournament in 2017 and is among the favorites with the Dominican Republic and Japan.

Play in Groups C and D begins Saturday in Phoenix and Miami. Play in Group B begins on Thursday in Tokyo with South Korea playing Australia and host Japan - led by Angels star Shohei Ohtani - up against China. TAICHUNG – The 20-team World Baseball Classic got underway after a six-year absence with Panama defeating Taiwan 12-5 for its first win in tournament history and the Netherlands beating Cuba 4-2 as Didi Gregorius drove in the tying run and scored the go-ahead run.
