It took longer than normal for the United States to wake up against Great Britain, but the bat of Kyle Schwarber shot them out from a slumber and off to a resounding 9-1 win in the World Baseball Classic.
The Americans were stunned right out of the gate with a home run from Boston Red Sox outfielder Nate Eaton to take the lead.
For the following four innings, the Americans were left wondering when the door would open for them to take the lead.
In the bottom of the fifth inning, Toronto Blue Jays second baseman Ernie Clement dashed for home on a wild pitch to get on the scoreboard.
But it was the bat of Philadelphia Phillies slugger Kyle Schwarber that broke the game open. His two-run blast put the Americans ahead 3-1.
Baltimore Orioles star Gunnar Henderson tacked on two more runs with a single to score Alex Bregman and Bryce Harper after an error led to the extra tally on the board.
The United States pulled off a comeback to beat Great Britain 9-1 in the World Baseball Classic
Team USA star Kyle Schwarber broke open the game with a two-run blast in the victory
Other stars, like Aaron Judge (L) brought in runs via singles and sacrifice flies
Tarik Skubal struck out five and gave up one run in what’s set to be his only WBC appearance
Team USA continued the dominance in the sixth inning. Bregman’s sacrifice-fly scored Clement, a single from Aaron Judge brought home Pete Crow-Armstrong and Will Smith brought home Schwarber on another sac-fly to make it 8-1.
Bregman, who signed with the Chicago Cubs in the offseason, tacked on his second RBI of the game with another sac-fly to score Clement in the seventh inning to make it 9-1.
The one British run came off AL Cy Young Award winning pitcher Tarik Skubal, who announced that he was only pitching one game this tournament.
Skubal struck out five and gave up the single earned run on two hits.
In relief, Clay Holmes pitched a stellar three innings – giving up just one hit while striking out six batters.
Team USA plays its next game on Monday night against rivals Mexico. Pittsburgh Pirates star Paul Skenes is set to start.
