No matter what time zone you were in, there was baseball on all day yesterday.

A handful of games were played yesterday to kick off pool play in the World Baseball Classic. Some of the MLB’s best players did what they do best, some MLB players made their debuts in the event, and fans had a chance to lay their eyes on some of the younger international players that were put on one of the biggest stages of their lives to that point.

Here are some quick summaries of Friday’s action.

Location: Tokyo Dome (Tokyo, Japan)

Key Player: Shohei Ohtani – 3-for-4, HR, 2B, 5 RBI

It quite literally didn’t take long for Ohtani to introduce himself to this year’s WBC. All three of his hits took place within the game’s first two innings, including a grand slam to right field to kick off a 10-run 2nd inning for Japan. Aside from Ohtani’s grand slam, Japan kept piling on with small ball in their 2nd inning outburst; they logged four singles, one double, four walks, and a hit-by-pitch.

Japan would tack on three more runs in the 3rd inning, including an RBI single from Blue Jays third baseman Kazuma Okamoto. That would conclude all of the game’s scoring, but it was enough to put Chinese Taipei in an insurmountable spot.

Even if Japan had struggled to score, their pitching staff was more than ready to shoulder the load. Led by starter Yoshinobu Yamamoto’s 2 2/3 innings of scoreless work, a crew of five Japanese pitchers allowed only one hit, five walks, eight strikeouts, and only three at-bats with runners in scoring position.

Location: Hiram Bithorn Stadium (San Juan, Puerto Rico)

Key Player: Yoán Moncada – 1-for-3, HR, BB, 2 RBI

Much like Japan, Cuba did their damage early in their game, albeit the damage wasn’t as dominant. Yoelkis Guibert got the scoring started with a solo home run in the 2nd inning, and Yoán Moncada would hit a two-run shot in the subsequent inning to build a three-run lead.

A 1-for-9 mark with runners in scoring position kept Panama’s chances of coming back pretty low, but they were able to scratch a run across the plate with an RBI single from Johan Camargo in the 7th inning. Current Phillies infielder Edmundo Sosa doubled with one out in the 8th for Panama, but José Caballero and Jonathan Araúz both grounded out to end the threat.

Cuba’s pitching was strong all game, but they were steered in the right direction after six combined shutout innings from Livan Moinelo and current Blue Jays reliever Yariel Rodríguez. The latter didn’t allow a base runner in his 2 1/3 innings of work and struck out three.

Location: loanDepot Part (Miami, Florida)

Key Player: Luis Arraez – 1-for-3, BB, 2 RBIs

All but one of Venezuela’s starting hitters recorded a hit, the backend of their bullpen recorded a near-flawless final four innings, and Andrés Giménez made a standout defensive play to help lead Venezuela to their first victory of the WBC.

Willson Contreras and Wilyer Abreu, both of whom recorded two hits in the contest, were big parts of a four-run 5th inning that wound up being the difference in the game. They were also paced by a solo home run from Javier Sanoja and two RBIs from newly-acquired Giants second baseman Luis Arraez.

The Netherlands only had four hits on the day, and both of their runs were driven in by Druw Jones, the son of Hall-of-Fame Andruw Jones.

Location: Daikin Park (Houston, Texas)

Key Player: Jonathan Aranda – 2-for-5, HR, 3 RBIs

Solo home runs from Nacho Alvarez Jr. and Harry Ford had this game tied at 1 through seven innings, but Mexico’s offense came to life during the final stages of the game to secure a win over Great Britain on Friday afternoon.

A two-out rally was started at the top of the 8th inning for Mexico after walks by Jarren Duran and Randy Arozarena, paving the way for one of last year’s breakout players in the MLB, Jonathan Aranda. His three-run home run snuck a couple of rows deep in Houston’s Crawford Boxes to put Mexico up for good and ignite the crowd.

They would churn out four more runs at the top of the 9th inning after logging three hits and two walks. The free passes played a huge part in Mexico’s late-game spurt, especially when you consider the six hits during the contest.

Location: loanDepot Part (Miami, Florida)

Key Player: Julio Rodríguez – 3-for-5, HR, 3 RBIs

You could’ve argued this was the most exciting game of the day, regardless of the final score. While Rodríguez got the “Key Player” tag, there were contributors up and down the Dominican Republic’s lineup, and those players fired up a raucous D.R. crowd in Miami.

On a quite efficient night for the Dominican Republic, their offense had six extra-base hits and was 5-for-11 with runners in scoring position. They also hit three home runs, with one of them being a 450-foot missile from Oneil Cruz. All of their starters reached base except Austin Wells, and five hitters had at least two hits.

While the offense stole most of the spotlight, Cristopher Sánchez made WBC history by becoming the first pitcher to strike out four hitters in one inning. Nicaragua was able to get their only three runs of the game off of Sánchez; however, the D.R. used a combination of eight relievers to silence the opposition for the rest of the game. Between the 2nd and the 6th inning, 13 consecutive Nicaraguan hitters were retired.

The game was actually tied at 3 entering the bottom of the 6th inning, Junior Caminero swung the game in the D.R.’s favour with a two-run home run to centre field. Rodríguez and Cruz added on their home runs in the 8th inning, and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. peppered in two of his three RBIs around the homers.

Location: Daikin Park (Houston, Texas)

Key Player: Brice Turang

Among the players making their WBC debuts, one of those guys was Aaron Judge. While a home run from him had to come at some point, his first WBC homer would be in his first at-bat. A sweeper that hung up in the zone from Brazil starter Bo Takahashi was deposited over the left-centre field wall, and just like that, the U.S.A. was on the board.

Brazil had an answer, though, and it came from Lucas Ramírez, the son of Manny Ramírez, who homered in his first at-bat of the game. Logan Webb, the U.S. starter, would settle in and leave that as the only hit and run he would allow over four innings.

The U.S. was able to extend its lead in the top of the 5th inning when Brice Turang cleared the bases with a three-run double. That represented one of his three hits on the night, as well as three of his four RBIs. Brazil continued to hang around in the later innings, which included the second home run of the night from Ramírez. That home run made it an 8-5 game in the 8th inning, but the U.S. would put things away for good in the following frame with a seven-run outburst.

Eight different players from the U.S. recorded an RBI, and they drew 17 walks from Brazil’s pitchers. Conversely, the U.S. pitching staff recorded 16 strikeouts on the night and walked only one hitter.

Puerto Rico 5, Colombia 0

Chinese Taipei 14, Czechia 0

Off The Roster is Toronto sports. Hosted by Cabbie Richards, Lindsay Dunn, and Dan Riccio, this is the go-to morning conversation for everything happening in the 6ix – Hockey, Baseball, Basketball and everything in between. From breakout performances and questionable trades to throwback jerseys, viral moments, and the stories fans are actually talking about—it’s smart, sharp, and never scripted. Live weekday mornings on the Nation Network YouTube channel and available wherever you stream podcasts, the show delivers real opinions, real chemistry, and real Toronto energy. Missed an episode? Catch up anytime. Off The Roster—The new sound of the 6ix.