Buster Posey has become synonymous with American baseball. The World Baseball Classic gives the catcher a stage to cement that association. On Friday night, in a crucial game, the San Francisco Giants closer had a moment the Wbc was made for, recording a big hit for Team USA. It may not have been enough to get the team over the hump, though.
The big hit
Posey stepped up to the plate for Team USA with the team sporting a 4-1 deficit at the hands of Puerto Rico. With no outs in the top of the fifth inning, the catcher saw a pitch he liked on a 1-2 count and hit it deep into the San Diego sky at Petco Park.
The WBC has provided an opportunity for Americans to rack up plenty of big hits, but this one felt special, with the catcher going yard at a ballpark that is home to one of his MLB team's divisional rivals, the Padres.
As the fireworks went off at Petco Park and the ball sailed over the left field fence, however, it was evident the work of Team USA was not yet done. The margin between them and their regional allies/WBC rivals had closed slightly, but the team was still down by two runs. It was going to take a lot more than some magic from Posey to put America on top on Friday night.
Pivotal game
Puerto Rico was one of the hottest teams in the WBC headed into their clash with Team USA on Friday night.
Both teams won their first game of the second round, so a win in a showdown between the two would give the winner the inside track at clinching a berth in the semifinals. As of midnight on the east coast of the United States, the Americans trail 4-3 in the top of the sixth inning.
This was not the first big WBC moment for Posey this spring.
On Sunday, he hit a deep home run to center field during a dominant Team USA win over Canada; he recorded three RBIs in the game. While national fans will be rooting for his continued success this spring, fans of the San Francisco Giants will be particularly excited about how the catcher is hitting before the start of the MLB season in a couple of weeks.
