World Baseball Classic 2026: Team USA and Dominican Republic roll; Shohei Ohtani and Japan post record-breaking win

The 2026 World Baseball Classic continued Friday with Japan, the Dominican Republic and the United States among the teams beginning pool play.

The eight-game schedule began with Shohei Ohtani’s offensive exploits at the Tokyo Dome. It ended with the other two favorites allowing their opponents to hang around but ultimately posting double-digit wins as well.

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It was a day low on upsets but plentiful in intel on the tournament favorites.

Chinese Taipei 14, Czechia 0

The mercy rule came out for Chinese Taipei, which had 19 batters reach base in seven innings before the game was called. They scored multiple runs in the majority of innings played, while Czechia managed only five total bases.

The loss gives TPE their first win after a disappointing start, with losses to Australia and Japan, and moves Czechia to 0-3 in the tournament.

USA 15, Brazil 5

Team USA has a 1-0 record in the 2026 World Baseball Classic. And perhaps some work to do.

Let’s just say the Americans walked but did not run against Brazil, which had the deficit at only three runs entering the ninth inning. The U.S. did notch a 15-5 win, but it was the kind of performance the Americans can’t afford to have against the other WBC powers.

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You would expect a lineup featuring the likes of Aaron Judge, Kyle Schwarber and Cal Raleigh — 169 combined homers in 2025 — to blast off against a Brazilian pitching staff featuring multiple teenagers, but the American offense instead came down to two stats: 17 walks and a 5-for-21 performance with runners in scoring position.

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Dominican Republic 12, Nicaragua 3

We can say this for Nicaragua: This team hung around.

The Dominican Republic has perhaps the most stacked lineup in the WBC and is one of three co-favorites in the tournament. Yet as the game reached the sixth inning, it was tied 3-3 after Nicaragua chased Cy Young finalist Cristopher Sanchez after 1 1/3 innings of work.

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It didn’t last, though. The D.R. scored nine runs over the next three innings and ultimately produced the kind of final score everyone expected. Junior Caminero, Julio Rodriguez and Oneil Cruz all homered, putting the game well out of reach.