WBSC Men's Softball World Cup Finals 2025 Opening Day: Dominican Republic walk off Japan; Venezuela shutout Argentina for first tournament win; USA open with a statement win over Australia
Welcome to the Opening Day at the WBSC Men's Softball World Cup Finals 2025 in Prince Albert, Canada. All six teams take the field on Tuesday to play their first game in this competition, starting their quest for the title of World Champions. Dominican Republic beat Japan in a 3-2 thriller in Game 1 of the tournament. In Game 2, flamethrower Maiker Pimentel shutout Argentina to lead Venezuela to a 1-0 win. USA defeated Australia, 10-0, and sent a message to the rest of the competition.
All games are available on the WBSC official streaming platform, GameTime.
Japan vs Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic earned their first win of the tournament with a dramatic walk-off in the bottom of the seventh inning, edging Japan in a back-and-forth battle. With the bases loaded, Nestor Nova hit a hard grounder that deflected off the glove of third baseman Yusuke Sakuraba, allowing the winning run to score and sealing the 3-2 victory for the Caribbean side.
Japan opened the scoring in the fourth inning with a solo homer from Koki Sato. The Dominicans responded in the fifth, tying the game on an RBI double by Pablo Figuereo.
In the sixth, Elias Valerio gave the Dominican Republic a brief lead with an opposite-field solo shot, but Japan answered quickly, as Kazuya Toriyama launched a solo homer of his own to center field to make it 2-2.
Michael Batista was credited with the win after retiring the three batters he faced in the top of the seventh. Starter Yan Carlos Gonzalez struck out 10 over six strong innings, allowing just two hits and two runs. Shota Onodera took the loss for Japan.
Venezuela vs Argentina
Maiker Pimentel pitched a complete game, 10-strikeout shutout to guide Venezuela to a critical 1-0 win over South American rivals Argentina in Group A opener. The right-handed pitcher allowed five hits and a walk to the Argentinean side.
First baseman Erwin Diaz drove in the lone run of the game with a single to right field. Pedro Flores who drew a walk to lead off the inning, score the game-winning run from second base.
Argentina's starter Huemul Mata was charged with the loss. He pitched 5+ innings while striking out 10. He gave up two hits and one run. Roman Godoy pitched two innings in relief.
USA vs Australia
Cam Schiller went 3-for-3 with a homer and two RBIs and Marco Diaz pitched a one-hit gem from the circle powering USA to a 10-0 win over Australia, the defending world champions. USA connected 11 hits in the game
Diaz, who touched 84 MPH with his pitches, had a stellar performance on opening day, pitching a seven-inning, one-hit shutout while striking out 10 opponents. He didn't walk a batter.
For Australia, the losing pitcher was Jack Besgrove.
New Zealand vs Canada
Key News
- Press conference: Head coaches, teams ready for battle as world's best are ready to open tournament on Tuesday
- WBSC Men's Softball World Cup Finals 2025: Watch every game live on GameTime
- 10 things to know about the most anticipated WBSC Men's Softball World Cup event in history
- By the Numbers
- Players to watch
- Eight contenders chasing glory
- Revisiting 59 years of Men's Softball World Cup history
Key Links