It only took Team Canada one day to establish themselves as an elite force in the 2023 World Baseball Classic (WBC), setting history as the winner of the highest-scoring match in WBC history.
Canadian rakin'.
— World Baseball Classic (@WBCBaseball) March 12, 2023
The highest-scoring #WorldBaseballClassic game in history goes to Team Canada. pic.twitter.com/QUfI7inqUG
A massive driving force behind this 18-8 victory against Team Great Britain was B.C.’s own Tyler O’Neill, who put on an impressive performance in the March 12 game, going for a perfect four hits on four at-bats.
“That was awesome,” said O’Neill about his team’s performance. “The boys kept the rally going today. A lot of good at-bats out there today, a lot of good walks, not giving anything away – it was really fun to watch.”
Team Canada manager Ernie Whitt was equally proud of the team’s output and the fact that they were a part of making WBC history.
“There was a lot of offence out there,” said Whitt. “We hit the ball extremely well.”
“I’d like to score 18 every game we play.”
Of Team Canada’s 18 runs, O’Neill personally scored four of them – the highest of anyone on the team.
What's better, the on-base percentage or the biceps? #WorldBaseballClassic pic.twitter.com/iNeSr8gWmf
— World Baseball Classic (@WBCBaseball) March 12, 2023
Typically an outfielder for the St. Louis Cardinals, O’Neill talked about what it meant to him to be able to represent his home country in the sport he loves.
“There’s something special about wearing this uniform,” he said.
“I relish the opportunity to put it on every time I can. They come few and far between now. The last WBC was six years ago and now it’s 2023 and I don’t know how many more opportunities I’m going to have to wear Canada across my chest, so I’m just trying to make the most of it every time I can.”
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Unfortunately, Team Canada didn’t experience the same success in their next game against Team USA, which resulted in a 12-1 loss for the Canadians.
But on Tuesday, they rebounded and were able to secure a 5-0 win against Team Colombia, in which O’Neill scored yet another run for his team.
Team Canada will next face Team Mexico on Wednesday at noon PST.
The 2023 WBC will wrap up on March 21.
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