Philadelphia Phillies superstar Trea Turner was one of the key reasons Team USA came within two runs of winning the 2023 World Baseball Classic, and he took to social media to express how much he enjoyed the tournament on Thursday.
“The WBC was an electric factory!” Turner wrote on Instagram. “Wish we could’ve came out on top but wow did we have fun…every game the fans brought the energy and we fed off of it! Glad we could grow the game and play in front of millions of people around the world! USA.”
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After criticism was aimed at the tournament after various players were injured, most notably New York Mets' Edwin Diaz and Houston Astros' Jose Altuve, the 2023 WBC ended up being an extremely entertaining affair that undoubtedly grew the game worldwide.
From ninth-inning comebacks, to razor-thin elimination contests, to a conclusion that featured Shohei Ohtani striking out teammate Mike Trout with two outs and up a run in the ninth inning of the title game, Trea Turner was right: the tournament was electric.
Team USA came just short of defending its 2017 title, losing 3-2 to Ohtani and Team Japan as the Asian country won its record third WBC title. The ultimate moment came between Ohtani and Trout in front of a sold out crowd of 36,058 at LoanDepot Park.
Turner was incredible for the United States throughout the tournament, hitting five home runs, tying the record for a single classic. He also hit one in the WBC championship game, proving yet again how clutch he is at the plate.
His fifth and final homer opened the scoring for USA in the final, also giving him 11 RBIs, third all-time behind just Masataka Yoshida's 13 in 2023 and the 12 that Netherlands' Wladimir Balentien totaled in 2017.
Although Phillies' Trea Turner and Team USA were just short of going back-to-back at the World Baseball Classic, it was a tournament to remember for Americans and baseball fans worldwide.
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