One of international baseball’s greatest rivalries renews on Saturday. The rivalry between Korea and Japan stretches back to 1954. Korea enters this matchup after defeating Czechia, 11-4, while Japan routed Chinese Taipei, 13-0.
Korea’s Lineup Faces a Japanese Slugfest
Korea will hope its powerful lineup, led by Jung Hoo Lee and fellow big leaguers Jahmai Jones and Shay Whitcomb — along with young KBO stars Do Yeong Kim and Hyun Min Ahn — will be enough to outpace Japan’s own lineup of sluggers.
But after Shohei Ohtani and Japan put up a 10-spot on Friday night, setting the record for most runs in a single World Baseball Classic inning — with reigning Central League MVP winner Teruaki Sato and his 45 home runs sitting on the bench — there may be no amount of firepower able to catch up.
Pitching Matchup: Ko Young Pyo vs. Yusei Kikuchi
Korea starts Ko Young Pyo, a veteran who has pitched in the KBO since 2015. Pyo bounced back last season to go 11-8 with a 3.30 ERA for the KT Wiz after a rough 2024. He has excellent control, averaging just 1.5 BB/9 in his career. He appeared in the 2023 World Baseball Classic and went 4 1/3 innings in Korea’s loss to Australia, giving up two runs.
Japan counters with Kikuchi, a veteran southpaw and former Hanamaki Higashi High School graduate — Ohtani attended the same school. Kikuchi is coming off his second All-Star Game appearance, posting a career-high 3.3 bWAR with a 3.99 ERA in 178 1/3 innings, the most in his MLB career. He struggled in the first inning of his exhibition start on Monday against the Orix Buffaloes, giving up three runs before mixing in his offspeed stuff more and settling down in the next few innings.
“He’s got a strong heart and always puts the team first,” Samurai Japan manager Hirokazu Ibata said after Kikuchi’s start. “He has a very valuable presence.”
What’s at Stake in Tokyo
Both teams enter with powerful lineups that have entered the tournament on a hot streak. Both are 1-0 with the winner putting themselves in excellent position to advance.
- When and where: Saturday, 5 a.m. ET at the Tokyo Dome (7 p.m. local time)
- How to watch: The game is on FS1 in the United States and streaming on Netflix in Japan.
- How to listen: There is a free English-language audio stream available for every game.
With Australia racing out to a 2-0 start to pace the pool, the loser of this contest could be in trouble and would not necessarily be in control of their own destiny. This may not be a win-or-die contest, but it would make the rest of the group stage necessary victories.
The matchup history between these teams…