It's the meeting of the powerhouses as Cuba "hosts" Japan in Fukuako as they wrap up the first round of the 2013 World Baseball Classic. Both teams are in, which will cut into the dramatics, but if you can't watch this baseball game live, then at least check out the score with play-by-play and scoring updates with first pitch a little after 5 a.m. ET/7 p.m. Local Time.
The Japanese will look to continue their dominance in the WBC. They are the two-time tournament champions and they continue to look unstoppable as they're 2-0 at the start of the tournament.
If you know Superman, then you know the only thing he's scared of is Kryptonite and that's what Japan is to Cuba. The Caribbean island is home of the No. 1 ranked team in international competition, but they seem to lose steam against Japan every time they meet at the WBC.
Cuba is always expected to win and they might have proven they are ready to win after they mercy-ruled China 12-0 in their previous game. They did it with home runs and good hitting as they completely dominated the scoreboard.
For Japan, they have needed a couple of late-game heroics, especially against Brazil. Coming into the tournament, everybody knew Brazil was a dangerous team. They were sort of like the Cinderella team of the tournament having qualified just to get into the tournament. Japan had to buckle down late in their first game to walk out with the victory.
For Cuba, they also needed to get their game straight against Brazil after trailing 2-0 early on and being no-hit into the fifth inning.
Now, enough talking. Click here for the score and in-game updates as Japan faces. Cuba in the final game of the first round.
