Magical Dice K

Pitching in the same inexact where he led Japan to the opening Classic designate three existence ago, Boston Red Sox ace Daisuke Matsuzaka was brilliant in silencing Cuba's previously undefeated big boppers, principal Japan to a 6-0 win in the flash cycle on Sunday.

Matsuzaka enhanced to 5-0 in five Classic starts by property Cuba to five singles in six innings while signal out eight and walking nobody. The right-hander with the measured-action has done has two wins in this version of the Classic and was the MVP in 2006, when he went 3-0. Matsuzaka beat Cuba 10-6 at drudgery Petco Park in the championship amusement three time ago, triggering a celebration that was worthy of a World Series victory.

Cuba came in with 11 home runs, all hit at high height in Mexico City in the first spherical, when it went 3-0 to win Pool B. Seven of Cuba's eight hits Sunday singles. Frederich Cepeda had three hits, counting a magnify.

Matsuzaka got a trivial approval from Japanese fans and handshakes from teammates as he approached the foxhole after salient out Yosvani Peraza to end the sixth. He threw 86 pitches. There's an 85-pitch ceiling in the minute rotund, unless the pitcher requests more to complete a thump's plate appearance.

It was Japan's support exclude in this version of the Classic. It beat China 4-0 in the first-round opener, with Yu Darvish receiving the win.

Dice-K also won at Petco Park with the Red Sox in 2007, beating Greg Maddux and the San Diego Padres 2-1.

Cuba will play an elimination game Monday night against the loser of Sunday night's matchup between Mexico and South Korea. Japan will play Tuesday night against the Mexico-South Korea winner for a smidgen in the Classic semifinals next weekend in Los Angeles.

While Dice-K was cooling off the Cuban bats, the Japanese got off to a shaky outset offensively, receiving two runners thrown out on the basepaths in the minute inning.

They bankrupt through in the third, however, scoring three runs on five hits and chasing Cuban starter Aroldis Chapman. The first four Japanese batters reached against Chapman, though the pitcher fielded Ichiro Suzuki's bunt and affected Kenji Johjima at third.

Yasuyuki Kataoka's song wealthy the bases and chased Chapman. Akinori Iwamura scored on Norberto Gonzalez's windswept pitch, Norichika Aoki singled in Suzuki, and Shuichi Murata hit a sacrifice fly.

Suzuki troop in a run with a grounder in the fourth and Seiichi Uchikawa hit a RBI distinct in the fifth. Murata singled home a run in the ninth.

Chapman (0-1) permitted three runs and three hits in 2 1-3 innings, walked three and struck out one.

The Cubans didn't like plate arbiter Hunter Wendelstedt's reach zone. After Wendelstedt called a sphere with Iwamura batting in the fourth inning, the mediator bowed toward the Cuban dugout and made a hand gesture as if decisive someone to be subdued. One of the Cuban coaches made an action back.

Petco Park was less than half inclusive with an announced crowd of 20,179.