FUKUOKA, Japan: Ray Chang hailed the biggest hit of his life after his two-run single secured China’s win over Brazil and a spot in the 2017 World Baseball Classic, a result which looks set to boost the sport in the giant country.
Shortstop Chang, who also starred at the tournament’s last edition in 2009, stepped up with China trailing 1-2 in the bottom of the eighth with the bases loaded, and fired left to make it 3-2. China eventually won the game late on Tuesday 5-2.
“No doubt, that was the biggest hit of my life,” said the Kansas City-born minor leaguer.
“I’ve played seven or eight years of professional baseball. I’ve had some clutch hits in my career, but nothing like this. This is not just for a Single-A, Double-A team. This is for an entire country,” said Chang.
The win propelled China to third place in Pool A and a guaranteed berth in 2017, even though they failed to join Japan, Cuba, Taiwan and the Netherlands in the second round.
The final round will be played in San Francisco later this month.
Kansas City-born Chang, 29, was also the hero in 2009, killing a Japanese third-base runner with a disguised throw to home base, and scoring a homer and two more runs in China’s first ever Classic victory, a 4-1 win over Taiwan.
“They both were big games for the country. You can’t really say one was bigger than the other. This was just now. It seems a lot bigger now, just because it’s in the moment,” Chang said.
China’s head coach John McLaren said the upset win over Brazil was “just a great feeling”.
“I’ve worked with these kids since September in 2011, and just how far we’ve come is incredible. I congratulated the team and I told them to go home and tell everybody in China what a great feeling it is to play baseball and spread the word.” AFP
