‘Redefining Australian baseball’: World Baseball Classic run ends with defeat to Cuba

Australia’s baseball adventure in Japan is over – but, to the very end, the national team players proved they can slug it out with the best in the world.

That was the message from manager Dave Nilsson after his team of battlers finally ran out of surprises at the Tokyo Dome on Wednesday night, succumbing 4-3 to one of the sport’s powerhouse nations Cuba in the quarter-finals of the World Baseball Classic.

And such has been the impact of their breakthrough that their players believe they may have changed the face of the game back in their homeland.

“Basically this trip is redefining Australian baseball back home and hopefully it changes the conversation,” said Darryl George, one of the stars of the campaign who helped give his team the chance to dream a bit more when his second-inning double offered a near-perfect start.

Rixon Wingrove’s inspired slugging then stole the show for Australia as his RBI single capitalised on George’s initial blow, which was perilously close to being a homer, and gave Australia a 1-0 lead.

After the Cubans had moved 4-1 ahead following a three-run fifth inning, Philadelphia Phillies prospect Wingrove then cracked a two-run homer in the sixth that brought the Australians right back into the contest.

Ultimately, though, despite threatening to get back on terms at the top of the eighth with two men on base, the strength of the Cuban bullpen ensured they extricated themselves from trouble and sealed victory with pitcher Raidel Martinez closing the deal clinically at the top of the ninth.

It ended a wonderful tournament for Nilsson’s team, whose breakthrough into the knockout stages even rivalled their semi-final win over Japan and silver medal at the 2004 Olympics as the finest achievement ever by