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MIAMI — Munetaka Murakami, a Japanese Triple Crown winner who, at 23, is already among the best hitters in the world, thought about bunting.

It was the ninth inning, two runners occupied first and second base with nobody out, and Japan trailed Mexico by a run in the World Baseball Classic semifinal, the type of moment that yearns for greatness. But Murakami didn’t feel like himself. He had begun this tournament with four hits in 21 at-bats, striking out 11 times, including during his first three plate appearances Monday night. And so he pondered the possibility of simply moving the winning run into scoring position, allowing someone else his moment.

“Bunting kind of crossed my mind,” Murakami said through an interpreter, “but [Japanese manager Hideki] Kuriyama told me that I just have to hit.”

It was the best advice he could get.

Murakami got a 94 mph, down-the-middle fastball from Team Mexico closer Giovanny Gallegos and sent the offering 400 feet to straightaway center field, a scorching line drive that bounced off the top of the fence and allowed both runners to motor home. Murakami’s long-awaited moment had highlighted another intense, back-and-forth contest in this World Baseball Classic, handing Japan the 6-5 walk-off victory that sent it into a championship showdown against Team USA.

Lars Nootbaar, bouncing in front of home plate before the winning run could score, called it “an out-of-body experience.”

“The best,” Masataka Yoshida said through an interpreter. “Epic.”

Monday’s semifinal was only the latest in a string of intense games in front of raucous sold-out crowds at multiple venues over these past couple of weeks, right up there with the recent wild swings of Mexico’s upset over Puerto Rico on Friday and Team USA’s grand-slam-fueled victory over Venezuela on Saturday. This year’s World Baseball Classic has morphed into such a thrilling tournament that it has its participants contemplating the bigger picture — even in defeat, as evidenced by the way Mexico manager Benji Gil summed up the affair.

“Japan advances,” Gil said in Spanish, “but the world of baseball won tonight.”

Mexico, a talented team that was nonetheless a clear underdog against Japan, put itself in prime position early. Patrick Sandoval dominated through the first four innings, allowing only three baserunners, and Luis Urias put his team on top with a three-run home run off Roki Sasaki, who threw almost all of his fastballs in the triple digits but didn’t locate his patented splitter low enough against Urias in the fourth.

When Randy Arozarena started doing his thing — robbing a home run, posing in front of the crowd, then signing autographs in between a pitching change moments later — it began to feel as if Mexico was destined to advance to its first championship in this tournament.

But Yoshida, who signed a $90 million contract with the Red Sox this offseason, tied the game with a seventh-inning, three-run homer off the massive concrete beam that resides beyond the right-field foul pole at LoanDepot Park. And after Mexico retook the lead, with RBI singles from Alex Verdugo and Isaac Paredes, Japan came all the way back, tacking on a run in the eighth and producing the ninth walk-off in World Baseball Classic history the following inning.

It began with Shohei Ohtani, who laced a 110 mph leadoff double into the right-center-field gap, roaring upon arriving at second base in an effort to ignite his teammates.

“It’s been a while since I’ve played in a win-or-lose game, in a playoff atmosphere,” Ohtani, speaking through an interpreter, said of displaying rare emotion.

Yoshida followed with a walk, and Murakami, who made what he called a “minor adjustment” with his mechanics during the game, followed with what amounted to the first walk-off hit in a semifinal or later in this tournament. All of Japan’s players had vacated their dugout in celebration before the second run could even score.

“Pure joy,” Nootbaar said. “I didn’t want to get a penalty for too many men on the field.”

The U.S., reigning champion dating back to 2017, hasn’t announced its starting pitcher for the championship game, but Merrill Kelly, the Arizona Diamondbacks‘ talented right-hander, is in line. Japan, the only undefeated team remaining, will go with the hard-throwing Shota Imanaga with a chance to claim its third title — but Ohtani said he’s willing to come into the game in relief.

Shohei Ohtani versus Mike Trout with everything on the line remains a possibility.

“Obviously it’s a big accomplishment to get to the championship series,” Ohtani said, “but there’s a big difference from being in first and second, so I’m going to do all I can to get that first place.”

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Cristobal: QB Beck cleared for summer workouts

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Cristobal: QB Beck cleared for summer workouts

AMELIA ISLAND, Fla. — Miami coach Mario Cristobal said Monday that quarterback Carson Beck has been cleared to participate in all team summer activities and is approaching 100 percent following elbow surgery last year.

Cristobal said Beck has been throwing for the past three weeks as part of his rehab regimen. Beck missed all of spring practice and has yet to throw to Miami’s receivers as part of organized team activities. But that is all about to change when Miami begins summer workouts next week.

“He’s good to go,” Cristobal told ESPN at the ACC spring meetings. “He’s exceeding every benchmark.”

Beck underwent surgery on his right elbow to repair his ulnar collateral ligament, which he injured on the final play of the first half in second-ranked Georgia‘s 22-19 overtime win against Texas in the SEC championship game Dec. 7.

Beck started at Georgia for two seasons, going 24-3, and ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. had him rated as the No. 5 quarterback for the 2025 draft. But given his injury and inconsistent performance in 2024, Beck entered the portal in January. He quickly opted for Miami, where he will replace No. 1 NFL draft pick Cam Ward.

Beck threw for 7,426 yards over his two seasons as Georgia’s starter, fifth most among all FBS passers since 2023, with 57 total touchdowns and 23 turnovers.

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Canes LB Hayes out of hospital after tragic crash

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Canes LB Hayes out of hospital after tragic crash

Miami Hurricanes linebacker Adarius Hayes, who was one of the drivers in a two-vehicle crash that left three people dead and at least two others injured, has been released from the hospital, the university said Monday.

The three people who died as a result of the crash were all in a Kia Soul, which collided with a Dodge Durango being driven by Hayes on Saturday afternoon in Largo, Florida, police said.

A 78-year-old woman who was driving the Kia and two of her passengers — 10-year-old Jabari Elijah Solomon and 4-year-old Charlie Herbert Solomon Riveria — died in the crash, police said. Another passenger in the Kia was hospitalized with serious injuries, police said.

No tickets or criminal charges have been filed, though the investigation is continuing.

“We are deeply saddened to learn the crash resulted in three fatalities, as confirmed by Largo Police, and our thoughts and prayers are with the families and loved ones of those lost,” the Hurricanes said in a statement.

The school is still working to gather further information.

“There were no signs of impairment with either driver of the vehicles,” Largo Police public information officer Megan Santo said in a statement distributed Sunday.

Hayes, a four-star recruit coming out of Largo High, played in 12 games for the Hurricanes as a freshman in 2024, mostly on special teams. He finished the season with four tackles and one interception, which he returned 25 yards in Miami’s 56-9 victory over Florida A&M on Sept. 7.

ESPN’s Mark Schlabach and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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NCAA prez is open to Trump’s idea of commission

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NCAA prez is open to Trump's idea of commission

AMELIA ISLAND, Fla. — NCAA president Charlie Baker said Monday he was “up for anything” when asked about a President Donald Trump-proposed commission on collegiate athletics.

Reports surfaced last week that Trump was going to create the commission.

While his conversations at ACC meetings with league football coaches, men’s and women’s basketball coaches, athletic directors and other school officials focused on governance and the pending House settlement, Baker was asked during an informal media availability for his thoughts on the presidential commission.

“I think the fact that there’s an interest on the executive side on this, I think it speaks to the fact that everybody is paying a lot of attention right now to what’s going on in college sports,” Baker said.

“I’m up for anything that can help us get somewhere.”

Baker noted the NCAA has already spent time in Washington asking for congressional help that is focused on three big issues. Among the biggest: a patchwork of state laws that relate to how collegiate athletics work in individual states; and whether student-athletes should be considered employees.

“I think [Congress] can help us. I really do,” ACC commissioner Jim Phillips said during an interview with ACC Network. “We have been very bold in the desire for a national standard when it comes to name, image and likeness. We need to make sure that we have something that comes out of Washington that connects all 50 of the states because we’ve had a piecemeal project and it’s really undermined college sports. It’s been a race to the bottom. So that’s one. Two is we need some legal protection. We cannot sustain one legal case after another legal case after another legal case. A reaffirmation that these are student-athletes. Those three things to me will be very important to see if that can come out of the commission.”

Baker said, “People in our office have talked to folks who are working on this, but I don’t think they’ve decided the framework around who they want to put on.”

When asked whether he felt the creation of a commission would enhance the NCAA’s chances at legislative relief, Baker said, “I don’t have a crystal ball on that one. I don’t know. I do think, though, that it’s quite clear at this point that there are a lot of people interested in college sports, and we do need some help at some point to create some clarity around some of these issues in Washington. Creating clarity one lawsuit at a time is just a really bad way to try to move forward.”

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