Aaron Judge and Roman Anthony homered in a five-run third inning Monday night for the United States, which advanced to the World Baseball Classic quarterfinals with a 5-3 win over Mexico in a Pool B game in Houston.
Team USA improved to 3-0 and will play a quarterfinal game later this week.
Jarren Duran hit two homers for Mexico, which fell to 2-1 and will vie for a spot in the quarterfinals when they oppose Italy (2-0) in their Pool B finale on Wednesday.
Team USA left the bases loaded in the first, and Anthony was thrown out at home trying to score on Brice Turang’s double in the second before they broke out in the third against Jesus Cruz.
Bryce Harper led off by drilling a single off Cruz’s wrist. After a few warmup pitches, Cruz remained in the game and gave up Judge’s homer to right on a 2-1 offering.
Kyle Schwarber singled and Cruz plunked Cal Raleigh with a pitch one out later, after which Anthony hit a 417-foot homer to right-center.
Duran hit a one-out homer off Matthew Boyd in the sixth. Later in the inning, Joey Meneses’ pinch RBI single — Mexico’s third straight two-out hit — pulled the visitors within 5-2.
Duran homered leading off the eighth, after which Randy Arozarena was hit by a pitch. Boyd whiffed Jonathan Aranda before Griffin Jax entered and got Alejandro Kirk to hit into a double play.
Meneses led off the ninth with a single against Garrett Whitlock, who struck out Alejandro Osuna and Julian Ornelas before getting Alek Thomas to ground out.
Whitlock got the save for Paul Skenes, who allowed one hit and one walk while striking out seven over four scoreless innings.
Judge and Bobby Witt Jr. had two hits each for the United States.
Duran (three hits) and Meneses combined for five of Mexico’s seven hits.
Mexico starting pitcher Manny Barreda, who made three appearances for the Baltimore Orioles in 2021, gave up two hits and walked three with one strikeout in two shutout innings.
