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Sluggers shine as Korea thumps Czech Republic in WBC opener

Published: 06 Mar. 2026, 09:00

Moon Bo-gyeong of Korea celebrates after hitting a grand slam against Czech Republic during the teams' Pool C game at the World Baseball Classic at Tokyo Dome in Tokyo on March 5. [YONHAP]

For all the hype surrounding Korea's right-handed sluggers, it was the left-handed Moon Bo-gyeong who landed the first big punch on Czech Republic in his team's 10-3 victory at the World Baseball Classic (WBC) on Thursday.

And then Shay Whitcomb and Jamai Jones, two of those right-handed mashers, joined the fun later by combining for three home runs, as Korea powered past Czech Republic in the teams' first Pool C game at Tokyo Dome.

Batting fifth, Moon smoked a first-inning grand slam off starter Daniel Padysak for a quick 4-0 lead. The Czech right-hander Padysak got the hook right away.

Padysak was careful around a couple of dangerous right-handed mashers ahead of Moon, walking leadoff man Kim Do-yeong and then cleanup Ahn Hyun-min. Both Kim and Ahn had homered in Korea's last exhibition game on Tuesday.

With the count at 2-1 against Moon, Padysak hung a slider over the heart of the plate and the Korean batter made no mistake, driving it 428 feet into the seats to right-center field.

Shay Whitcomb of Korea celebrates after hitting a two-run home run against Czechia during the teams' Pool C game at the World Baseball Classic at Tokyo Dome in Tokyo on March 5. [YONHAP]

With Korea up 5-0 in the third inning, Whitcomb, one of three U.S.-born players of Korean descent on the team, launched a solo home run off reliever Jeff Barto. At 3-1 count, Whitcomb turned on a changeup that caught the middle of the zone, and the ball traveled 379 feet into the seats in left-center field.

Czech Republic made things a little more interesting with Terrin Vavra's three-run shot in the top fifth, but Whitcomb gave his side more breathing room with a two-run homer in the bottom half of that inning.

Facing Michal Kovala, Whitcomb pulled a 0-1 slider into left field to put Korea up by 8-3.

Not to be outdone, Moon collected his fifth RBI of the game with a seventh-inning single.

Jahmai Jones of Korea hits a solo home run against Czechia during the teams' Pool C game at the World Baseball Classic at Tokyo Dome in Tokyo on March 5. [YONHAP]

Jones was then late to the party with his eighth-inning solo home run off Lukas Hlouch's 1-1 curveball. The shot to left-center field was measured at 392 feet.

Korea has adopted an airplane celebration for each home run, signifying the team's collective desire to board a chartered flight to Miami, the site of the quarterfinals. With the top two teams in Pool C advancing to the quarters, Korean bats looked ready for takeoff for the U.S. city.

Moon, who admitted to battling some nerves early on, said he was happy to get his first hit out of the way in the first inning, and get on the celebration board.

"I was only getting base hits and never had a chance to do the move with a home run," Moon said. "It felt awesome to pull off that move rounding the bases after a home run."

Jones said he was especially happy to homer in front of his Korean mother, who was sitting in the second row behind the first base dugout.

"It's definitely a special moment between us two," he said. "Obviously, I want to help contribute to the team and the fact that it came late was great. Just trying to do whatever I can to help this one."

Yonhap