Underwood retired Israel in order on 10 pitches in the eighth. With his team up 9-0 in the seventh, Molina turned to Díaz, the New York Mets' star closer, and he fanned one hitter in a 1-2-3 inning.

Ríos relieved De León and struck out his only batter to end the sixth. I know José very well and have worked with him. “It is a great moment for all of us but especially for him,” Molina said, “with his family being here and what he has gone through in his career.

In 2018, he had Tommy John surgery to repair a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow after he got hurt in spring training with Tampa Bay. I wanted to let the public know I am here to stay and also show the world that José De León still can compete.”ĭe León represented Puerto Rico in the 2017 WBC but has struggled with injuries since. “After all the setbacks I faced, I deserved this type of moment. “I dreamt about a moment like this,' De León said. He exited to a huge ovation from the prohibitive Puerto Rico crowd of 27,813.Īfterward, he got the game ball and had it signed by his teammates. The right-hander was lifted after he fanned Spencer Horwitz on his 64th pitch, one under the tournament limit for starting pitchers in the first round. “To come out aggressively and win the game the way we did makes me very proud.”ĭe León tied a WBC record with 10 strikeouts in 5 2/3 innings, earning the win. 'Very happy for the guys, especially after what happened Sunday,” Puerto Rico manager Yadier Molina said in Spanish. Still, it was a dominant bounce-back victory for Puerto Rico, a day after its late rally fell short in a disappointing 9-6 loss to Venezuela. That's the standard established by the Elias Sports Bureau, the official statistician for Major League Baseball. But it will not count as a perfect game in official WBC records because the game didn't go a full nine innings. closed out the win for Puerto Rico, which did not permit a baserunner. Yacksel Ríos, Edwin Díaz and Duane Underwood Jr. MIAMI – José De León and three relievers combined on a perfect pitching performance as Puerto Rico routed Israel 10-0 in a World Baseball Classic matchup called after eight innings Monday night because of the tournament’s 10-run mercy rule.

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