Cuba routs China 12-0 at World Baseball Classic

BC-BBI—WBC-Cuba-China, 1st Ld-Writethru,130

Cuba routs China 12-0 at World Baseball Classic

AP Photo KSX109, KSX111, KSX103

Eds: APNewsNow. Corrects that grand slam was in the fifth inning. With AP Photos.

By JIM ARMSTRONG

AP Sports Writer

FUKUOKA, Japan (AP) — Jose Abreu hit a grand slam Monday to lead Cuba to a 12-0 rout over China in Group A of the World Baseball Classic.

Abreu drove in five runs, including the grand slam in the fifth inning, at Fukuoka Dome. The game was called under the tournament’s mercy rule after the seventh inning.

Throughout the game, Cuba displayed the power that makes it one of the title contenders.

Alexei Bell hit a towering two-run homer to left to make it 4-0 in the fourth and Alfredo Despaigne put the result beyond doubt in the same inning when he doubled on a sharp ground ball to left, driving in Jose Fernandez and Frederich Cepeda to make it 6-0.

Fernandez singled in two more runs in the fifth before Abreu’s grand slam.

South Korea beats Australia 6-0 in WBC

AP Photo XWS109, XWS113, XWS104, XWS112, XWS116, XWS117, XWS119, XWS118, XWS120, XWS111

Eds: APNewsNow. South Korea 6, Australia 0

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — Seung Song allowed two hits in four innings and South Korea beat Australia 6-0 Monday night in Group B of the World Baseball Classic.

The win lifted the South Koreans to 1-1 in the group and set up a crucial game against host Taiwan on Tuesday. Australia fell to 0-2.

Kim Hyun-soo drove in two runs for South Korea, which rebounded from an uncharacteristically sloppy display against the Netherlands in a 5-0 loss.

With a 2-0 record, the Taiwanese remain in a commanding position to advance to the next round in Tokyo. The Netherlands is also 1-1 after stunning South Korea, but must beat Australia on Tuesday.