Mexico vs Japan Prediction, Odds & Best Bet for World Baseball Classic Semifinal (Trust the Hitters in Miami)

Mexico vs Japan Game Info

• 2023 World Baseball Classic Semifinal
• Mexico (4-1) vs. Japan (5-0)
• Date: Monday, March 20, 2023
• Time: 7:00 p.m. ET
• Venue: loanDepot Park -- Miami, FL
• Coverage: FOX Sports 1

The 2023 World Baseball Classic continues on Monday with a great semifinal clash between Mexico and Japan. Mexico finished 3-1 in Pool C before it defeated Puerto Rico 5-4 in a quarterfinal clash on Friday, while Japan posted a 4-0 record in Pool B before it crushed Italy 9-3 on Thursday morning.

Mexico vs Japan Odds & Spread

• All WBC betting lines, odds and prop bets are from FanDuel Sportsbook.
• Moneyline: MEX: (+205) | JAPAN: (-265)
• Spread: MEX: +2.5 (-124) | JAPAN: -2.5 (+102)
• Total: 8.5 -- Over: (+100) | Under: (-122)

Japan enters this contest as a clear favorite on the moneyline per FanDuel Sportsbook's odds. This 7 p.m. ET clash also features an over/under of 8.5 runs, with the under favored at -122 odds.

Mexico vs Japan Prediction & Pick

Japan is the only team to make the semifinals in every edition of the WBC. If that doesn't make it clear how dominant manager Hideki Kuriyama's team has been, keep in mind Japan has won all six of its WBC games this year by at least 6 runs. Steamrolling the competition has become the norm.

Mexico is not a team to be underestimated, though. It scored 3 runs late against Puerto Rico to win a 5-4 thriller thanks to Isaac Paredes' 3 RBIs. Mexico will have Patrick Sandoval start the game after he allowed only 1 run on 2 hits against USA his last time out. His sinker confuses one hitter after another.

Japan has a massive advantage on the mound here and that is what will make the difference. Roki Sasaki will start after tallying 21 pitches of at least 100 mph in his last outing. Following a 21-year-old flamethrower with a bullpen full of veterans like Yu Darvish is going to give Mexico all kinds of trouble.

Final Score Prediction: Mexico: 4 | Japan: 6

Mexico vs Japan Best Bet

Backing Japan has value here, but backing a high-scoring game to break out has even more value. More than 8 runs have been scored in four of five WBC games for both Japan and Mexico. Star hitters can be found all over these rosters, too, highlighted by Randy Arozarena and Masataka Yoshida.

Sit back and root for runs to be scored when these teams battle for a coveted spot in the WBC final.

Bet: Over 8.5 Runs (+100)

Larry Rupp is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Larry Rupp also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username phillyfan424. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel. 

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.