WATCH: Phillies' Trea Turner Home Run Puts Team USA Up 1-0 Over Japan

Three nights after hitting a game-winning grand slam to send Team USA to the World Baseball Classic Championship game, Philadelphia Phillies shortstop Trea Turner launched a clutch solo home run in the second inning, giving Team USA a 1-0 lead over Team Japan in the 2023 WBC title game.

Three nights after hitting a game-winning grand slam to send Team USA to the World Baseball Classic Championship game, Philadelphia Phillies shortstop Trea Turner launched a clutch solo home run in the second inning, giving Team USA a 1-0 lead over Team Japan in the 2023 WBC title game.

Turner is now batting .400 in the World Baseball Classic.

Team USA's lead did not last for long, however. In the inning's bottom half, Japanese third baseman Munetaka Murakami hit a solo home run of his own, tying the game at 1-1.

Murakami was Tuesday night's hero in Japan's 6-5 win over Team Mexico. His walk-off, two-run double scored Los Angeles Angels star Shohei Ohtani and Boston Red Sox outfielder Masataka Yoshida, sending Team Japan to the championship game.

Team Japan is seeking its third World Baseball Classic title, after winning the event in 2006 and 2009. It has not won a WBC crown since, placing third in the last two tournaments in 2013 and 2017.

Team USA is attempting to win its second consecutive WBC title, after winning in 2017.

Turner signed a lucrative, 11-year, $300 million contract with the Philadelphia Phillies in December, after spending the first seven years of his career playing for the Washington Nationals and Los Angeles Dodgers.

The Phillies hope that adding Turner to their already strong lineup will help the club take the next step and win a World Series, after winning their first National League Pennant in 13 years in 2022.

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