Taiwan was surprisingly ousted from the Intercontinental Baseball Cup in Cuba by the the Dominican Republic.
Taiwan had qualified from the group phase but was undone by the Dominican Republic 5-3 late on Sunday.
Panama qualified for the second round after eliminating Japan 5-1 and South Korea ended up as the only Asian side left in the competition held in Havana.
Cuba and Panama were favored to win the Intercontinental Baseball Cup as the competition was narrowed down to four teams for yesterday's semifinals.
The schedule for the semifinals was to be determined after a night game between Cuba and Panama and the final is today.
It's the first time in 21 years that Panama has reached the semifinals of the Intercontinental Cup, thanks in part to the talents of former players in the American leagues, including Roberto Kelly, Sherman Obando and Orlando Miller.
"This is the best team in 20 years that Panama has presented in this type of competition," Panama's Anibal Reluz said. "My team can win the championship."
RSS