Give him a stage, turn the lights up bright, and sit back as Logan Webb puts on a show.
In his second and final appearance for Team USA in the World Baseball Classic, Webb tossed 4 2/3 shutout innings with five strikeouts to one walk as the Americans knocked off Team Canada in the quarterfinals to advance to the semifinals.
“Not a huge surprise there, but definitely great to hear,” said manager Tony Vitello after the Giants’ 6-1 loss to the Cincinnati Reds on Friday evening.
Webb ends his first taste of international competition having allowed just one run over 8 2/3 innings with 11 strikeouts to one walk. The only run Webb allowed was a solo home run to Team Brazil’s Lucas Ramirez, the son of Manny Ramirez, who homered twice against Team USA to open pool play.
While Webb will not pitch again for the remainder of the World Baseball Classic, he will remain with Team USA for the remainder of the tournament.
In Miami, Team USA will send Paul Skenes to the mound as the Americans attempt to defeat a white-hot Dominican Republic team that mercy-ruled Team Korea and tied the World Baseball Classic record for most home runs in a single tournament.
It’s currently unclear how Webb’s schedule will look leading up to Opening Night on March 25 against the New York Yankees, but the final stages of the two-time All-Star’s buildup to the season will be atypical compared to a regular spring.
The most straightforward schedule would be for Webb to have six days of rest before his next Cactus League start, which could hypothetically be on March 19 against the Colorado Rockies. From there, Webb could have another six days of rest before the season opener against Aaron Judge and the Yankees.
“He’s been doing what he needs to do to stay on task for what (director of major league pitching) Frank (Anderson) and (pitching coach) Justin (Meccage) have mapped out for him,” Vitello said.
Webb hasn’t had too many opportunities to pitch in high-stakes ballgames, but the two-time All-Star has consistently thrived on the big stage. During the 2021 NLDS, Webb tossed 7 2/3 shutout innings with 10 strikeouts against the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 1, then backed it up with seven innings of one-run ball in Game 5.