Japan's Roki Sasaki Gifts Candy to William Escala to Apologize for Hitting Him in WBC

Japanese pitcher Roki Sasaki had a special treat for Czech Republic infielder William Escala after hitting him with a pitch during the World Baseball Classic.

Sasaki met with Escala on Monday and gifted him two big bags of candy as an apology.

During Japan's 10-2 win over the Czech Republic on Saturday, Sasaki threw a 101 mph fastball that caught Escala in his left leg in the top of the fourth inning.

Escala walked off the pain and stayed in the game. The 24-year-old also played in each of the Czech Republic's next two games.

"That's part of the game and it does happen, you know when people get hit," Escala told MLB.com's Michael Clair. "So, it was really a class act for him to come out and just apologize and make sure that I was good."

Escala said he also got a signed baseball from Sasaki.

Clair noted Sasaki has rare velocity and threw 21 of his 66 pitches over 100 mph during Saturday's start.

Escala finished the game 0-for-2 with a strikeout before being lifted in the ninth inning for a pinch hitter. Sasaki had eight strikeouts in 3.2 innings before reaching the pitch-count limit.

While the Czech Republic qualified for the 2026 World Baseball Classic, it failed to advance to the knockout round after going 1-3 in Pool B. Japan went 4-0 in pool play and will play Italy in the quarterfinals Thursday.