World Baseball Classic 2026 Scores, Reaction from Thursday Pool Play Results Ahead of KO Bracket

Day 2 of the World Baseball Classic took place Thursday with a pair of games in pool play.

Korea kicked off the WBC with a dominant win over Czech Republic, and Australia later handed the Czech Republic its second loss of pool play.

Here's a look at the standings through the early stages of pool play.

Pool C Standings (Run Differential)

1. Australia: 2-0 (+7)
2. South Korea: 1-0 (+7)
3. Japan: 0-0
4. Chinese Taipei: 0-1 (-3)
5. Czech Republic: 0-2 (-11)

South Korea 11, Czechia 4

Japan may be the favorite in Pool C, but South Korea appears ready to compete.

Houston Astros prospect Shay Whitcomb led the way for South Korea, blasting two home runs in the offensive showcase.

Moon Bo-gyeong also added to South Korea's onslaught with an early grand slam that inspired a red-hot performance from his team's bats.

South Korea used seven pitchers in the win, posting 12 strikeouts while allowing nine hits and four walks.

South Korea will get the chance to reset before taking on the Shohei Ohtani-led Japanese squad on Saturday.

Australia 5, Czechia 1

After its blowout loss earlier on Thursday against South Korea, Czechia hoped to bounce back with an upset over Australia.

Early on, it looked capable of doing so, especially after a Vojtech Mensik hit a sac fly in the bottom of the second to give his squad an early lead. Australia answered, though, as Curtis Mead hit a three-run homer to take the lead in the top of the third.

Both teams went stagnant on offense, and Czechia was still in the mix late, but Australia's offense tacked on two runs in the top of the ninth inning to gain some insurance going into the final frame.

Czechia couldn't rally in the ninth and dropped their second game of pool play.

After a double header on Thursday, Czechia will be back in action on Friday against Chinese Taipei, while Australia will be off until Sunday, when it faces Japan.