7:57 PM PT -- The World Baseball Classic ended up coming down to Shohei Ohtani vs. Mike Trout after all ... and the pitcher got the better of the hitter -- winning the tournament for Japan.
Ohtani came in to start the top of the ninth with a 3-2 lead. He walked Jeff McNeil, but then induced a double play -- bringing up the moment every baseball fan wanted to see ... him vs. Trout with the WBC on the line.
The guys battled to a 3-2 count .