This story is also posted in Spanish. It appears in ESPN The Magazine's May 8 NBA Playoffs Issue. Subscribe today!
Long after the game ends, after the trophy presentation and the on-field interview, after the boozy clubhouse celebration and the shower, Marcus Stroman piles into a car outside Dodger Stadium with two friends. He stretches out in the back seat and pulls out his phone.
The gold medal from the World Baseball Classic still hangs around his neck; his Most Valuable Player plaque rests in his lap. For Team USA's ace starter, it has been an impossibly long month that led to this first WBC title, an 8-0 win against Team Puerto Rico on the back of his six near-perfect innings.