Taylor Teagarden hit a tiebreaking two-run double and Jason Donald followed with a two-run homer in the fifth inning Saturday as the United States defeated Japan 8-4 to capture the bronze medal in the Beijing Olympic baseball tournament.
Tied 4-4, Matt Brown had a one-out double and Nate Schierholtz walked before Teagarden's double and Donald's shot off Kenshin Kawakami dealt a killer blow to the Japanese, who went home empty-handed after their hopes for a first Olympic baseball gold were dashed with a semifinal defeat by South Korea on Friday.
The United States, which lost 10-2 to defending champion Cuba in the semis, took its third baseball medal, having previously won a gold and a bronze, since the sport was introduced to the Olympics in 1992. Baseball will be dropped along with softball from the 2012 London Olympics.