U.S. media are suggesting a power shift in Asian baseball after South Korea beat Japan and advanced to the semifinals of the World Baseball Classic (WBC).

U.S. sports cable channel ESPN said South Korea is "proving to be the premier team in the Far East," noting that the nation has now recorded six wins and three defeats against its bitter rival Japan over the past three years in major international competitions.

The Los Angeles Times highlighted the performance of South Korean starter Bong Jung-keun who played a key role in Wednesday’s game against Japan, emerging victorious over Japan's flamethrower Yu Darvish.