The national baseball team returned home Wednesday night after taking second place in the 2009 World Baseball Classic.

The team, lead by coach Kim In-sik, arrived at Incheon International Airport around ten-forty p.m., Korean time.

Korea lost in the finals to defending champion Japan in a ten-inning thriller on Tuesday at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles.

The team held a news conference and later a brief welcoming ceremony.

The International Baseball Federation (IBAF) announced on its Web site Wednesday that Korea has shot past the United States and Japan into the second spot in the world rankings, trailing only Cuba.