ANAHEIM, Calif. -- Nippon Professional Baseball's formal protest was dead in the water before it left Japan.
NPB was drafting a letter of protest after a call was reversed that robbed Team Japan of the go-ahead run in the eighth inning of Sunday's 4-3 loss to Team USA in the World Baseball Classic.
Major League Baseball officials met with NPB officials Tuesday to discuss NPB Executive Secretary Kazuo Hasegawa's letter, which amounted to nothing more than a symbolic protest.