BEIJING - Canada was eliminated from the medal round of the Olympic baseball tournament despite a 4-0 win over the Netherlands on Tuesday.
Japan and the United States both won their games to improve to 4-2 with one game left, making it impossible for 2-4 Canada to close the gap.
Brooks McNiven of Vancouver game one hit and no walks over six innings for Canada, which finishes its Olympics with a meaningless game against Taiwan on Wednesday.
''We put together a more complete ballgame today with outstanding pitching,'' manager Terry Puhl said.
Elsewhere, John Gall hit a go-ahead home run and Brandon Knight struck out five in 6 1-3 strong innings as the United States beat Taiwan 4-2 .
Dexter Fowler, batting ninth, missed hitting for the cycle by a home run for the U.S., which has a 4-2 record in the preliminaries and has advanced to the medal round.
Fowler's sixth-inning double against Taiwan reliever Lee Chen-chang gave the Americans a two-run cushion.
''We always seem to make it a little too interesting,'' Knight said. ''There's a little sense of relief (to be in the medal round). I'm not going to lie and say we didn't expect that. It was a goal.''
In the other night game Tuesday, designated hitter Tsuyoshi Nishioka hit a two-run homer and also singled in a run as Japan beat China 10-0 in seven innings.
Hideaki Wakui (2-0) struck out six and allowed two hits in seven scoreless innings for Japan (4-2). China fell to 1-5 in its first-ever Olympic tournament.
Earlier, Ko Young-min's two-run single in the fourth tied the game and Cuba also committed a costly two-run error that inning as South Korea rallied past the defending champion Cubans 7-4.
Ko also scored an insurance run on Lee Yong-kyu's RBI single in the sixth.
The teams will finish first and second - the order still to be determined - after the preliminary tournament is completed Wednesday.
South Korea is 6-0 and the only remaining undefeated club with one game left.
''This is unexpected and we are very fortunate,'' South Korea manager Kim Kyung-moon said. ''Since we beat the U.S. in our opener, the good luck has stayed with us so far. I'm very satisfied with my players, their co-operation and the results.''
