BEIJING — USA softball almost lost Wednesday. And this is what passes for exciting in this sport at the Olympics.

Japan nearly scored an upset. How fun for them.

"That was softball at its best," U.S. coach Mike Candrea said.

If that is truly the case, if a 4-1 victory in extra innings to extend Team USA's Olympic winning streak to 22 games is really the pinnacle, it is time for wrap-it-up sign. It has been fun, even entertaining at times, but it's time for softball to use this possibly permanent hiatus from The Game to fix what is obviously broken.

A pitching mound that is basically inches from home plate.

Tricked up rules, like putting a runner on second when extra innings begin.

And a lack of competition.

What we have going now is akin to awarding the Washington Generals the gold medal every four years. U.S. dominance in this sport is why many people suspect the IOC is dumping softball from the 2012 Games in London. That and they wanted baseball with their lack of big league players gone.

"If that is the reason, who wants to play in a sport where winning is bad?" centerfielder Caitlin Lowe said.

Hers is probably the best argument against banishing softball. Winning is not a bad thing. What the American women are missing is how boring this is for everybody but them. There is a reason softball games are half full in Beijing. Nobody wants to watch a sport where they know what is going to happen.

And while Japanese pitcher Yukiko Ueno almost upended them on Wednesday, a trend has emerged.

The Americans have outscored teams 108-3 in Olympic play. They are 32-4 all-time in the Olympics. They have won 22 Olympic games in a row. They are too good for their own good.

"I hate looking at it like that," leftfielder Jessica Mendoza said. "You watch Michael Phelps kick butt in the swimming pool. You watch our men's basketball team dominate. I would hope the IOC wants the Olympics to be about giving everything that you possibly have. And if you happen to win by a lot, that's what makes the game so beautiful."

What the Phelps comparison trips on is he has not been doing this since Sydney. The men's basketball team lost, not to mention softball does not have Kobe and LeBron to soften the blow of domination.

It is impossible not to like the U.S. women's softball players. Their heartache is palpable, as they try to balance winning a gold medal with realizing that this is possibly the last one ever in this sport.

"I felt like I had shakes this entire game," Mendoza said. "I had so much emotion, so much want to go out on top."

They will. This is practically guaranteed.

They play for the gold Thursday. And afterwards, it is time to wrap it up for a while.