World Cup Archives

Major League Baseball announced first round sites for next year's World Baseball Classic. I assume the threat by the Dominican Republic to pull out of the tournament if they didn't host is no longer on the table.

The Dominican Republic is threatening to pull out of the WBC if they can't host in 2009. I guess their leverage is that lots of major league stars come from the DR. However, I bet a lot of clubs would like those stars in camp rather than playing in a tournament, so it might not be a bad thing for the clubs.

The Baseball Musings pledge drive continues through March. Please consider making a donation.

Scott Rolen vs. Brandon Inge should be no contest. Rolen is a great offensive and defensive third baseman. He gets on base, he hits for power, and he's among the best with the glove. Rolen is a middle of the order hitter, while Inge properly bats at the bottom of the Detroit lineup. At age 29, Inge did develop some power, smacking 27 home runs this season, but his low batting average caused him to post a less than impressive .463 slugging percentage. With the power came a drop in OBA, which pretty much negated the home runs.

The problem is, that Rolen isn't healthy. He's only managed one extra-base hit this post season, although his chance at a home run was Endy'd by Chavez. His struggles at the plate make this matchup more even than it should be. Still, advantage St. Louis here.

It turns out that the story about Cuba donating money to Katrina victims wasn't true:

Patrick Courtney, a spokesman for Major League Baseball (MLB), which helped organized the tournament, said that the Classic's agreement with the Cuban baseball federation clearly stipulated that Cuba, unlike the other 15 participating federations, would receive none of the tournament's proceeds.

''To the contrary, at the insistence of the Treasury and the State Department, Cuba agreed, as a condition of its participation in the tournament, that `it will not receive any direct or indirect revenues and/or prize money,'' Courtney wrote in an email to the Miami Herald.

''Based on the agreement, Cuba doesn't have a cut of the proceeds from the tournament, and there is nothing for Cuba to donate,'' he added.

What I find interesting is that this myth was allowed to float around unchallenged for so long. Did people think Cuba would pull out of the tournament if the truth was known?

Baseball Musings is conducting a pledge drive in March. Click here for details.

Jon Swift suggests a way Team USA can win the World Cup in the future.

Baseball Musings is holding a pledge drive during March. Click here for details.

I wanted to respond to a comment by Lisa Gray to this post:

a super world league? how long the season gonna last? cuz you can't have guys playing a night game in japan then a day game in italy. guys get enough jet lag just here in the US

That depends on how fast technology advances. After all, they couldn't put teams on the west coast until planes were fast enough to fly teams out there in a reasonable amount of time. If you can go NY to Tokyo in six hours, you can play the world. Rocket planes, anyone?

What probably would work best now, however, is 36 Western Hemisphere teams and 12 Asian teams. Divide them into four leagues, two divisions each. (I'm not sure Europe is actually ready for baseball yet). This would be similar to the way the majors were set up from 1969-1976. There would be no interleague play with the Asians until the playoffs due to travel time.

But all teams would draft from the same pool of players, be covered by the same collective bargaining agreement, etc. There would be players from all over the world playing all over the world.

Each division winner plays a seven game series against the winner of the other division in its league in the first round. That results in four pennant winners. These are seeded 1-4 based on regular season record, and two more seven game series are played to determine a World Champion.

If travel time becomes a non-issue and baseball starts to really develop in Europe, six weak franchises could be moved there eventually. You could then institute interleague play simply by moving divisions around every year. I'm sure there are plenty of creative people out there who can come up with ways to make this work.

Baseball Musings is holding a pledge drive during March. Click here for details.

Ducksnorts posts stunning photos from the final game of the World Baseball Classic. It looks like Geoff had the best seat in the house!

Baseball Musings is holding a pledge drive during March. Click here for details.

It was an exciting finale to the World Baseball Classic Monday night. Japan got off to an early lead, Cuba fought back, and Japan answered with even more runs. It seems to me Cuba lost the game in the first inning when Velez lifted his starter Romero after just four batters. Romero was a bit wild (23 pitches, 12 strikes), but Japan loaded the bases on luck. The three balls in play could easily have been outs, as none got out of the infield.

What the early hook did was leave Cuba short of good pitchers at the end of the game. Velez was forced to leave Palma in with an injury to his left hamstring. Palma pitched brilliantly through three innings in one of the gutsiest performances I've seen. But he was gassed in the ninth. The Cubans had fought back to trail 6-5, but Palma and the back of the bullpen gave up four runs in the inning to seal their fate.

Japan's approach on offense was perfect. They were both selective (6 walks) and put the ball in play (10 hits). They ran the bases well, and the play of the game was Kawasaki's slide in the 9th to score the seventh run. Pestano blocked the plate perfectly, but Kawasaki reached across and underneath with his right hand to just beat the tag. In real time it looked like he was out, but the closeup replay showed the ump called the play correctly.

All in all, a fitting finish to a fine tournament. Baseball is played very well in many places across the globe. With Korea and Japan playing so impressively, the Asian invasion is likely just around the corner. I expect North American scouts to step up activity in the east, trying to snap up players before they sign and give their best years to one of the Asian leagues. That will be very good for the salaries of the Pacific rim players, as competition will likely force their salaries up. Eventually, maybe all these major leagues will combine to draft and trade from the same world wide pool of players.

I'd love to see eight divisions of six teams each someday. Six teams in Asia, six in the Caribbean and six in Europe joining with the North American major leagues to form a super world league? That would be sweet.

Baseball Musings is holding a pledge drive during March. Click here for details.

Japan and Cuba should be getting underway in a few minutes. Of course, Notre Dame and Michigan will probably go into triple overtime and we'll miss the first third of the game. :(

Matsuzaka pitches against Romero. Daisuke pitched nine innings so far, allowing just four hits. Omari won both his starts, and has nine strikeouts in 8 1/3 innings. Both pitchers allowed just one run.

Update: I knew the basketball game was going to overtime. I'm going to miss the start of the game due to second-rate college basketball.

Update: It's double overtime in the basketball game. Japan and Cuba are underway, and number two hitter Nishioka singles with one out for the game's first hit.

Update: ESPN only has 1,000,000 channels, you'd think they could put the game on one of them.

Update: A stolen base and a walk to Ichiro put men on first and second for Matsunaka, the DH.

Update: Matsunaka gets an infield single to load the bases with one out. Romero is having control problems, only 12 of his 23 pitches have gone for strikes.

Update: That's in for Romero. Odelin relieves for Cuba.

Update: Tamura is hit by a pitch. Japan takes the early 1-0 lead.

Update: YES! It's a buzzer beater! I love Michigan! Get to the baseball game already.

Update: Odelin gets a strikeout for the second out.

Update: Odelin walks in another run. It's 2-0 Japan, and they're showing good selectivity versus Cuba so far.

Update: Imae gets a phat pitch and drives it up the middle for a two run single. It's the first ball out of the infield in the inning. Japan leads 4-0, and Cuba goes to the bullpen again.

Update: They're showing a replay of the early part of the inning. I don't understand why Romero was removed. It's not like Japan hit him hard. There was a slow roller and an infield hit with the runners moving, so the shortstop was out of position. Noberto Gonzalez is pitching for Cuba now.

Update: Cuba gets out of the inning on a grounder to second, but Japan bats around and leads 4-0 at the end of one.

Update: Paret gets one back right away with a home run into the left field stands. It's 4-1 Japan in the bottom of the fourth.

Update: That's it for Cuba in the first. Matsuzaka was getting his pitches up early, but regained control for two ground outs and a strike out. It's 4-1 Japan after one inning.

Update: We keep seeing great defense in this tournament. The Japanese shortstop Kawasaki made a great play in the hole in the bottom of the first, and the Cuban catcher Pestano just made a great play a Kawasaki bunt leading off the second. I'd love to see both of them in the majors.

Update: Another nice play to retire Ichiro. Paret makes a leaping catch of a line drive to retire the side in order in the top of the second.

Update: ESPN has a camera in Havana. Why don't they have one in Tokyo?

Update: Matsuzaka strikes out the first two batters, then gives up a single to Garlobo.

Update: Matsuzaka strikes out Pestano to end the inning. He's struck out four of the last five batters. Daisuke struck out five in his first nine innings of the tournament.

Update: Japan puts two on but doesn't score in top of the third. The Cuban pitchers walked three and hit a batter so far.

Update: Alexei Ramirez starts off the bottom of the third with a double off the left field wall.

Update: Despite striking out Paret, Matsuzaka is wild high this inning.

Update: Ramirez stays at second. Matsuzaka gets two fly outs to end the inning. Matsuzaka was throwing inside and up a lot in that inning. He's not afraid to try to intimidate batters.

Update: For all intents and purposes a 1-2-3 inning. Gonzalez issues a two out walk, but immediately catches the runner stealing on a pickoff.

Update: Another great play by Kawasaki. A ground smash up the middle grazes the pitcher, and Kawasaki has to adjust to make the dive, catch the ball, then come up and throw to get the batter. Well done. Kawasaki makes all his plays look easy.

Update: The Cuban swing early in that inning, but only get a single out of it. At the end of four, it's still 4-1 Japan. Matsuzaka has thrown 62 pitches so far, 43 of them for strikes.

Update: Ichiro Suzuki doubles down the left field line to start the fifth inning for Japan. It's followed by a single by Matsunaka to put runners at first and third with none out.

Update: Cuba is making a pitching change. Pedroso comes in to face Tamura.

Update: A hot smash to the hot corner is snared by Enriquez. However, he looked home to try to get Ichiro, can't, then doesn't have time to get the runner at first. Japan leads 5-1 and still have two on with none out.

Update: Satozaki bunts to move the runners to second and third with one out.

Update: Another pitching change for Cuba. They're bringing in a left vs. the left batter Ogasawara.

Update: Ogasawara hits a sacrifice fly to extend the Japanese lead to 6-1.

Update: A groundout to shortstop end the inning. But Cuba has its work cut out, needing at least five runs in the final five innings against a tough Japanese pitching staff.

Update: Watanabe enters in relief in the bottom of the fifth. Matsuzaka threw four brilliant innings, walking none and striking out five. His one mistake was the homerun to the leadoff batter Paret.

Update: Watanabe pitches like Chad Bradford, almost dragging his knuckles on the ground. The Cubans have a tough time picking up his pitches and are retired in order in the fifth.

Update: The Cuban pitcher Palma injured his left hamstring going after a bunt. He's still in the game, but he appears to be limping after each pitch.

Update: Palma gets out of the inning. Japan is 12 outs away from the Championship.

Update: Kawasaki makes a rare mistake, bobbling a ball on the speedy Gourriel. A single follows putting men on first and second with one out.

Update: Cepeda doubles down the left field line, driving in the second Cuban run. The Cubans certainly take advantages of errors.

Update: Another single and Cuba cuts the lead in half, 6-3. The runner at second started back to the bag, so he didn't score.

Garlobo swings at the first pitch and grounds into a double play to end the inning. It looks like Cuba figured out Watanabe in that inning. I doubt he'll come out for the seventh.

Update: Palma is back out for the seventh. I guess he didn't hurt the hamstring too badly.

Update: A gutsy inning by Palma. He strikes out two, retiring the side in order.

Update: Kawasaki makes the same mistake again, taking his eye off the ball as he catches it. The error puts the leadoff man on for Cuba.

Update: Kawasaki makes up for it by starting a double play on the next pitch. The Cuban strategy late seems to be to try to put the first pitch in play.

Update: On the next pitch, Watanabe takes his eye off the ball covering first and drops the throw from the first baseman. Ichrio makes the final out on a fly to right, but the lack of concentration by Japan is surprising.

Update: Palma gets the side in order in the 8th. Cuba has six outs to get three runs.

Update: Gourriel leads off the eighth inning with an infield single, and Japan is making a pitching change. I'm surprised they stayed with Watanabe as long as they did. Cuba was hitting the ball hard the last couple of innings, just at fielders.

Update: The lefty Fujita comes in to face the two Cuban lefties, who bat back to back.

Update: Fujita gets a fly to shallow left for the first out.

Update: Cepeda blasts one out to left field to make this a one-run ballgame. Cuba's the team that found the power tonight. The bases are empty with one out in the 8th, and Japan is making a pitching change.

Update: Closer Otsuka comes in to try to finish the game. He's back at his old ballpark in San Diego. He gets the first batter he faces on the first pitch.

Update: Garlobo flies out to right to end the inning. Japan needs to get three outs to win the championship. They'll try to re-insure themselves in the top of the ninth.

Update: Cuba makes their first error of the game, with Enriquez making a short throw to first. Japan has the leadoff man on first in the top of the ninth.

Update: Kawasaki bunts hard and right at the third baseman and they cut down the runner at second.

Update: Nishioka pushes a bunt past the pitcher to the second baseman for a base hit. Japan has runners on first and second with one out. And Ichiro is up.

Update: Ichiro singles to right to drive in Kawasaki. The play at the plate was close but Kawasaki got his hand in right under the catcher to score. You had to see it in slow motion to see that indeed he was safe. The score is now 7-5 Japan.

Update: The runners advanced on the throw, and an intentional walk loads the bases. I'm a little surprised Palma isn't coming out.

Update: Maya is coming in to pitch. They just took their time making the change.

Update: Fukudome pinch hits, and just like Saturday gets a big hit. He singles in two to make the score 9-5. They answer the two in the bottom of the eighth with three of their own.

Update: Maya walks Satozaki to load the bases again. Still just one out.

Update: Y. Gonzalez comes on to try to get out of the inning.

Update: Another sacrifice fly, and Japan doubles the Cuban score. It's 10-5.

Update: Jonder Martinez gets Cuba out of the inning. They need a big inning. Japan just needs three outs.

Update: Cuba does not go quitely in the ninth as Pestano starts the inning with a double.

Update: Ichiro makes the first out on a Fly Ball A.

Update: Paret singles in the whole to drive in a run and make the score 10-6.

Update: Otsuka strikes out Enriquez to put Japan one out away from the win.

Update: Gourriel strikes out to end the game and Japan is champion of the first World Baseball Classic. Congratulations to Saraharu Oh who managed the last two games very well to lead his team and his country to this win. A great game by Ichiro and Otsuka, the two major leaguers left in the tournament.

It's late, so more tomorrow.

Baseball Musings is holding a pledge drive during March. Click here for details.

Japan faces Cuba tonight in the first ever World Baseball Classic championship. Your guess is as good as mine as to what's going to happen. However, Cuba does have a pattern of losing the first matchup against a professional team, then winning the second. Puerto Rico mercy ruled them in the first round, then lost 4-3. The Dominican Republic defeated Cuba in the second round by four runs, then lost a close game 3-1. It seems once Cuba sees you play once, they adjust well. Having not played against Japan might give the Asian team the edge.

Given the weather and the tough pitching, I suspect another low scoring game. I was impressed that the Japanese hitters found a way to get the ball out of PETCO Saturday night; if they can do that again, their odds of winning go up.

Baseball Musings is holding a pledge drive during March. Click here for details.

The Astros returning from the World Baseball Classic are ecstatic about the event.

What impressed the players was the depth of talent on the international teams. They knew about the Dominicans and Venezuelans and even the Cubans but were stunned by the skills they saw among the Japanese, Koreans and even the Italians.

"It's going to be great for the long-range future of baseball to have that kind of talent in those countries," Wheeler said. "To think that it's spreading around the world makes me more excited."

Lidge said he was shocked at some of the things he saw.

"Yeah, seeing just how well those other areas have developed," Lidge said. "Shoot, Japan and Korea were exceptional teams. We knew they would be mechanically sound, but we didn't realize the talent they would have."

And they want everyone who can play to play:

Lidge said major leaguers should be excited about the tournament.

"Obviously, if you're hurt, not able to do it, that's one thing. But if you're just not sure, and you think, 'I might not be ready for the season if I do this,' I don't think that's a good excuse," Lidge said. "I think you need to do it. Who knows? If one or more people wanted to do that, maybe we would have gotten to the final round."

One of the really nice things about this tournament is that sportsmanship appears to be alive and well. I can't say I've seen many instances of sour grapes from any particular team or players. There's some trash talking, but all the contestants project a genuine respect for their opponents, and there's been a minimum of whining about losing. That's a pleasant change.

Baseball Musings is holding a pledge drive during March. Click here for details.

Ducksnorts attended both games of the World Baseball Classic yesterday and took some great high-home shots of the action. He has slide shows for both games.

Baseball Musings is conducting a pledge drive in March. Click here for details.

The third time was a charm as team Japan finally defeated South Korea when it counted the most. There were two strategy differences that appeared to lead to the Japanese victory:

1. The Japanese team decided to stick with their starting pitcher deep into the game.
2. In the late innings Fukudome and Tamura adpoted upper-cut swings and were able to power balls out of PETCO.

Congratulations to Japan on the win! They'll face Cuba on Monday night.

Baseball Musings is conducting a pledge drive in March. Click here for details.

Japan and Korea are about to get underway for the right to play Cuba on Monday.

Update: I guess they had some rain that's delaying the start of the game. By the way, all five Lee's are in the lineup for Korea tonight!

Update: With two out, Ichiro Suzuki singles to right. Seo had only one pitch go for a ball so far tonight.

Update: Ichiro steals second. Matsunaka is down 0-2.

Update: Matsunaka grounds out to third to end the inning. Jae Seo continues to be dominant, throwing eight of ten pitches for strikes.

Update: JB Lee doubles with one out to put a runner in scoring position for South Korea.

Update: S-Y Lee fouls off a number of pitches, then strikes out on a high pitch. It's up to Choi.

Update: A wild pitch puts the runner at third, but Choi grounds out to first to leave the game scoreless after one. The Koreans did work Uehara for 22 pitches, however (17 strikes).

Update: A beautiful play by the Korean shortstop, Park, in the hole. A good stretch to catch the ball, and an extremely strong throw to beat the batter to the bag at first. Nothing flashy, but spectacular nonetheless.

Update: Nice leaping catch by JY Lee in right to end the inning, although it struck me that his timing was off, and if he kept running he would not have needed to jump. Japan goes 1-2-3 in the second inning, and Seo with 18 pitches through two has thrown fewer than Uehara did in one. At this rate, Seo can go very deep into the game.

Update: Uehara also retires the side in order in the second inning. He's up to 36 pitches.

Update: Kawasaki lets the good times roll, doubling down the right field line. Aoki follows with a four pitch walk.

Update: The Korean defense comes through again. A sharp line drive is gloved by the third baseman, and his throw doubles Aoki off first. Seo lost the plate a bit in that inning, but gets out unscathed. He's averaging eleven pitches an inning.

Update: Ichiro beats out an infield grounder leading off the top of the fourth inning.

Update: Suzuki gets his second stolen base on a 3-0 strike.

Update: Matsunaka pops out foul on a 3-1 pitch. Suzuki is still at second with one out.

Update: Tamura flies out to deep left. It's the sort of hit that might have been a home run somewhere else. A fly to center retires the side. Seo is through four inning without allowing a run. He's only thrown 47 pitches.

Update: Nice catch by Tamura in left on a foul ball in the corner to start the bottom of the fourth.

Update: Choi hits one hard, but to the deepest part of the field in center for the third out. Still 0-0 after four.

Update: Another easy inning for Seo. He's still averaging just a little over 11 pitches an inning.

It looks like whoever scores the first run might make it hold up for the win. Both pitchers look very strong tonight.

Update: Jin Man Park stops Uehara's streak of 13 straight outs with a two-out single in the fifth. But a long fly ball by Cho to center ends the inning.

Update: I'm surprised. Jun comes on to relieve Seo in the sixth inning.

Update: Jun picks right up with Seo left off, retiring the side in order, including a nice play by the shortstop to get Suzuki to end the inning. Jun just throws 11 pitches. The Japanese hitters are not making the South Korean pitchers work.

Update: Uehara throws just nine pitches to get the Korean side in order in the sixth. It's still a double shutout after six innings.

Update: Matsunaka doubles down the right field line to start the seventh inning for Japan. With right-handed hitters up next, Byung Hyun Kim enters the game for South Korea.

Update: Tamura strikes out swinging after failing to bunt for the first out.

Update: Kosuke Fukudome breaks the scoreless tie. He launches a pinch-hit two-run homer into the rightfield stands to give Japan the lead.

Update: Fukodome had a nice upper cut on the ball. Kim once again is going to be remembered for giving up a big home run.

Update: Tomoya Satozaki hits one that bounces over the wall in left to plate another run. It's 3-0, and Japan is getting a lot of mileage out of uppercut swings in this inning. That's it for Kim.

Update: Japan will try to get a few hits off Bong now.

Update: Another hit, and Japan leads 4-0. Correction: Son came into the game at this point.

Update: That's two hits off Son in two batters. Ichiro is batting with runners on first and third and two outs.

Update: Ichiro gets the third hit off Son, and the Japanese score goes higher. It's now 5-0.

Correction: Sorry, I originally had the hits off Bong, but he had been replaced after getting an out. The hits were off Son.

Update: Korea finally gets out of the inning, but they need more offense than they're used to getting in this tournament in order to stage a comeback.

Update: Uehara strikes out the side while allowing one hit. You have to wonder why Seo came out early but Uehara is still pitching. Obviously, Oh made the right decision as far as using his starter.

Update: Another Japanese home run and they've now scored half a dozen runs.

Update: It's raining hard enough that they're bringing out the tarp! I thought it didn't rain in southern California. :-)

Update: As much as I'd like to stay up and watch the end of this game, I'm very tired. Feel free to comment if they resume playing. Japan leads 6-0 in the top of the eighth.

Baseball Musings is conducting a pledge drive in March. Click here for details.

The Cubans defeated the Dominican Republic 3-1 this afternoon. In looking at the boxscore, the Dominicans had plenty of opportunities. The table setters reached base four times by hits, but the heart of the order, Puljols, Oritz and Beltre only managed one hit. They wasted a great outing by Bartolo Colon. Colon pitched six shutout innings, striking out four and walking none.

The Cubans did use small ball, sacrificing twice and getting caught stealing twice. Despite giving away four outs, the Cubans still were able to score three runs, and that turned out to be enough. They only used two pitchers, and the only run they allowed were a result of an error. Three double plays made up for the two errors.

Congratulations to Cuba on making the finals. They're a better team than I realized. They appear to be very good at matching their talent against their opponents.

Baseball Musings is conducting a pledge drive in March. Click here for details.

I'll be out this afternoon at a family function. Feel free to leave thoughts on the game in the comments to this post.

Baseball Musings is conducting a pledge drive in March. Click here for details.

The World Baseball Classic finals take place this afternoon and evening in San Diego. Cuba face the Dominican Republic in the early game (3 PM EST) while Korea hosts Japan this evening (10 PM EST).

I expect both games to be close. PETCO hurts the Dominican offense the most. The Dominicans hit 9 home runs so far in this tournament, tied with the US for the most. PETCO is off the scale in preventing home runs, according to The Bill James Handbook 2006. The Cubans strike me as more of a small ball team than the Dominicans, so the park works in their favor. It also works in their favor from the point of view of their pitching, as Cuba's seven home runs allowed are the most in the tournament.

Korea and Japan are just too evenly matched. Japan's offense is number one in the tournament, scoring 44 runs in six games, the most by any team. They're doing that with an impressive .398 OBA. The Koreans allowed only eight runs in the WBC, all of them earned. In their two games vs. Japan, they've held their neighbors to the east to just three runs. Japan scored 28 runs vs. the two Chinese teams, but just four runs a game otherwise. I would not be surprised to see another one run contest tonight. With Korea getting the last at bat, and with two wins over Japan already, South Korea gets a slight advantage in my book.

Baseball Musings is conducting a pledge drive in March. Click here for details.

The US team took the loss hard last night. That's good. That means they care about the tournament. You can see that in these quotes:

Which feeling will he and the club carry away with them now that it's over?

"In the end, it was fun. I would recommend it to anyone that has the opportunity next time it comes around. It was a fun experience, right up until tonight," said Jeter, finally managing a smile.

Vernon Wells, who's been rah-rah about this thing from the beginning, agreed. "We're disappointed, but we can't really hang our head too much," he said. "This tournament shows you how good baseball is around the world. It's been fun to be a part of. It's fun to see the different countries and how they play the game, and the different flair they bring to it, and all the fun they have. Unfortunately, they had a little too much fun tonight."

Baseball Musings is conducting a pledge drive in March. Click here for details.

With the end of the first two rounds of the World Cup, it's interesting to note that only one team composed mostly of major league players made it to the semifinals, the Dominican Republic. It seemed for a few teams hitters (US, Mexico, Venezuela) that their timing was off. Even the Dominicans struggle to score runs in two of their three second round games.

For a while I've thought that spring training was too long. But maybe these batters do need some time to get their batting eyes in order. A week of exhibition games with their regular season teams might do them a world of good. Playing the tournament at the end of spring training, rather than the beginning may mean we see the North American major leaguers at their best, rather than in training mode.

Maybe MLB can delay the start of the season a week in WBC years, and schedule double headers during the season to make up for the lost time.

Baseball Musings is conducting a pledge drive in March. Click here for details.

It's parents' night at school, so I'm going to miss the first couple of innings of this game. Feel free to leave your opinions in the comments.

Update: I got back just in time to see Chipper Jones tie the game at 1 in the top of the fourth. Also, in time to hear Sutcliffe talking about productive outs. :(

Update: Duke Castiglione talked to the ump, and he said he thought it hit the top of the wall. They also saw no paint on the ball.

Update: I'm reading the comments, and it looks like an ump missed a ball off the foul pole. What inning, please, so I can back up and watch it on TIVO?

Update: Just saw the replay. That's the worst call since the Jeter homer against the Orioles in 1996.

Update: Francoeur doubles to right to start the US fifth.

Update: Barrett gets hit by the pitch. It looks like it just brushed his hand. Runners on first and second.

By the way, Valenzuela, who lost the home run, reached base and scored anyway. For all intents and purposes, the bad call didn't make a difference. Lucky for the ump.

Update: Francoeur is picked off second by the catcher, although it technically goes as a caught stealing. Barrett was able to move up to second.

Update: Barrett gets to third but he's stranded there. Remember, since Mexico scored a run, the US has to win this game to advance. It's tied at 1 in the middle of the fifth.

Update: Valenzuela gets another hit, leading off the fifth with a single to center. He's bunted to second.

Update: Amazega lines one up the middle for a single. Valenzuela had to head back to second, as it was low enough to be caught. A lucky break for the US as there is no score on the play. Roger Clemens leaves the game after 73 pitches. He can't win the game, but he might lose it.

Update: Scot Shields enters in relief.

Update: Mexico scores on a slow grounder. It's 2-1 in the fifth.

Update: That's it for the fifth. Right now Japan is cheering.

Update: The heart of the US order goes 1-2-3 on seven pitches in the sixth inning.

Update: The US goes in order in the seventh, on just 8 pitches. Mexico strikes out its first two batters of the night.

Update: Bud's in the booth, and he's bringing down the whole energy of the broadcast.

Update: Is Miller going to ask Bud about Bonds? That would certainly ruin the whole atmosphere of the game. How can he not ask, however, given the news of the day?

Update: Ojeda walks to start the bottom of the seventh.

Update: Miller does talk about Bonds. Bud's looking at everything. But who knows what "everything" is.

Update: There's a game going on. A 2-1 game. Get Bud out of the booth and let's talk about the game!

Update: Street gets out of the inning without any more damage. The US has two innings to score at least one run.

Update: Villarreal gets the side in order, striking out Jeter looking. The Atlanta pitcher has thrown 16 pitches, 15 for strikes. The US is three outs away from elimination.

Update: Nathan retires the side in order. The US has Jr, Chipper and A-Rod in the 9th. They'll win or lose with their best.

Update: De La Rosa is in to get the save for Mexico.

Update: The crowd, on both sides, is really into the game. Each is chanting the name of their country.

Update: De La Rosa screws Griffey into the ground as Ken strikes out swinging. Two outs to go.

Update: Chipper Jones walks on four pitches. We'll see a right-hander, Ayala to face A-Rod.

Update: A-Rod takes ball four. Men on first and second, Damon running for A-Rod. Wells is due up.

Update: Depending on the pitcher, I'd rather see Utley bat than Wells.

Update: Cortes is in, a righty. I'd rather see Utley. I'd rather see Lee, but I believe his shoulder is bad.

Update: Wells breaks his bat on the first pitch and hits into a double play. Where was Utley? Where was the left-handed bat in that situation?

Congratulations to Japan! They advance to the semi-finals. It's close to an all island finals. South Korea isn't an island, but it is cut off from the mainland.

Saturday should be fun.

Baseball Musings is conducting a pledge drive in March. Click here for details.

Omar Vizquel loved playing in the World Baseball Classic and thinks the players who turned down the offer missed a great opportunity:

"I feel sad for the guys that didn't go to this tournament - the guys who had a chance and were invited and didn't go for whatever reason," Vizquel said. "I think they really missed something huge in their careers. Opportunities like this will not come very often. I think the guys who had the opportunity to go really enjoyed it."

I suspect in 2009 they'll be turning players away.

Baseball Musings is conducting a pledge drive in March. Click here for details.

There's a story going around that members of the South Korean team will be exempted from military service due to their success in the World Baseball Classic. That's not a done deal, but it looks like it's going to happen:

South Korea is expected to exempt its national team baseball players from compulsory military service after a series of stunning victories in the World Baseball Classic that sparked an outpouring of patriotism.

All South Korean men over 20 without major mental or physical problems are obligated to undergo military service of at least two years, a legacy of the country`s decades-long military confrontation with North Korea.

Public calls for rewarding young baseball players with an exemption mounted on Thursday after their team secured a berth in the semifinals of the inaugural 16-nation tournament by beating the Japanese 2-1 and humbling the Americans 7-3. South Korea remains the only unbeaten team in the tournament, with a 6-0 record.

Thanks to Conductor for the link.

Baseball Musings is conducting a pledge drive in March. Click here for details.

Sabernomics notices the South Korean pitching staff was well coached:

Count South Korea as another team that has benefited from Mazzone’s teachings. In early January, Mazzone spent 10 days in Hawaii working with 18 pitchers from South Korea’s team. Now, South Korea’s 1.40 ERA is the lowest among teams in the Classic.

“They’ve got a lot of talent,” Mazzone said.

And an undefeated record.

Baseball Musings is conducting a pledge drive in March. Click here for details.

Imagine this:

It's the bottom of the ninth, and the US and Mexico are tied at 0-0. Brad Lidge on the mound is told to intentionally walk every batter he faces. A 1-0 loss by the US puts them in the tournament. So the catcher stands up calls for the intentional ball, and Lidge starts throwing the them wide.

The batter, however, knows Mexico has to win in 13 by a score of 3-0. It's a longshot but it's possible, so he starts swinging and missing at the intentional balls!

Lidge, seeing what's happening, then grooves one down the middle of the plate. Thinking it's going to be another intentional ball, the batter swings and hits it. It's fair, but none of the US players are going after the ball. Again, realizing he has to make an out, the runner stops halfway to first base. Two weeks later, they're all still there.

Update: Why not use the Pythagorean method for the tie breaker? Runs^2/(Runs^2+Allowed^2) encourages teams to score lots of runs and prevent many from scoring, which is pretty much the point of the game.

Baseball Musings is conducting a pledge drive in March. Click here for details.

I don't know if they're changing tie breakers on the fly, or if people just it wrong in the first round, but the second tie-breaker is runs allowed per 9 innings among the tied teams, not total runs allowed among the tied teams. This means Mexico does indeed have a chance to advance today. The scenarios are detailed here in a sidebar.

This also highlights the problem with the tiebreakers. For the Mexicans to advance, they have to keep the game scoreless for 13 innings, then score three runs in the bottom of the 13th inning. There is no incentive for Mexico to try to score at all in this game until very late.

Also, do they change the rule, so that Mexico keeps batting in the bottom of the 13th, even if they score a single run? Or do they have to hit a three-run homer or better?

Baseball Musings is conducting a pledge drive in March. Click here for details.

They're underway in San Diego, and Korea failed to score in the top of the first.

Update: They're through the fourth in San Diego with no score. Japan has four hits to Korea's one. This is exactly what the US doesn't want, a low scoring game. Chan Ho Park has struck out three without a walk through four innings.

Update: It continues to be a pitching duel through five innings. Watanabe, the Japanese pitcher has retired 10 in a row.

Update: They are through six, no change. Park went five innings, giving up four hits and striking out three. Korea still has just one hit.

Update: Toshiya Sugiuchi is the new pitcher for Japan in the top of the seventh. Watanabe allowed just one hit through six.

Update: Korea has a man on second with one out in the seventh.

Update: The runner is left stranded. The game is still scoreless in the 7th.

This game can end in a tie. If so, that would help the US, as Japan would be 1 1/2-1 1/2. If the US wins, then they'd be 2-1 and go on to the next round.

Update: Byung-Hyun Kim strikes out two in the 7th, getting the side in order.

Update: Korea has men on first and third with 1 out. The runner was dead at third, but the Japanese third baseman bobbled the ball!

Update: JB Lee drives in two with a double, and he's thrown out trying to stretch it into a triple. But Korea takes a 2-0 lead in the top of the eighth.

Update: That's all they get. Japan is coming to bat in the bottom of the eighth.

Update: Japan fails to score. Korea is just three outs away from the semis.

Update: Korea goes 1-2-3 in the ninth. Japan has three outs to score two runs.

Update: A leadoff home run makes the score 2-1 Korea. It was Tsuyoshi Nishioka.

Update: Nobuhiko Matsunaka singles. Japan has the tying run on base with 1 out.

Update: Korea is making a pitching change. Seung Hwan Oh is coming in.

Update: Arai strikes out for the second out of the inning. One out to go for Korea. Tamura is batting for Japan.

Update: Two strikes on Tamura.

Update: Tamura strikes out swinging! Korea remains undefeated and advances to the semis. Congratulations to the Koreans on another great pitching performance!

The US is still alive, and a win tomorrow sends them to the semis.

Baseball Musings is conducting a pledge drive in March. Click here for details.

It's Ormari Romero vs. Dickey Gonzalez for a trip to San Diego. What we've seen so far in this tournament is anything can happen. Puerto Rico defeated Cuba easily in the first round, and Puerto Rico has the home field advantage. I expect a very good game.

My updates will be sparse tonight as I'll be on the air with the Baseball Musings Radio Show at from 8 PM to 9 PM EST.

Update: Oh those base on balls. The first two Cuban batters walk, and one comes around to score on two ground outs. Cuba leads in the top of the first 1-0.

Update: Cuba just gets one. But Gonzalez throws over 30 pitches, so it's not likely he's going deep in this game.

Update: Bernie Williams blasts a pitch out of right field to tie the game at one. The crowd is going wild, chanting, "Bernie! Bernie!"

Update: The radio show is over, and Cuba is up 4-1 on Puerto Rico in the bottom of the fifth. An error by Cintron led to two unearned runs. Cintron singled to try to start a rally in the fifth, and he's on along with Bernie Williams, one out.

Update: With men on 2nd and 3rd, Beltran grounds a 3-1 pitch to the third baseman for the third out of the inning. Puerto Rico still trails by three.

Update: A Valentin double and a Cintron single put runners at first and third for Puerto Rico in the bottom of the seventh. Perez is pinch hitting, and there's a pitching change. It's still 4-1, Cuba, and it looks like Ledee will bat for Perez.

Update: Puerto Rico scores a run to make the score 4-2. Ledee grounded the ball to Gourriel, who tried to get the force at second. His throw pulled the fielder off the bag, so everyone is safe and Cuba leads 4-2.

Someone just got thrown out (Velez?) and the announcers said he touched the umpire, and the whole Cuban team is on the field arguing.

The announcers on radio say he was pulled off the bag.

Update: Indeed, the Cuban manager Higinio Velez was ejected for arguing.

Update: Bernie Williams grounds into a double play. There's a man on third for Ivan Rodriguez.

Update: Pudge walks to bring Beltran to the plate as the go-ahead run.

Update: An exciting end to the inning. Beltran singled up the middle driving in Cintron. The ball gets away from the centerfielder, and Pudge tries to score, but gets thrown out at the plate. Puerto Rico scores 2, and trail by a run at the end of seven, 4-3.

Update: Cuba gets a 2-out double, but doesn't score in the top of the eighth. Puerto Rico has six outs to get one run.

Update: Jose Cruz singles, and Carlos Delgado is coming on to pinch hit! He hasn't appeared to do an injury.

Update: Delgado takes the first pitch into the space between first and second (the first baseman was holding) for a single. Rios pinch runs, and the Puerto Ricans have men on 1st and 2nd.

Update: Valentin beats out an slow roller to the third place side of the mound. The first baseman bobbled the throw from the pitcher on the scoop. The bases are loaded.

Update: Cintron grounds into a double play. A golden opportunity missed by Puerto Rico. It's 4-3 Cuba at the end of eight.

Update: Cuba does not score in the ninth. Puerto Rico needs a run. The PR bullpen did a great job, pitching 5 2/3 innings of 2 hit ball, 0 walks and 5 strikeouts. They kept the team in the game, and now it's up to the offense.

Update: Gotay makes the first out of the inning, a line shot right back to Odelin, the Cuban pitcher.

Update: Williams fouls out to the second baseman. Puerto Rico is down to its last out, and the batter is Pudge Rodriguez.

Update: Pudge strikes out swinging! Cuba is going to San Diego!

A very exciting game. It came down to Puerto Rico's fielding errors being more costly than Cuba's fielding errors. Again, a poor start by a pitcher buries a team, as Gonzelez's lack of control set up the runs that eventually won the game.

Congratulations to Cuba! They'll face the Dominican Republic on Saturday at 3 PM EST.

Baseball Musings is conducting a pledge drive in March. Click here for details.

I was not aware that there is a theory that Venezuela threw the game with Cuba for political reasons. Conductor debunks that idea at Cuban-American Pundits.

Just because Cuba was the underdog does not mean that they had no chance to win the game. After all, that's why they play them. The 1993 Florida Marlins were terrible. Probably the worst team in baseball, but even so they managed to win 64 games.

I guess this is one of the ugly byproducts of Castro and the 47-year nightmare he has inflicted upon Cubans. We see ghosts. Sometimes they are there. Sometimes they aren't. He's disoriented us to the point that some of us are irrational.

The Venezuelan offense did not play up to snuff in this tournament. But anything can happen in a sample size that small. I have to agree with Conductor's conclusions.

Baseball Musings is conducting a pledge drive in March. Click here for details.

Mexico was eliminated from the semis last night. They can't win a tie breaker with Japan at this point. So even though both teams and the US can finish at 1-2, Mexico finish ahead of Japan.

Ben Kabak worked out the US tie breakers here.

Baseball Musings is conducting a pledge drive in March. Click here for details.

Japan and Mexico face off in a few minutes in Anaheim. The game can be seen later on tape delay. Both teams are 0-1, so the winner gains the advantage in heading for the semis. From a US perspective, they'd rather see Mexico win. With the US playing Mexico Thursday, the Americans would control their own destiny with a Mexican win. A Japanese win, especially one in which they shut down the Mexican offense, would put the into a tough tie-break scenario.

Update: Japan gets a threat going in the second as the first two batters reach. But then Hitoshi Tamura bunts into a double play as Mexico takes out the lead runner and the batter.

Update: I believe South Korea is rooting for Mexico as well. If Mexico wins, then South Korea is in the semis, as only one other team could earn 2 wins in that situation.

Update: I have to disagree with the Japanese manager Oh. His team gets the first two runners on again, and Oh has Ichiro sacrifice. Ichiro is too good a hitter to be used moving runners over this early in the game.

Update: Japan plays for one and gets none in the third.

Update: They are through three in Anaheim. Japan has three hits, Mexico one, and both pitchers are around 50 pitches thrown.

Update: For the third inning in a row, Japan gets the leadoff man on base.

Update: For the third inning in a row, Japan gets the first two hitters on first and second.

Update: For the third inning in a row, Japan tries to sacrifice. They are successful for the second inning in a row. I guess it's the Deja Vu inning.

Update: And now for something completely different. Michihiro Ogasawara singles in two. The sacrifice finally pays off and Japan leads 2-0 in the top of the fourth.

Update: Tomoya Satozaki follows with a two run homer to extend the Japanese lead to 4-0.

Update: Ichiro singles, but Japan does not score again in the fourth.

Update: At the end of six, Japan leads Mexico 5-0. A Japanese win makes the next two days much more interesting.

Update: The Mexicans go to the bottom of the ninth trailing 6-1.

Update: Mexico gets two on, but fails to score in the bottom of the ninth. The win by Japan leaves all four teams in the tournament. There are lots of possibilities, including a Japanese loss and a United States loss putting Mexico in the semis if the tie breaker falls right. Both the US and Mexico are rooting for a Japanese loss tomorrow. A low scoring Japanese win against Korea, however, puts both Asian teams in San Diego. The US allowed 10 runs to Japan and Korea. If the Japanese win and allow less than six runs to the Koreans, then the US can't win the tie-breaker, I believe.

Update, Wednesday 7:10 AM EST: It's pointed out in the comments that Mexican is out of the tournament to do allowing more runs than Japan in US-Mexico-Japan games.

Baseball Musings is conducting a pledge drive in March. Click here for details.

This game will be getting underway in a few minutes and can be seen on ESPN2. With all four teams in Pool 2 tied with 1-1 records, the winner of the this game moves on to the semi finals. Freddy Garcia faces Daniel Cabrera.

Update: Daniel Cabrera looked very strong in the first inning. He struck out two and got a grounder back to the mound. Cabrera accomplished this with just 12 pitches.

Update: Replacing Soriano with Planco continues to pay off. Placido leads off the bottom of the first with a single.

Update: Tejada takes Gracia down the left field line for a double. The table setters do their job. Two up, two men in scoring position.

Update: Pujols grounds out hard to third, and the runners hold. Big Papi is being walked to load the bases for Beltre.

Update: Beltre lines out to shallow left. Palanco was moving toward the plate, so he couldn't score. It's not clear if he could have scored even if he had tagged.

Update: Alou nubs one between the pitcher and the third baseman. Everyone's safe, and the Dominicans lead Venezuela 1-0.

Update: Encarnacion grounds back to the pitcher. The Dominicans take the lead, but they wasted the potential for a lot of runs.

Update: Cabrera stays strong through three for the Dominicans. He's only allowed a single walk while striking out five, using 44 pitches.

Update: Cabrera continues to be unhittable. He now has seven strikeouts through four innings on 60 pitches.

Update: Liriano takes over the the Dominicans in the top of the 5th.

Update: With a man on first in the top of the 6th, Omar Vizquel doubles past Beltre for the first Venezuelan hit of the game. Two on, one out with the DR holding a 1-0 lead.

Update: Abreu ground out to second with the infield back. Rivera scores to tie the game at 1.

Update: That's all the scoring in the top of the sixth.

Update: At the end of six the pitcher's duel continues with the teams tied at 1. The teams have combined for just five hits and four walks, including two doubles.

Update: Castillo singles for the Dominicans with one out in the seventh.

Update: With two out and Castillo at second after a stolen base, Polanco gets an infield single, his third hit of the day. Men at first and third for Tejada.

Update: Tejada walks. The bases are loaded for Albert Pujols.

Update: Castillo scores on a pitch that gets a way from the catcher. A passed ball mades the score 2-1 DR.

Update: Pujols grounds out to third to end the inning. An unearned run, however, puts the Dominicans on top. They need to get six outs to advance to the semi finals.

Update: Venezuela gets nothing in the 8th. Three more outs and the Dominicans are going to San Diego.

Update: Jose Reyes steals two bases to put himself at third with one out, but Alou lines out to the first baseman to freeze Jose at third. It's still 2-1 DR in the bottom of the 8th.

Update: Alfonzo makes the out on a pop to shallow center. It was a good play, but he didn't look good making it. Team Venezuela has three outs to score at least one run.

Update: Abreu strikes out looking for the first out.

Update: Miguel Cabrera flies out to center for the second out. It's up to Victor Martinez.

Update: Victor Martinez keeps hope alive with a two out walk.

Update: Miguel Tejada charges, then bobbles a slow roller. Venezauela is left with runners at 1st and 2nd and two out. Carlos Guillen holds the tournament in his hands.

Update: Guillen walks to load the bases. Now a wild pitch ties the game.

Update: Alfonzo flies out to right to end the game and send the Dominicans to the semi finals.

A great game by the Dominican pitching staff. They allowed just one hit, although they did walk six. Team Venezuela struck out 11 times.

The Venezuelan offense was pretty non-existent during the tournament. With Abreu and Cabrera in the middle of the order, I expected more from this team. But those two hit .150 and .211 respectively.

Congratulations to the Dominican Republic on being the first team to advance to the Semis. Tomorrow, Puerto Rico and Cuba decide the other semi-finalist from Pool 2.

Baseball Musings is conducting a pledge drive in March. Click here for details.

South Korea remained undefeated, walloping the United Stats 7-3 last night. The big blow was a three-run homer by the Dodgers own Hee-Seop Choi. He was on the bench when Willis started, but pinch hit Choi in the fourth when Willis couldn't go deep into the game. I like the attitude of the Korean manager:

"Something happened tonight which nobody could believe," Korea manager In Sik Kim said. "Not just the USA team, which is (some) of the best of all the best Major Leaguers, but our players (beat) these players and it's very difficult to believe what happened.

"But this is baseball and you never know what might happen."

Pitching and defense are the mainstays for the South Koreans in this tournament. They're posting an ERA of 1.40 through five games. Look at their numbers compared to the United States. Both team are striking out a lot of batters; the US has the same number of Ks in five fewer innings. But look at the hits allowed. Twenty eight for Korea vs. thirty seven for the US. That's the defense.

With the outstanding play of Japan and Korea in this tournament, and with the success of their countrymen in the major leagues over the past decade, we're going to see more and more Asians playing in North America. Maybe over the next decade all these countries can agree on a system where there is a free market in players; that an Asian major league and a North American major league drafts and trades from a world pool of players. That would be expansion.

Baseball Musings is conducting a pledge drive in March. Click here for details.

It's Willis vs. Son tonight, but I'm disappointed only for Lee's are starting. With Derrek, we had a chance for six between the two teams, but Mark Teixeira is starting for the US, and Korea is only using four of their Lees tonight.

Update: The US loads the bases on two walks and a single, but Varitek strikes out to end the inning without a score.

Update: Seung-Yeop Lee hits his fifth home run of the tournament, once again giving Korea a lead in the first inning. Korea leads the US 1-0.

Update: Willis is off to another poor start. Korea gets another run after a walk and two single. That's three hits and two walks for the Florida lefty.

Update: Willis gets out of the inning on a fly ball to left. Once again, however, the US finds itself in a hole early.

Update: Willis pitches somewhat better in the second. He walked one but struck out two, and the score remains 2-0 South Korea after two innings.

Update: Ken Griffey Jr. cuts the lead in half with a solo home run to center field in the top of the third inning. It's 2-1 South Korea.

Update: Willis starts the third inning with a walk. He's walked the leadoff man in all three innings.

Update: Willis hits Tae Kyun Kim to put men on 1st and 2nd with none out in the bottom of the third.

Update: After a sacrifice bunt, a ground out drives in the third run of the game for Korea. Willis is just not having a good day. Again.

Update: Willis gets out of the inning, but the US is down 3-1. Willis is up to 60 pitches, and the US will be lucky to get five innings out of the starter at this point.

Update: Byung Doo Jun replaces Son on the mound for Korea. Son threw just 46 pitches, but it doesn't seem to matter who South Korea uses on the mound.

Update: US selectivity is paying off as Chipper Jones and Jason Varitek draw walks to start the fourth.

Update: Teixeira strikes out looking, and that's it for Jun. the Koreans are going to the bullpen early and often. Byung-Hyun Kim takes over on the mound.

Update: Kim strikes out his teammate, Holliday. Still two on for Utley.

Update: Utley singles, but the second baseman keeps it on the infield to prevent a run from scoring. Vernon Wells up with the bases loaded.

Update: Wells fails to put the ball in play as he strikes out. That's three on and three strikeouts in the inning for the US, and they fail to score.

I'm off to bed. Feel free to update the game in the comments.

Baseball Musings is conducting a pledge drive in March. Click here for details.

The second game of the Pool Two double header is due to get underway in a few minutes. Venezuela needs a win here, otherwise they'll be the only team in the draw with two losses. A win means all four teams would be tied at one, and whichever two teams win tomorrow go on to the semi-finals.

Update: A walk to Abreu is the only damage done by the Venezuelan team against Pineiro. The big hitters for Venezuela continue not to produce.

Update: Zambrano throws a ton of pitches in the first to keep Puerto Rico scoreless. He threw 27 to Piniero's 18.

Update: They're through three innings in Puerto Rico, and not much is happening. Both teams have two hits and no runs. Zambrano's thrown 59 pitches, so he may be done. Pineiro is at 47. An outing like this from Pineiro has to make Seattle fans happy. He's yet to allow a run in the tournament.

Update: It's raining in the bottom of the fourth.

Update: Zambrano is through four with 72 pitches thrown. He's given Venezuela an excellent start, striking out five, but even if he comes out for the fifth, he'll likely face just two batters.

Update: Endy Chavez starts the scoring in fifth. With Alfonzo on first, Chavez launches one into the right field bleachers for a 2-0 Venezuelan lead.

Update: A walk to Vizquel chases Pineiro from the game. He ends up throwing 72 pitches, same as Zambrano, but with two more outs.

Update: Pedro Feliciano get Abreu for the final out of the inning.

Update: There was just a very strange double play. With men on first and third, Alex Cora bunted. The catcher Hernandez jumped on the ball and threw to second for the out. Valentin was off third, and Vizquel threw to third to try to nail him. The ump called Valentin out, but the replay showed he was safe. The Puerto Rican threat goes by the boards and Venezuela still leads 2-0.

Update: Puerto Rico gets men on first and third, but I-Rod flys out to shortstop to end the inning. The score remains 2-0 Venezuela at the end of seven.

Update: Venezuela gets the first two batters on in the 8th on walks. Puerto Rico goes to the bullpen again to try to put out the fire. Ivan Maldonado comes in to pitch.

Update: Miguel Cabrera gets hit in the hand. He goes to first to load the bases, but he's in pain.

Update: Victor Martinez puts an exclamation point on the night as he hits a grand slam to extend the Venezuelan lead to 6-0. Looks like we'll have a four-way tie in Pool 2 after this game.

Update: K-Rod retires the side in the bottom of the ninth to give Venezuela the victory and throw Pool 2 into a four way tie. Venezuela plays the Domincian Republic for one semi-final spot tomorrow, while Cuba faces Puerto Rico for the other slot on Wednesday. It's been a very evenly matched bracket so far.

Baseball Musings is conducting a pledge drive in March. Click here for details.

Game 2 of round 2 is about to get underway for the Dominicans and Cubans. It's Odalis Perez vs. Vic Odelin. Soriano is not leading off for the DR today.

Good.

Update: Pujols reaches on a hit by pitch, but that's it for the Dominicans in the top of the first.

Update: Cuba loads the bases with two hits and a walk in the first but fails to score.

Update: Odelin puts the side down in order in the second. The Dominicans are putting in the ball in play, they're just not finding the holes yet.

Update: Juan Encarnacion makes a great catch where the wall meets the foul line in right field. Yesterday he misplayed two balls, so that one will make up for that. Perez uses just six pitches to retire the Cubans in the second inning.

Update: Nice play by the Cuban catcher on a bunt attempt by Taveras. Pestano jumped on the ball that wasn't too far in front of the plate and gunned out the runner at second.

Update: Palonco gets the first hit for the Domincan Republic. They have runners on first and second with one out.

Update: Nice work by Miguel Tejada. He looked bad swinging and missing at a pitch, then adjusted and took the next pitch to the wall in the right-center gap for a two run double. Nice job by Orestes Destrade in the booth. Just before the pitch, he talked about how Tejada was good at adjusting in the middle of an at bat, and to look for him to take a pitch to right.

Update: Yadier Pedroso comes in to pitch for Cuba. He's just 19 years old.

Update: With men on 1st and 3rd with two out, Alou grounds to the third baseman who throws the ball away. Pujols comes all the way around from first to score and the Dominicans lead 4-0 in the top of the third.

Update: That's it for the Dominicans. They've built a nice 4-0 lead. Now they need to make it hold up.

Update: Odalis Perez isn't striking out batters, but the balls in play are being turned into outs. Perez threw just 30 pitches to get through three innings. At this rate, he'll be able to go deep into the game.

Update: Another Cuban error leads to another Dominican run. The DR extends its lead to 5-0 in the top of the fourth.

Update: Cuba ends the inning with a strike 'em out/throw 'em out double play. The Cuban catcher, Pestano, certainly plays defense as well as any catcher in the majors.

Update: Security just took away a "Down with Fidel" sign. The fans were not happy about it.

Update: It turns out the Cuban expats had a backup plan. They spelled out "Down with Fidel" one letter at a time on their shirts. Now security is trying to break up the group.

Update: David Ortiz hits a monster shot, totally out of the stadium. It's 6-0 Dominican Republic.

Update: Perez leaves after 48 pitches and 4 2/3 innings. A very solid outing, giving up three hits and striking out three. Sosa comes on and retires the last batter of the 5th. It's still 6-0 DR.

Update: David Ortiz is coming up with the bases loaded and two out in the 6th inning. Another long fly by Papi and there's a chance that Cuba loses on the mercy rule.

Update: Papi walks to drive in a run. It's 7-0 DR.

Update: A force out ends the inning. The Cubans have four more at bats in a very slow moving game.

Update: Cuba gets on the board with a home run by Yulieski Gourriel, his second of the tournament. He's batting .316 overall. He's another player here that looks like he would be successful in the majors.

Update: Cuba's trying to put together a rally here. They have men on 2nd and 3rd with one out in the bottom of the seventh. There was a blown call on the double as the Cuban runner overslip the bag, but the ump missed it.

Update: Sosa loads the bases with two out. Manny Acta goes to the bullpen. Duaner Sanchez comes on in relief.

Update: Sanchez gets a fly out to end the inning.

Update: The DR has the bases loaded again in the top of the 8th. However, ESPN has it wrong. A grand slam homer does not end the game. The home team gets one chance to come back.

Update: Alou flies out to end the inning. This game continues to drag on.

Update: We're going to the bottom of the ninth. DR still leads 7-1.

Update: Robinson Tejada w