Kudos to Japan

I didn't get a chance to post yesterday, but I wanted to congratulate Japan for winning a second consecutive WBC crown. The championship game was a thrilling one as they beat Korea 5-3 in 10 innings. Team USA can learn a thing or two from both Japan and Korea about how to play and win in these tournament showcases.

Japan Knocks off Team USA

Japan defeated the United States in a semifinal showdown held at Dodger Stadium Sunday night by a final of 9-4. Japan now moves on to face Korea in an All-Asian final on Monday, looking to repeat as WBC champion. USA fought through injuries throughout the tournament and should be commended for their efforts. However, it just doesn’t seem right that Team USA felt like an underdog against Japan. If I’m not mistaken, baseball was created in the United States and not in Japan. The fact of the matter is that the United States and its players just haven’t bought in to the tournament at the same level as the Asian and Latin countries have. And that to me is a shame.

While the collection of players that did commit to the team were of all star caliber, you cannot sit here and say that the US had their absolute best roster that they could possibly field. Also, these single elimination games are in essence a game 7. One team played the game like it was game 7 and the other played like it was just another grapefruit or cactus league game. I know Davey Johnson was managing with his hands tied as he owes it to the clubs that which the players belong to get them into games and to get their work in, but if the US is ever going to do well in this competition they will have to play them to win.

What manager would leave their starter in the game to get brutalized the way Oswalt did in the fourth inning which in effect lost the game for the US. If its game 7 of a playoff series, you just don’t do that. But Johnson must have felt that he owed it to the Houston Astros to let Oswalt “get his work in.” This tournament can only be successful here in the US if and only if the USA is successful on the field. They won’t be successful on the field unless they can get their absolute best players to buy in and the manager of the team is allowed to manage to win the games at all costs.

-Favad Ali

Team USA Advances to Semis with Walk Off Victory

Trailing 5-3 going in to the bottom of the ninth, Team USA was staring in the face of another embarrassing early exit out of the World Baseball Classic. The team had looked flat all night long. They left tons of runners in scoring position, played sloppy defense, and didn’t look like they had any fight left in them. However, we all know baseball can be a funny game. This was just another example of that.

The inning started off with back to back singles from Shane Victorino and Brian Roberts. Derek Jeter followed by lining out sharply to right. That left runners on first and third with one out. Puerto Rico was a double play away from eliminating the USA. Jimmy Rollins was next and he drew a hard fought walk to load up the bases. The next two batters were Kevin Youkilis and David Wright. It was up to a Red Sox and a Met. Here I was, a tried and true Yankee fanatic, pulling for a Red Sox and a Met.

Youkilis had homered earlier in the game and my apologies to the Fack Youk blog as a Yankee fan, but I wouldn’t have minded seeing the Red Sox slugger do it again. However, he walked and a run was forced in. USA was still behind 5-4 and David Wright was next. I am in no way a Met fan. But, I’ve always respected Wright as a player. I had already rooted my heart out for a Red Sox player to succeed why stop there. Wright who finally seemed to be getting his swing going as he already had two hits in the game coming into the at bat looked determined to deliver. And deliver he did. He hit a flare down the right field line that touched down and allowed the tying and winning runs to score. It was a magnificent sight as the team rushed on to the field and celebrated as if they had won the World Series. And in the middle of the celebration was Derek Jeter hugging and high-fiving Kevin Youkilis and David Wright. A Yankee, a Red Sox, and a Met; all celebrating in unison. You won’t see that anywhere but in this tournament.

This competition has had its detractors, no doubt. However, you cannot deny the competition and drama that took place on that field on Tuesday night. Team USA staved off elimination to advance to the final four in Los Angeles in dramatic fashion. This surely was the type of game that could and should spark more interest into the tournament. This was the type of game that Bud Selig and others had in mind when they dreamed up the idea to have a World Baseball Classic.

-Favad Ali

Team USA falls to Venezuela 5-3

Both teams already knew they had advanced to the second round of the WBC coming into yesterday’s game. The game was played for seeding purposes for second round matchups in Miami. As a result, Team USA will start the double elimination second round against a formidable Puerto Rico team and Venezuela will face off with the Cinderella Netherlands squad. My picks to advance out of this quartet are USA and Venezuela, but Puerto Rico should not be taken lightly as they are the only undefeated team left in the tournament.

The tournament has been a gripping one thus far and should only get better. I implore everyone to tune into Team USA’s pursuit of the WBC Championship and cheer on Captain America Derek Jeter, and the rest of the USA squad.

-Favad Ali

Dominican Disaster

Down goes the Dominican! Down goes the Dominican! For the second time in a week the mighty Dominican Republic went down at the hands of the unheralded Dutch team. The Netherlands move on to the second round of the World Baseball Classic in Miami and the Dominicans will disassemble and rejoin their major league clubs. However, the likes of David Ortiz, Miguel Tejada, Jose Reyes, Hanley Ramirez, Pedro Martinez, etc will not soon forget the embarrassment they suffered with these two losses.

It might not mean much to us here in the states. But back home in the Dominican, where this tournament actually does mean the world, the people are surely shocked and outraged by the performance of their team. The Dominicans, rich with MLB all stars at virtually every position were beaten by a Netherlands team comprised of mostly minor leaguers and veterans of the world renowned Dutch League. If there ever was a David and Goliath match up this was surely it. And like the age old story, this one ended with David slaying the mighty Goliath not once but twice.

For those who doubted the worth of this tournament should only have to watch this game and they would be convinced about the importance and quality of this competition. Kudos to the Netherlands on a great victory and shame on the Dominicans who were the victims of one of the greatest upsets in international baseball history, twice.

-Favad Ali

"I'm Dutch isn't that Vierd"

I always thought anything is possible but now I know that statement is a 100% fact. Why? The Netherlands beat the Dominican Republic yesterday 3-2 in the World Baseball Classic. The Dominican team has so much depth that Jose Reyes has to come off the bench. This is a team that features Hanley Ramirez, David Ortiz, Miguel Tejada, Jose Guillen, Robinson Cano, and Willy Tavres. Yet they could only put up two measly runs against Sidney Ponson. That’s right Sidney Ponson!! The loss basically came down to a lack of clutch hitting for the Dominicans. The were able to put up 8 hits and 8 walks against the Netherlands pitching staff but left 21 runners on base. Miguel Tejada alone left 7 guys on. Also throw into the mix Tejada and Miguel Olivo hitting into double plays and Willy Tavares getting thrown out attempting to steal 3rd base and you have all the evidence you need to explain why they only scored 2 runs.

The pitching staff was as advertised for the Dominicans though. All three runs allowed to the Netherlands were unearned coming in the 1st inning from 2 errors and a wild pitch from Edison Volquez. The games staff which consisted of starter Volquez, Rafael Perez, Pedro Martinez, Dmaso Marte, and Carlos Marmol combined to allow only 3 hits and 2 walks while striking out 12. It was an especially impressive performance for Martinez who went 3 scoreless innings allowing only 1 hit and striking out 4.

The Dominican team is now one loss away from being eliminated in the tournament. Their next game is today against the Panama squad. If they can find a little life in their bats, the pitching staff should still lead them deep into the Classic.

-Robb Lennahan

Jeter Has Big Day Against Yanks

The Captain had a strong showing today, against The Yankees. He led team USA to a 6-5 victory over the Bombers, going 2 for 4 with 2 RBI and a run scored. Let's hope this is the first and last time The Captain suits up against the Yankees. Also, Brett Gardner had another solid day at the plate (3 for3). He has taken an early lead over Melky Cabrera for the starting job in center, showing patience and power (2 HR) at the plate so far this spring.

USA Looking to Rebound From 2006 Showing

Jason Stark writes that Team USA is ready for the World Baseball Classic this time around. I am not ready to make the same statement. While manager, Davey Johnson has already proclaimed Team USA as the team to beat in this year's classic, it is far from a forgone conclusion that team will be able to make up for their embarrassing exit from the last classic at the hands of Mexico.

While, USA baseball has learned from their mistake from the last go-round of playing just one exhibition game leading up to the tournament, Team USA is still far behind in form when compared to the Japanese and Cuban teams, who have been in training for months. All in all, I believe it will be up to the players and how seriously they take this tournament, as the deciding factor on how the team fares in this competition.

Some glaring omissions from the roster could prove costly to Team USA's chances. Among those who will not be participating include Ryan Howard, Tim Lincecum, Joe Nathan, Lance Berkman, Chase Utley, Mark Teixeira, CC Sabathia, Joe Mauer, Josh Hamiltion, etc. This is surely a who's who of players. If they push themselves and treat this tournament as they would a playoff series, this roster, even with the omissions, is capable of beating anyone. It will be up to Davey Johnson and the coaching staff to make that happen.

-Favad Ali

2009 World Baseball Classic Upcoming

Will the World Baseball Classic ever be as popular as The Soccer World Cup, Olympic Basketball, or other high profile International sporting events? Only time will tell. But that doesn’t mean we didn’t enjoy the last installment of the classic or that we aren’t looking forward to this year’s tournament. With that, I give you my bold predictions for the 2009 World Baseball Classic which gets under way on March 5th.

-The United States will reach the semifinal only to be knocked out by the Dominican Republic.

-Chinese Taipei, The Netherlands, South Africa, Italy, and Australia will combine to win 1 game (Someone has to win when South Africa and Australia squares off against one another).

-Bernie Williams will go deep for Puerto Rico.

-A big name MLB pitcher will go down with an injury.

-Japan will repeat as tournament champions.

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