The action in the World Baseball Classic Pool F is reaching its crucial point. Last night defending champions Dominican Republic took down Venezuela by the score of 3-0. Venezuela is now 0-2 and needs a lot of help to get Carlos Gonzalez to the next round.
Old friend and current Padre Jhoulys Chacin pitched well for Venezuela through four innings but manager Omar Vizquel opted to leave him in for the fifth, despite Chacin supposedly being limited to 60-65 pitches. He ultimately gave up a leadoff home run to Pirates outfielder Gregory Polonco, and that turned out to be all the Dominican team needed to secure the victory. Robinson Cano added an RBI single in the seventh and Nelson Cruz homered in the eighth to complete the scoring.
The Dominican Republic is now 1-1 and awaits a rematch with the United States on Saturday in what could very well end up being an elimination game for both teams.
Tonight, the two teams at the top of Group F face off to see who will take a commanding lead in the group. Marcus Stroman of the Blue Jays, who threw 42⁄3 shutout innings against the Dominican Republic last Saturday, returns to the mound for the United States, while Seth Lugo of the Mets will try to better his stellar performance (51⁄3 innings, 1 H, 0 R, 3 K) last Friday for Puerto Rico.
Pool F schedule for Friday, March 17
United States vs. Puerto Rico
Location: Petco Park, San Diego, California
Time: 8 pm MT
TV: MLB Network
Steaming: MLV.tv
Second Round
WBC Pool F Schedule and Results
| Date | Team | v | Team | Time | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date | Team | v | Team | Time | Venue |
| March 14 | Dominican Republic (1) | vs | Puerto Rico (3) | Petco Park | |
| March 15 | Venezuela (2) | vs | United States (4) | Petco Park | |
| March 16 | Venezuela (0) | vs | Dominican Republic (3) | Petco Park | |
| March 17 | United States (5) | vs | Puerto Rico (6) | Petco Park | |
| March 18 | Puerto Rico (13) | vs | Venezuela (2) | Petco Park | |
| March 18 | United States (6) | vs | Dominican Republic (3) | Petco Park | |
| March 19 | TBD | TBD | N/A | Petco Park |
Pool F Standings
| Rank | Team | Wins | Losses | Runs Scored | Runs Allowed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | Team | Wins | Losses | Runs Scored | Runs Allowed |
| 1 | Puerto Rico | 3 | 0 | 22 | 8 |
| 2 | United States | 2 | 1 | 15 | 11 |
| 3 | Dominican Republic | 1 | 2 | 7 | 9 |
| 4 | Venezuela | 0 | 3 | 4 | 20 |
WBC Pool E Schedule and Results
| Date | Team | v | Team | Time | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date | Team | v | Team | Time | Venue |
| March 11 | Cuba (1) | vs | Israel (4) | Tokyo Dome | |
| March 12 | Japan (8) | vs | Netherlands (6) | Tokyo Dome | |
| March 13 | Netherlands (12) | vs | Israel (2) | Tokyo Dome | |
| March 14 | Cuba (5) | vs | Japan (8) | Tokyo Dome | |
| March 14 | Netherlands (14) | vs | Cuba (1) | Tokyo Dome | |
| March 15 | Israel (3) | vs | Japan (8) | Tokyo Dome |
Pool E Standings
| Rank | Team | Wins | Losses | Runs Scored | Runs Allowed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | Team | Wins | Losses | Runs Scored | Runs Allowed |
| 1 | Japan | 3 | 0 | 24 | 14 |
| 2 | Netherlands | 2 | 1 | 32 | 11 |
| 3 | Israel | 1 | 2 | 9 | 21 |
| 4 | Cuba | 0 | 3 | 7 | 26 |
Championship Round
WBC Championship Schedule
| Date | Team | vs | Team | Time | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date | Team | vs | Team | Time | Venue |
| Semifinals | |||||
| March 20 | Netherlands (3) | vs | Puerto Rico (4) | F/11 | Dodger Stadium |
| March 21 | United States (2) | vs | Japan (1) | F | Dodger Stadium |
| Finals | |||||
| March 22 | United States | vs | Puerto Rico | 7:00 pm MT | Dodger Stadium |