MLB Scoop

A tournament is always better when there are shocking upsets, and by that standard the 2009 World Baseball Classic has already surprised the initial WBC.  The big story so far has been the Dutch defeating the Dominicans not once but twice to advance out of Pool D against all odds.  While nothing quite matches that, each pool had its own surprise result.  In Pool A, the Chinese beat the Taiwanese.  In Pool B, the Australians put the mercy rule on the Mexicans in Mexico City during their first match-up.  In Pool C, the Italians finished ahead of the Canadians.   The minnows of world baseball made some noise.  That’s the exact type of progress the WBC is made for.

If you love baseball, the World Baseball Classic offers something the MLB does not.  At the MLB level, the game is so dominated by guys who draw walks, strike out and blast three run homers that even teams who play more small ball do this only to a certain extent.  When you see the Dutch and the Koreans use pitching, defense and smart hitting to slay giants,  you see a style of play that is not on display in this form in Major League Baseball.

Then there is the exotic talent.  The Cubans and Japanese show you players who you may never see again in their primes in any other format.   21 year old Cuban lefty Aroldis Chapman is a specimen throwing near 100 MPH and dominating hitters, causing former GM Steve Phillips to say that he would throw millions and millions of dollars at him as a GM were Chapman available.  Japanese ace Yu Darvish stands tall among his peers, five years from when he’d normally be posted for MLB teams to bid, showing the arsenal that has him called the best pitcher outside of the Major Leagues.  Third baseman Yulieski Gourriel, one of the few stars of the ‘06 WBC to return and outfielders Frederich Cepeda and Alfredo Despaigne led a virile Cuban attack.   There are also standouts who may never see the major leagues, but have made their mark.  Gift Ngoepe, an electrifyingly speedy shortstop from South Africa, hit two triples in a game.  The Dutch and Italian teams featured European-born players that made a serious impact.

With Round 2 underway, the upsets are not going to match the magnitude of the Netherlands over the Dominican Republic (unless the Dutch slay the USA later today).   Seven of the eight teams in Round 2 were there last time around.  It’s not as impressive when major leaguers from Puerto Rico beat major leaguers from the USA, or Venezuela.  The Cubans have established themselves as a team to beat in any form of international play, and the Koreans are coming off an Olympic gold.  The Japanese won it last time out.  The Mexicans feature fewer major leaguers and with the Dutch are the only true underdogs left in the proceedings.

The best part of the 2009 WBC has no doubt passed and hopefully the next edition, scheduled for 2013 unless the Cubans get there way and it becomes bi-annual.  Hopefully in 2013, we’ll see a qualifying round or an expanded Round 1, where more countries feature.  The best of the WBC comes out when the opportunity for real upsets like the Dutch over the Dominicans, the Aussies over the Mexicans, the Italians over the Canadians and the Chinese over the Taiwanese are in the offing.  Bring on 2013, and perhaps the Israelis, Irish, British, Germans, Spanish, Croatians, Czechs, Colombians, Nicaraguans, Ghanaians,  Greeks, Belgians, Filipinos, French, Russians … the more minnows the merrier.