As of this weekend, the 2023 World Baseball Classic is fully underway. All four pools and all 20 teams are now in action. The first round features four five-team pools and each team plays every other team in its pool once. The teams with the two best records in each pool advance to the quarterfinals and what is essentially a single-elimination eight-team tournament. Here is the full WBC schedule and here is everything you need to know about this year’s event.
Here are our takeaways from USA’s win over Great Britain and here’s everything you need to know about the rest of Saturday’s and Sunday’s WBC action.
Final scores
- USA 6, Great Britain 2 (box score) (takeaways)
- Puerto Rico 9, Nicaragua 1 (box score)
- Colombia 5, Mexico 4 in 10 innings (box score)
- Venezuela 5, Dominican Republic 1 (box score)
- Korea 7, Czech Republic 3 (box score)
- Cuba 7, Chinese Taipei 2 (box score)
- Japan 7, Australia 1 (box score)
- Italy 7, Netherlands 1 (box score)
- Canada 18, Great Britain 8 in 7 innings (box score)
- Venezuela 9, Puerto Rico 6 (box score)
Advanced to quarterfinals
Relegated
Santander, Peralta help Venezuela stun Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic came into the WBC hailed as maybe the most talented team the event has ever seen, and it didn’t take long for the baseball gods to remind everyone anything can happen in this sport. Venezuela pulled off the upset Saturday. It is their first ever win over the Dominican Republic in the WBC (previously 0-5).
Martín Pérez out-pitched reigning Cy Young winner Sandy Alcantara and five Venezuelan pitchers held the high-powered Dominican lineup to one run on six hits. They struck out 15. Anthony Santander and David Peralta were the heroes on offense. Santander hit a game-tying solo homer and Peralta drove in three runs, including the go-ahead two-run, two-strike, two-out single against Alcantara.
Venezuela’s 7-8-9 hitters did most of the damage: Santander, Eugenio Suárez, and Peralta went a combined 5 for 10 with a double, a triple, a homer, and 5 RBI. Juan Soto and Jeimer Candelario each had two of the Dominican Republic’s six hits. Astros righty Luis Garcia did hero’s work out of the bullpen for Venezuela. He struck out seven in three scoreless and hitless innings.
Venezuela powers up again
In terms of talent level compared to results throughout the history of the WBC, which goes back to 2006, Venezuela is surely the…
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