Ugh!
The Mets began their March on PIX (formerly CW) just as they�d begun 2008�s March. Only this time, instead of facing Dodger Blue (who�d relocated to the Cactus League the year prior, anyway), the Mets were facing Houston. Ryan Schneider made a 3rd inning grand slam answer to Miguel Tejada�s 1st inning home run, and Delgado followed with a 3-run home run. The Pets went on a rampage and clobbered Houston.
Why did the Mets put Maine 2nd in the Starting Lineup? I thought National League Pitchers went last in the Starting Lineups!
However, Johan wouldn�t have an MRI on his elbow after all; his bullpen session must have had a strong impact on his elbow because he felt better after the session. And besides, the blizzard that struck NYC prompted the Mets to cancel Johan�s scheduled MRI. Still, whether or not Johan would pitch for the Pets� Inaugural Game in Citi Field, I don�t have any idea. We�ll just have to wait and see.
Beckett started the NESN/MLB Network-televised Boston vs. Minnesota, but he had no decision even though Boston won. However, the Yankees led off vs. Cincinnati only to trip vs. her by one run. Atlanta had the same problem: she had lots of trouble bashing Philly.
Double ugh! Now that�s what I�d call �March Madness!� Oakland didn�t win, either, vs. Arizona, so triple ugh! It seems like Matt Holliday isn�t helping you, Oakland! St. Louis survived Florida�s attempt to swamp him, so he�ll be left out of my wrath.
In other news, Jim Bowden stepped down as the Nationals� GM. Meanwhile, Shane Victorino was talking trash on the season premiere of Baseball Tonight on ESPN. Ditto for Yankees Joba Chamberlain and C.C. Sabathia!
Handsome JOHAN SANTANA Recovering from Elbow Stiffness
3.2: A Pain in the Astro
I�m not saying this because the Yanks lost to Houston, which they didn�t, but because they tied with him due to a suspension late in their game. That sounds fair enough, but St. Louis was garbage vs. Tampa Bay. Boston? He slipped up vs. Baltimore! (Yeah, and J.D. Drew received an injection that would prevent him from returning to Boston�s lineup for the next few days. Poor guy!)
Oakland got Orlando Cabrera from the White Sox � not via trade exactly, but the White Sox would get her 2nd round pick.
In other news, Ryan Howard made a 2-run home run in Philly vs. Toronto.
3.3: Star-Studded Jeter Faces His Own Team in Team USA!
I saw the Team USA vs. Yankees Exhibition Game on YES/MLB Network. Jeter, Adam Dunn, and Kevin Youkilis helped Team USA crush the Yanks and Philip Hughes. Dunn, Joel Hanrahan, and LaTroy Hawkins joined Team USA�s configuration at the last minute. A Nick Swisher 2-run double in the 6th inning wasn�t of much help, but the cutest thing was that he and Jeter were together on 1B twice in this game!
Powerhouse SHANE VICTORINO Making Appearance in 6th Inning
St. Louis was simply stunning vs. the Mets: the whole Cardinals team just hosted a big, explosive rout, and Kyle Lohse (yeah, that sexy moreno) was brilliant, too. Someone once said that there was nobody hotter in the Cardinals� Starting Rotation than Mr. Lohse, and I have to agree, but then Stan Musial is the best in the franchise�s history.
Boston was hosting Cincinnati, but he didn�t win. Atlanta, who signed 10 of her players to 1-year deals, hosted Team Panama, but did she win? Yes.
Oakland? She got Nomar Garciaparra for the season, but tripped vs. the Cubs!
In other news, Barry Bonds began the process of returning to the Big Leagues now that Federal District Judge Susan Illston put Bonds� trial on hold.
3.4: What? No Venom?
No telecasts were presented for most games, but they were on MLB.com Radio.
The Yanks lost to the Braves, and the Mets got KO�d by Washington. Oakland slaughtered one side of the White Sox� split squad (the other side faced the also �intrasquaded� Cubs in Las Vegas!); Team USA blew it vs. Toronto; Team Venezuela tied with Houston, and Team Dominican Republic blundered big time. I don�t even need to go into the other World Baseball Classic teams.
In other news, Manny Ram�rez finally accepted Dodger Blue�s offer to come back, but he would remain in Dodger Blue uniform for 2 more years and $45 million. Jorge Cantu? He made a grand slam as Team Mexico rocked Arizona!
Powerhouse MANNY RAMIREZ Being Resigned
A World Tour Three More Years in the Making
3.5: World Serious
The World Baseball Classic commenced in Tokyo, where China and Japan faced off. Tokyo started the 2006 WBC, too. ESPN2 televised this game, which aired at 4:30am ET on the East Coast of the USA. Yu Darvish proved the powerhouse, because his work and Ichiro Suzuki�s contributions lifted Team Japan to an 18-2 victory over Team China. Japan was my choice to beat China, anyway.
As for the other WBC teams, Team USA bopped Philly one (with Chipper and Adam Dunn making 3-run homers); Team Canada shut out the (ahem) ailing Yankees; and Boston lost, too, to Team Puerto Rico and Pudge. St. Louis got lucky over Team Dominican Republic. A-Rod would miss the entire WBC because of the cyst in his hip, but the Yankees would stop at nothing to ensure A-Rod would play as much of the season as possible. Fernando Tatis would take A-Rod�s place on Team D.R.
Oakland split her squad, and one side beat her brother next door, San Francisco, senseless. The other side also gave it good to Team Republic of South Africa. Atlanta? She blew up late in her exhibition game in Lake Buena Vista vs. Team Venezuela and won! The Mets KO�d Team Italy at a point where it seemed they were bound to lose to her.
The Late Show with David Letterman televised an interesting Top Ten list (and Letterman has been uproarious when it comes to Top Tens), and it went like this:
Top Ten Reasons to Watch the World Baseball Classic (Sourced from CBS.com)
10. JIMMY ROLLINS: �Due to the economic crisis, we all have to share the same pair of pants.� (They must stink bad!)
9. �Japan has one of them crazy robot shortstops.� (Well, don�t they?)
8. �Because it�s an international event, our right fielder is Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.� (If she played baseball, then President Barack Obama is the Centerfielder!)
7. CHIPPER JONES: �The winning team plays Neptune in the Galactic Baseball Classic.� (Whoever heard of the �Galactic Baseball Classic?�)
6. �It�s fascinating seeing how players from other countries scratch themselves.� (LOL!)
5. �You�ll be part of a cherished baseball tradition dating all the way back to 2006.� (Yeah, right. I thought baseball had always been �America�s National Pastime!�)
4. �Because of the metric system, the games will be 6.83 innings.� (I don�t think so.)
3. �Before each game, you get to sit through 30 different national anthems.� (Not necessarily, because that would hold up the game ten years.)
2. �Australia�s secret weapon: a fastball-throwin� kangaroo.� (You got me rolling on the floor cracking up there!)
1. DEREK JETER: �What else are you going to watch, hockey?� (Hockey?!? Hell no, Mr. Jeter! I don�t even care about March Madness!)
Powerhouse YU DARVISH Getting Lucky
In other news, John McDonald of Cincinnati made a walk-off grand slam for Cincy.
3.6: A Korean War
Chinese Taipei blew it big time vs. Korea in Game 2 of Pool A of the WBC in Tokyo. Between Japan and Korea the following day in Tokyo, �Dice-K� and Japan let Korea have it, clinching his 2nd round berth. Ichiro, Johjima, and Fukudome were among �Dice-K�s� supporters, giving Dice the win.
St. Louis, who signed �09 WBC player Dennys Reyes out of free agency and into his club for two years, lost to the Mets. Boston won, too (Beckett was pitching!), and so did Oakland, who officially signed Nomar and Orlando Cabrera. The Yanks and Braves? Well, listen to this: they both won. Atlanta shut out Houston (yes, he had a problem, not she), and the Yankees earned their first win in over a week, mauling Detroit.
Mark Sweeney? He retired after 14 seasons.
In other news, Arizona rocked Mexico. Huston Street? While the Rockies did beat the Padres, Huston gave up one too many runs � further proof that he was still no Mariano Rivera. But since he didn�t let San Diego kick his butt, he�ll be forgiven.
Ugly DAISUKE MATSUZAKA Getting Lucky
3.7: Los Mejores vs. Le Migliore
A few hours after Japan performed an almost 2002 World Cup-type exorcism on Korea, Chinese Taipei got eliminated by China. You go, China!
In San Juan, Teams Netherlands, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, and Panama faced off in Pool D, which began on ESPN2 hours after the last Pool A game. Netherlands vs. D.R. began at 11:00am ET in Hiram Bithorn Stadium (name of San Juan venue), but Edinson V�lquez threw a pitcheo loco (wild pitch) on Sharnol Adriana to bring Eugene Kingsdale home, and give Holland a 1-0 lead in the 1st inning. Adriana also produced a 2-run double to further boost his native Netherlands� score. Miguel Tejada hit a fantastic solo home run in the 4th inning, but it wasn�t enough to stop Holland from nailing the more heavily favored Dominican Republic to the ground. LOL�Team Netherlands ran out to mob each other like they won the WBC title already!
Panama vs. Puerto Rico kicked off at 5:00pm at the same venue, and P.R. shut Panama out, putting her to fight with D.R. for a shot at moving on, and himself vs. the Netherlands. The major contributor was Iv�n Rodr�guez. He made two bambinazos, and Carlos Delgado also contributed with a solo home run before Pudge put on his show. Ditto for the sexy Geovany Soto, and whee-wheew to him!
Powerhouse BERNIE WILLIAMS Making Appearance in 6th Inning
Teams USA, Canada, Venezuela, and Italy began their WBC exhibitions in Pool C in Toronto, Ontario. Their pool didn�t begin until 2:00pm, when Teams USA and Canada kicked it off. In the 1st inning, Jake Peavy let Canada lead off, but Team USA took the lead in the 4th inning with Youkilis and especially McCann�s work. Adam Dunn also made a homer, and Team USA won this game.
Italy vs. Venezuela was televised on MLB Network at 8:00pm ET. The two divas held each other off strongly for the first 5 innings with some fantastic Web Gems from their bambini and their servidores. Venezuela, who I chose to win, did win: Carlos Guill�n started it off for her with a sexy solo home run in the 5th. Bobby Abreu followed suit with an amazing 3-run single off of Leonard DiNardo, and later�a bambinazo of his own. Venezuela won the game 7-0. Her cerrador (Closing Pitcher) was Orber Moreno, who I never even heard of.
As for the regular MLB games, I�ll make the summaries short and sweet. Atlanta kicked the Yankees� butts again just as she did three days before, but at least Wang didn�t get the loss. Boston surrendered to Tampa Bay, and so did the Pets to Washington. Oakland gave San Diego a serious beating. What was with that baby girl crying in San Diego�s Spring Training house?
St. Louis? He got lucky. That�s all I have to say.
In other news, Ryan Howard made a 3-run home run.
Mind you, I think the 2006 WBC rosters were much sultrier and sexier�especially Teams USA and Venezuela.
3.8: The Stars of Their Show
Teams Australia, Republic of South Africa, Mexico, and Cuba went at it in Mexico City, but before I go into them, let me say that Korea vs. China in Tokyo ended in enormous success for Korea, sowaru desu ne (whatever that means). She shut China out in 7 innings. This game, and the Japan/Korea match the night before, ended in 7 innings because the World Baseball Classic�s �Mercy Rule� permits termination of a game if either team leads the other team by 10 runs in the 7th inning, or 15 in the 5th inning.
Now then�the Republic of South Africa took on Cuba in Mexico at 2:00pm ET, and Cuba rocked South Africa with some bambinazos brilliantes (brilliant home runs) from some of her players. Frederich Cepeda Cruz merece lo m�s cr�dito: el peg� dos bambinazos. (Frederich Cepeda Cruz deserves the most credit: he hit two home runs.)
Teams Australia and Mexico faced off at 9:00pm ET. Luke Hughes of Minnesota produced a 2-run home run off of Oliver Perez in the 1st inning. Australia ended up winning the game, taking back her stolen lead from Mexico�s more well-known star players. Chris Snelling made two homers for Australia.
Did Team USA smash Team Venezuela to smithereens? Yes. It all started in the 3rd inning when Melvin Mora made an RBI by bringing my personal favorite, Marco Scutaro, home. Mark DeRosa struck back; Gregor Blanco shocked Roy Oswalt with a lead-stealing RBI single; DeRosa walked in the 6th on bases loaded; and Christopher Iannetta broke the tie with a 2-run triple. Dustin Pedroia�s 2-run double only enhanced the excitement for the American fans out there in Toronto. Kevin Youkilis was the star of the show: he made two home runs and boosted Team USA�s score in the 6th inning to 10-3. The Final Score: 15-5 Team USA.
Did the Dominican Republic take her wrath for losing to the Netherlands out on Team Panama? Yes. In fact, she threw Panama out of further WBC contention. I�m tellin� ya: you can�t mess with the power of David �Big Papi� Ortiz.
The Oakland Athletics and the New York Mets split their squads: one side of the Mets� Intrasquad lost to Washington, but the other side blew the University of Michigan Wolverines away. One of Oakland�s Split Squads lost to San Francisco, who also split his squad, but the other side beat up Cleveland.
Yanks, Red Sox, and Braves�they won, too, but St. Louis didn�t. On the same day, Boston signed Jon Lester for five more years of service. A-Rod underwent hip surgery, and since the injury wasn�t as serious as many people expected, A-Rod would return to the Yankees within 2 months.
In other news, Gene Golson made a grand slam for Texas. Todd Helton? He made a 2-run home run!
3.9: 1-Run Wonders
After Korea and Japan concluded their Tokyo exhibitions, both teams headed off to San Diego for Round 2 of this World Baseball Classic despite Korea�s 1-0 Pool A Championship victory. Pool D, Game 4 (Netherlands vs. Puerto Rico), was on MLB Network, but Italy vs. Canada didn�t even get telecast until 1:00am the following day. I chose P.R. to beat Holland and Canada to throw Italy out of the competition. P.R. defeated the Netherlands, but Italy threw Canada out of further WBC contention.
Did Mexico defeat South Africa? Yes.
In MLB Land, no Braves or Cardinals in the schedule, but Boston pummeled Pittsburgh 15-14, Toronto bopped the Yanks 6-2, Oakland slaughtered Anaheim 5-4, and the Pets blew Baltimore away 9-8. (Nick Evans made a grand slam.)
So you see, most of these results that I mentioned were �one-run wonders.� Now, where�s that sexy reow Derek Jeter?
3.10: Team Venezuela!
She did to Italy just as she did the first time: only this time, she threw Italy out of the World Baseball Classic with her deadly dynamite and her so-called �Vinotinto� (Burgundy Wine). Her Closing Pitcher: Victor Moreno. (�K-Rod� made an impressive appearance in the 8th inning.)
Go back to where you came from, you guinea brats!
Netherlands vs. Dominican Republic�oh my God what a game that was! Both teams had no score until the 8th inning. Reyes made the unforgivable mistake of not getting the ball when Eugene Kingsdale jumped on base. In the 11th inning, Kingsdale made a shocking base hit; Carlos Marmol�s error drove Kingsdale to 3B; Yurendell de Caster�s walk-off RBI single gave the Netherlands, not the heavily favored Dominical Republic, the right to face Puerto Rico in the following night�s Pool D Championship Game.
That�s it. Go back to New York, Mr. Reyes!
Cuba vs. Australia went in progress at 10:33pm from the Bottom 2nd. Australia rocked the house.
In MLB Land, the Mets tied with Washington; the Yanks beat Cincinnati; Boston, who signed 19 of his players to 1-year deals, fell to Baltimore; Atlanta gave Houston serious trouble; and St. Louis, with sexy moreno Lohse, got the win, too. Oakland lost to Colorado, who gave his old friend (Matt Holliday) reasons to be afraid of his old team. And he didn�t need Huston Street to save the game, either.
In other news, and speaking of grand slams, Pat Burrell hit one for ALCS Champion Diva Tampa Bay.
Powerhouse YURENDELL DE CASTER Striking It Big
3.11: Not as I Expected, but They�re All Advancing, Anyway.
Yo no v� todo de los partidos de Holanda a Puerto Rico, ni de la �Vintotinto� de Venezuela a los Estados Unidos, ni de Australia a M�xico, pero Puerto Rico gan� su partido sobre Holanda. Venezuela molest� los Estados Unidos para ganar su Partido de Campeonato del Grupo C.
I didn�t see all of Netherlands vs. Puerto Rico, Venezuela�s �Vinotinto� vs. the USA, and Australia vs. Mexico, but Puerto Rico won his Championship Game over Holland, placing her as the Pool D runner-up. Venezuela molested the USA to win her Pool C Championship Game. Her title was successfully sealed by none other than my Angel in Disguise, Francisco Rodr�guez.
Mexico defeated Australia.
Handsome MARCO SCUTARO Producing RBI
Japan beat up San Francisco in their (Arizona-based) exhibition, and Korea lost to San Diego.
No Mets, BoSox, or A�s in the schedule, but the Yanks got mauled by Detroit, and the Braves and Cardinals won.
3.12: Latinos Conclude Their Pool B; Johan Returns to Work
Mexico vs. Cuba in Pool B finale of Round 1�who won? Cuba.
Japan defeated the Cubs in Arizona.
The Yankees took the day off, but Johan got rocked by the Marlins when the Mets faced them.
3.13: Unlucky 13th for Yanks and A�s
The Yankees, who signed talent-less Philip Hughes and 18 other players to 1-year deals, suffered at the mercy of their rival BoSox, but then so did Oakland to Cleveland. Mets, Braves, Cardinals (who split their squad wisely) � they all won.
No WBC action, but Pudge got the MVP honors for Pool D. Meanwhile, Bernie Williams denied hitting a woman in P.R. Shame on you, Bernie!!
In other news, Syracuse rocked UConn in a Big East Tournament game that lasted six overtimes.
3.14: Latino Power!
La �Vinotinto� y �la Bonita Bandera� eran magn�ficos. (The Burgundy and the Pretty Flag were magnificent.)
Team Netherlands took on Team Venezuela, and Team USA met Team Puerto Rico in Dolphin Stadium in Miami. Netherlands vs. Venezuela aired on MLB Network at 1:00pm, Pool 2. In it, Team Venezuela took a 1-0 lead in the 1st inning, but Holland tied up starting with a bad throw that threw Yurendell de Caster on 1B. Miguel Cabrera did make a solo home run to give the lead back to Venezuela. Jo-Lo (Jos� L�pez) made a solo home run as well in the 8th. Venezuela won the game when her most stunning famous closer, Francisco Rodr�guez, got the save. Love that stellar shot of him screaming and kissing his victories up to heaven after closing the game!
Handsome MARCO SCUTARO Taking 2B Position in 9th Inning
Teams USA and Puerto Rico�s game was at 8:00pm ET, and with Dustin Pedroia out of the USA�s lineup and replaced by Brian Roberts, Team USA suffered big time vs. Puerto Rico. The latter ended the game in 7 innings by scoring 11 runs, and winning 11-1. One Yahoo columnist couldn�t have said it any better: Team USA treated the WBC like it was just some game of Super Mario Bros. instead of the World Baseball Classic itself.
However, I have no regrets being happy that Team USA lost to Pudge and Company, even though I am an American, but born to Puerto Rican parents. The Team USA has names that are all too friggen famous, but good as they are, they just didn�t cut it this time�at least not as a WBC team. And Chipper Jones�what the freak�s happening to that man? He went nothing for however many at bats he had in this WBC. I don�t blame Mark DeRosa for slamming his bat to the ground, but like I said, I chose P.R. to win this game.
In MLB Land, the Yankees split their squad wisely for a change. The side facing Pittsburgh stole his lead and won (with Jesus Montero hitting a grand slam), and the other side told Houston: �You have a problem, buddy.� The Mets lost their 2-0 lead to Washington, and Atlanta lost to St. Louis. So did Boston to Baltimore. Oakland fought with San Francisco (who split his squad). Did she win? Yes. I caught her game on Comcast SportsNet California to check out some of her newest reows�especially Matt Holliday. Her boys put on a show in the 5th inning with all the scoring they did.
In other news, and speaking of grand slams, (???) Anderson made a walk-off grand slam for the White Sox, who beat Texas. Carlos Quentin made a single in the 8th inning.
3.15: Dice, Dice, Baby
�Dice-K� led Team Japan�s pack well in Pool 1 of the World Baseball Classic (Round 2) in San Diego�s Petco Park, where �Samurai Japan� nailed Team Cuba to the ground in their exhibition just as he did to her in the 2006 WBC finale. Ichiro Suzuki went nothing for 5, but Johjima, Fukudome, and others in the defending WBC champs� lineup did well.
Did Team USA learn their lesson and throw Team Netherlands out of the competition in their Dolphin Stadium feud in Pool 2? Yes. Brian Roberts made his World Baseball Classic debut and was a home run away from hitting for the cycle, but Chipper Jones was scratched from the lineup again after experiencing more strains in his oblique muscle. Jimmy Rollins and Adam Dunn made home runs, but in the 8th inning, after Bryan Engelhardt made a solo home run, Matthew Lindstrom nearly hit Vince Rooi with a pitch. Engelhardt and the rest of Team Netherlands squabbled with the umpires. LOL�no wonder the Dutch Boys ultimately got thrown out! To think that when you won Round 1 Game 1 over the �A-Rod-and-Pujols-less� Team Dominican Republic, you guys were jumping up and down like idiots as if you won the WBC title already! Gimme a break!
Mexico vs. Korea happened at 11:00pm ET (8:00pm PT), but I didn�t see the whole game. I can tell you this: Korea stole Mexico�s lead and won.
Boston, who finalized his deal with Jon Lester for 5 years, lost to Baltimore. The Yankees and Pets got the win, and so did Atlanta just when she was about to lose to Houston. St. Louis got rocked by the defending World Series Champion diva Philly. It all started when Jayson Werth made a solo home run to lead off. Lohse would have taken the loss if it weren�t for St. Louis� attempt to catch Philly by tying up in the 8th inning, but he had no decision, because Philly took the honors in the 9th inning.
Oakland? She put her rival Angels to sleep!
3.16: Snell Shocked!
With Felix Hern�ndez pitching for Venezuela�s heavily favored �Vinotinto,� and Ian Davila Snell pitching for the so-called �Perfect P.R.,� one might think that choosing the winner would be impossible. I chose Snell to help P.R. continue his flawless streak by bashing Venezuela. He didn�t.
Starting in the 3rd inning, Venezuela gave poor Snell some hell. Carlos Guill�n made an RBI single. Alex Rios was tagged out at 3rd when Pudge made a base hit early in the game, which brought Team Venezuela�s manager, Luis Sojo, out to argue the tag. Sojo came out again in the 7th when Ram�n Hern�ndez made a potential home run that seemed more like a triple. The umpires used the Video Replay for potential homers, and after ten minutes of discussion, the umps determined that the hit Ram�n produced was a home run, which gave Venezuela the 2-0 lead she needed. Felix himself was impressive, making 7 strikeouts and getting the win.
The immortal Francisco Rodr�guez claimed this victory, and when he got the save, he did his signature praise, and his Vinotinto-stained teammates ran out to mob him and each other like there was no tomorrow. Puerto Rico now had to do or die with Team USA the following night. See ya in the Semifinals, Venezuela! Oh my God I think I love �K-Rod� and especially Marco Scutaro so much more than ever!
Watching Rick Sutcliffe and David O�Brien eat Venezuelan food was just cute, but what a stupid idea of ESPN to list Scutaro�s name as his 2008 MLB club. That�s �Toronto Blue Jays,� you idiots!! (Marco himself made two singles.)
Cuba vs. Mexico�who took honors in this one? Cuba. Frederich Cepeda Cruz contributed to Cuba�s success, throwing Mexico out of the competition.
Veteran TONY GWYNN Talking Trash
No Mets or Braves in the schedule, but Yanks, BoSox, and A�s�they all won, while St. Louis lost to Detroit by one run just as he did to Philly the day before.
In other news, Todd Helton made a 2-run home run as the Rocky Mountain Rockies scared Arizona away.
3.17: Forget the Luck of the Leprechaun�David and Shane Were �Dancing with the Stars!�
St. Patrick�s Day�but unfortunately somebody�s charms weren�t so lucky.
Teams USA and Puerto Rico faced off for the last time in this WBC competition, and like I said, this was a �do-or-die� match that would determine which of the two would move on to the Semifinals. The one thing standing between both teams and either�s survival beyond this game was a duo of hot pitchers: Ted Lilly and Jonathan Sanchez.
Team P.R. scored first with Alex R�os� home run, but Shane Victorino helped the USA steal P.R.�s lead only to see Delgado make the game-tying home run and later P.R. himself steal the lead. In the Bottom 9th, Delgado held Shane and let him slither down to the ground. I was like, �What the hell? Those guys looked like they wanted to do the dirty with each other.�
Anyway, J.C. Romero let J-Roll (Jimmy Rollins) and B-Rob (Brian Roberts) help Team USA load up the bases in the 9th inning with 1 out. When Fernando Cabrera took the mound for Team P.R., he let Youkilis score one run on a bases loaded walk to narrow Team USA�s deficit down one run. Did P.R. survive? No. David Wright made an earth-shaking, game-winning 2-RBI single that got the rest of Team USA chasing and mobbing him like crazy, and sent Team P.R. crying all the way back home. So you know David had more than just stars to dance with.
Korea beat Darvish and Team Japan to a pulp, which meant that the defending WBC champ had to fight for survival past the following night�s elimination game vs. Cuba, the team he defeated in 2006 to win the title.
Beckett helped green-stained Boston bash Minnesota, and Atlanta KO�d the Mets with her current star pitcher, Jair Jurrjens. Oakland won, too, and so did the Yankees. St. Louis took the day off.
3.18: Advancing to the Semifinals
David Wright, who made the winning hit the night prior, didn�t even catch the ball when Jo-Lo made a 1B in the 1st inning of the Pool 2 Championship Game between Teams USA and Venezuela. The latter rocked the 2nd inning, scoring 6 runs on bad throws by the likes of Adam Dunn. Mark DeRosa�s 5th inning 2-run home run cut down Team USA�s deficit to 2 runs, but nothing worked. Maximiliano Ram�rez�s 3-run home run only boosted Venezuela�s score even higher. �K-Rod� got the save again. However, Venezuela�s Pool 2 Championship victory and the USA�s runner-up status were significant because once upon a time, both teams didn�t even survive Round 2 of the �06 World Baseball Classic. Now, both teams were Semifinal bound.
As for Japan vs. Cuba, I chose Cuba to blow away the defending World Baseball Classic champion. Did she? No. Ichiro Suzuki and Norichika Aoki contributed to help Team Japan eliminate Cuba just as had happened between them three years prior.
The Braves scared the Mets away again, and the Yankees told Houston again that he had a problem. However, Hideki Matsui would DH until June because he had knee surgery, the poor guy. St. Louis did win vs. Baltimore, but had to cancel his other �split-squad� meeting due to rain. Boston didn�t play.
3.19: And the Winner of Pool 1 is Japan!
He knocked Korea into 2nd place in their Pool 1 Championship Game on ESPN, but both teams were headed for the WBC Semifinals, anyway.
As for the MLB games, Oakland got the shaft vs. her rival Texas. The Yankees, Red Sox, Mets, Braves, and Cardinals got the win.
3.20: Oakland Loses Again, but Then Braves Lose, Too
End of discussion.
3.21: Did the �Vinotinto� Bind and Gag Korea?
As Venezuela and Korea started the first of two WBC Semifinal Games in Dodger Stadium, I rooted for Venezuela to send Korea crying all the way home like those pigs in �This Little Piggy.� Did it happen? Oh, no. Abreu and Scutaro committed lousy errors in the 1st inning (2 out of 5 in all from Venezuela herself), and Korea scored five leadoff runs off of Carlos Silva, three of which came from Cleveland Indians player Shin-Soo Choo�s 3-run home run. Suk Min Yoon also proved to be too much for la �Vinotinto.� He only permitted Scooter and Endy to make 1B�s in the Bottom 3rd, and two players to drive in RBI�s. Team Korea won with all the scoring she did (including a 2-run home run made by WBC RBI record-setting Tae Kyun Kim). She, not Venezuela, would advance to the WBC Championship Game awaiting either Team Japan or Team USA.
Some of Team Korea�s players won the 2008 Olympic Gold, so you know she had some guns and little-known blood to work with and to scare the arrogantly proud, self-righteous, overrated, ugly-as-sin Team Venezuela away. Actually, Mr. Scutaro was the only cute guy on Team Venezuela, but his performance made me believe he didn�t deserve to be in this competition to begin with. He was good once, back during his Oakland Athletics days, but he was no Chase Utley or Hanley Ram�rez...at least not in this WBC. But at least he was representing his native Venezuela, and at least Venezuela bent over and took the elimination like a good little girl. Her boys didn�t act like babies, either. Only time will tell whether Venezuela will make it even further than this, because this was the best she did in the WBC so far.
As for the MLB stuff, Oakland lost both sides of her �Split Squad.� The Yankees spent the whole week without a loss (they scared Detroit away); the Pets lost to the Braves; the BoSox survived a rain delay to p-whip Florida, and St. Louis held on vs. Washington, who nearly beat him.
3.22: �Oh, Say, Can�t You See It�s a Big Mess Out There��
Oh, say, can�t you see it�s a big mess out there
For our Team USA in the World Baseball Classic?
David Wright didn�t help. Chipper Jones he was out.
And Longoria was trash �cause he struck out swinging.
But �Dice-K� he was good and Japan had the mood.
Yu Darvish was awesome, and I understood.
Oh, say, what if Team USA could have made
Better progress than this in the Home of the Brave?
It was the second to last World Baseball Classic game � the second and last Semifinal � and it came down to the wire with Teams Japan and USA. With Chipper Jones, Youkilis et al out of Team USA�s lineup, the USA had to make do with her remaining roster and a World Baseball Classic debutante: Evan Longoria. Roy Oswalt put himself and Team USA at stake against �Dice-K� and the apparently more powerful Team Japan, who stood between Team USA and a trip to the WBC Final.
Here�s the gist of the game: B-Rob (Brian Roberts) made a leadoff solo home run off of �Dice-K� to start off the game. However, Team Japan started doing samurai-style moves. Kenji Johjima�s 2nd inning flyout produced an RBI to tie up the game, 1-1. David Wright did boost Team USA�s score with his RBI double. Fukudome re-tied up the score with his single in the Bottom 4th and no outs. Johjima flew out again and produced the lead-stealing RBI. Akinori Iwamura and Munenori Kawasaki (I never heard of the latter) followed in turn for RBI singles. Hiroyuki Nakajima added to the damage with two RBI doubles, and Munenori-chan himself later produced another RBI, scored on a 2nd error by David Wright. Even Ichiro Suzuki contributed after playing like crap this whole time: he made an RBI single in the 8th inning.
Evan Longoria, who replaced Chipper Jones on Team USA�s WBC roster, made his WBC debut and only such appearance in the 8th inning after Mark DeRosa made a 2-RBI triple to cut down Team Japan�s lead to two runs, but he struck out swinging. Then, Japan called upon the 22-year-old powerhouse Yu Darvish in the 9th inning to do a �Francisco Rodr�guez-like� exorcism on Team USA. Despite letting Jimmy Rollins 1B, Darvish ended Team USA�s World Baseball Classic Championship hopes by grounding out Jeter, striking out David Wright on a Fielder�s Choice, and �K-Zoning� Adam Dunn to hand Team Japan the ticket to the WBC Final. He gave American fans the indication that the USA�s roster just wasn�t solid enough to withstand �Dice-K�s� power. And it wasn�t.
Yankee24 on the New York Yankees Message Board posted the following:
�I�m American, and I�m Ashamed of Team USA!�
YANKEE24: This team was a joke. Yes, they did win more games than in �06 but I still see the same shit on the field and in the stands.
The manager was managing with one hand tied behind his back the whole time. Everyone needed their �work� in and everyone needed their at bats. Play to win damn it! Don�t play manage to please MLB, owners, GMs, fans.
They warm up Yu Darvish, tomorrow�s starter, and we have no name Hanrahan on the mound in the 8th????? I don�t get it; I just don�t.
The fans�what fans? It is inconceivable to me to have a lineup of All-Stars and see 3/4 empty stadiums in Miami and L.A. We should never have another WBC final on American Soil. Give it to the Asians...they care about baseball.
I�m just ashamed of USA BASEBALL!
YANXONTOP8: Agree 100%. American teams should be ashamed of themselves at what they sent out there and all the restrictions they placed on the ones that did participate. No national pride whatsoever.
JJJAAAA: Actually they did good but Asian teams are too good. Asia Baseball Classic (means Japan Korea series).
BASEBALI: This is a complete embarrassment not just for USA but for MLB. How about the Venezuelans who were previously undefeated losing 2-10 to the Koreans? To see the two teams that came out of the bracket that had PR, DR, Venezuelans and USA getting owned by the Asian teams is a huge blow to the integrity of Major League Baseball.
ME (responding to Yankee24): I�m ashamed, too, and I was born here in the USA!
Team Japan won the �06 WBC over Team Cuba, and I�m predicting with Darvish as their Starter tomorrow night � and I will be watching � that they will do it again over Team Korea because...let�s face it: they�ve had some of the best players and the most fearsome lineup in the whole WBC. And to think Team Venezuela�s so-called �Vinotinto� was so arrogant and braggart-ish about �Oh, we�ve got strong offense this� and �We�ll beat Korea that� and �da-da-da-da-da booty� (chanted in conga line style) and look what happened: Bobby Abreu and Marco Scutaro teamed up to get their own butts kicked by the Koreans!
If it were the World Cup of Football or March Madness, the stadiums would have been way beyond filled to capacity!
Anyway, this Team USA was indeed a joke, so I�m handing the recognition to Teams Japan and Korea. They deserve the Final Bout more than any other WBC team did...no offense.
BASEBALI: They should just give the �World Series� title to the Asian countries and call ours the �North American Series.�
ME (responding to BaseBalI): I couldn�t have said that better myself!
YANKEE24 (responding to me): No offense taken. You�re right, Japan was the better team and I like their style, their passion, and intensity. But Korea is a powerhouse! I�d put my money on Korea tomorrow night.
They both deserve a lot of credit, and I should have given it to them in my original post but I�m just let down with Team USA and the fans and it�s lack of passion for the game that some of us love.
YANKEE7SC (not responding to me, of course): You should be ashamed of yourself! Why are you ashamed of Team USA? Asians are superior to Americans in all aspects, not just baseball. Their parents raise them with more discipline and instill the willingness to exceed from the time they are born. I hate to admit it, but Americans are spoiled, lazy, and don�t have the burning desire to exceed as they do.
I think down deep Americans know the Asians are superior but don�t want to admit it.
Here�s some evidence that we actually know they are better than us. A lot of Americans drive Japanese cars because they feel that Japanese workers are smarter, harder working, and make better vehicles. They say Americans are fat, lazy, over paid workers.
All of the electronic industry in the US is gone; Japan makes almost all of your TVs, computers, video games, cell phones, cameras, etc. etc. etc.
ME (responding to Yankee24): Don�t worry about it. I�m just giving credit where credit is due.
In MLB news, Tampa Bay brought the Yankees� one-week winning skid to a halt by shutting them out 5-0. The Pets, with Johan Santana, bopped visiting Atlanta. Boston? He shut out Philly thanks to Beckett�s talents!
Double ugh! No, better yet, make that a �triple ugh� since Oakland lost to Carlos Quentin and Company! But St. Louis defeated Baltimore.
Powerhouse YU DARVISH Taking His Team to WBC Final
3.23: It�s a Wrap! Schilling Calls It a Career, and the World Baseball Classic Title Goes to�Well, Who Do You Think?
The World Baseball Classic culminated in Dodger Stadium, with a matchup akin to the 2002 World Cup match (Soccer) of defending WBC champ Japan and 2008 Olympic Gold-claiming Korea. Team Japan attempted to defend his 2006 World Baseball Classic title starting with Michihiro Ogasawara�s RBI single in the 3rd inning off of former Atlanta Braves pitcher Jungkeun Bong. Shin-Soo Choo made a solo home run to tie up in the 5th inning, 1-1, for Team Korea. Young-Kyu Lee got badly hurt in the 6th inning when he tried stealing 2B.
Tight competition erupted in the 9th inning when Bum Ho Lee made the game-tying hit off of Yu Darvish. The game went into the 10th inning. Ichiro Suzuki stepped up to the plate and proved himself the �Superman� to his native land: he made the game-winning, title-clinching 2-RBI double. Finally, after the final strikeout, Darvish bent down in joy as the rest of Team Japan ran out to celebrate their second straight World Baseball Classic championship since the event commenced in 2006.
And speaking of repeats, what better honor than to award the WBC MVP title to none other than Daisuke �Dice-K� Matsuzaka? He deserved it because he had an amazing winning record, a superb ERA, and the throwing style that would give even the Tim Lincecums a run for their money. The Red Sox Nation has reason to be very proud of having someone like �Dice-K.� They should get Yu Darvish, too, if he decides to cross over into the Major Leagues someday.
I noticed during the game that people in Jamsil Stadium (located in Seoul, South Korea) clapped their �Thunderstix� like crazy. (Those sticks were actually invented in Korea.)
Unfortunately, given the popularity of �March Madness this� and �Dancing with the Stars that,� this WBC was a commercial failure ratings-wise in America. �Our National Pastime All the Time� my ass. Not when you�ve got �March Madness� and the Super Bowl dominating the ratings every year! However, it was a big hit in Latin America, where baseball is their national pastime just like in the USA�not to mention the fiery music that comes from the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Brazil, Venezuela, and territories like that. (No offense to DWTS, which had begun its 8th season and 4th year overall on the air two weeks prior on ABC�I like it but I haven�t watched much of it because there are no big-name celebrities like J. Lo and Ricky Martin strutting their stuff. They can dance better than your average Joe, but ABC and BBC America, who made DWTS out of England�s Strictly Come Dancing, always invite what my sister called �B-list celebrities.� Kristi Yamaguchi already won the Spring 2007 season of DWTS with her ice dancing, Olympic gold-claiming experience. Try putting Michael Jordan or Tiger Woods or Chipper or people like that on there someday!)
Nevertheless, I don�t blame America for not paying as much attention to the WBC as Latin America and Asia did (Dodger Stadium was almost full to capacity), and no, I�m not racist. I personally enjoyed this WBC even more than the first. Here�s hoping the 2013 World Baseball Classic will be even better than this!
Anyway, now that the World Baseball Classic came to an end at long last, my focus from here on in will be on MLB itself. First of all, Boston won with four of his boys making homers one after the other (kind of like April 22, 2007), but Curt Schilling quit baseball as per what his blog stated. His retirement came 16 months after he won Game 2 of Boston�s successful 2007 World Series. The Yankees suffered at Philly�s mercy; Oakland got her butt kicked�big time; and St. Louis rocked the house. The Pets and Braves took the day off.
Commissioner BUD SELIG and Others Talking Yak in Booth
In other news, Todd Helton made a home run, and Huston Street closed Milwaukee vs. Colorado (televised on MLB Network) despite giving up one run. Huston, honey, you may be no Mariano Rivera, but you look so much cuter in a Rockies outfit than you did in Oakland.
The Florida Marlins? The Miami-Dade Commission said yes to their new stadium!
3.24: No Cards in Schedule, but Yanks Take Down Boston; Others Suffer
Boston had his butt kicked thanks to Austin Jackson�s grand slam in Boston vs. Yankees. The Pets didn�t even make a dent vs. Houston, who blew them away on an 8-0 score. (Their new catcher, Ivan Rodriguez, made a home run.) Atlanta got owned by Pittsburgh; and Oakland suffered vs. Kansas City. St. Louis took the day off.
Johnny Blanchard, who played for the Yanks, A�s, and Braves, passed away.
3.25: No Yanks, but Listen to This!
Atlanta fared well when Chipper made a 3-run home run only to see his fellow Braves blow it big time vs. Washington, ruining Tom Glavine�s 43rd birthday. The Pets lost again, too. Boston got lucky, but St. Louis and Oakland didn�t.
3.26: I Love N.Y.
The Pets rolled on St. Louis, giving J.J. Putz his second Spring Training win. Atlanta led off fine vs. Toronto, but mean-spirited Toronto Blue bludgeoned her with two 3-run innings, taking the win and handing the �W� to Jeremy Accardo.
C.C. Sabathia was selected to start for both the Yankees� season premiere at Baltimore and the Inaugural Game at New Yankee Stadium. The Yankees blew defending World �Fucking� Champion Diva Philly away, anyway. Girardi tried something new with the Yanks� lineup: he batted Jeter first and Damon 2nd. (Sorry about the F-word.)
3.27: Hot and Sweaty
Johan Santana started Nationals vs. Mets in Tradition Field, and he got the win. �K-Rod� pitched in the 8th inning, and he got the Mets out of a jam at a point where he could have easily blown his save. Actually, he wasn�t needed to save the game�what am I talking about? Pedro Feliciano was the closer here.
Beckett and sexy moreno Lohse faced each other in St. Louis vs. Boston, but who won this one? Boston. While both Lohse and Beckett had no decision, Boston blew St. Louis away in the 10th inning thanks to Varitek, Youkilis, and Chip Ambres� game-winning work.
Did the Yankees win over Cincy? Yes. Did Atlanta maul Detroit? Yes.
Oakland played her game at night, and she got lucky.
3.28: Big 3 of the North
Atlanta lost to the Yankees. Good thing because the Braves almost KO�d Teixeira and Company in the 9th inning. The Mets beat Florida; Boston won, too, but Oakland and St. Louis didn�t.
Handsome CHIPPER JONES Talking Garbage in Dugout
3.29: Lester Hot in Philadelphia Freedom; Detroit Avenges Chipper and Friends
Atlanta got mauled by Detroit; Boston harassed Philly; the Pets lost to Baltimore; St. Louis lost to Florida; and the Yankees? They blew Pittsburgh away! Oakland won, too.
Bobby Cox selected Derek Lowe to start both Atlanta�s Away Opener at Philly and Home Opener vs. Washington.
3.30: It�s a Hot One.
It sure was.
Boston got the shaft, but that�s because Atlanta blew him away in the 10th. �Dice-K� had no decision, anyway, but then nor did Kawakami.
And the only person who scored for Toronto vs. the Yanks was Marco Scutaro. Good job shocking Scutaro, Pettitte!
In other news, Ryan Howard made a home run as Philly rocked Houston.
3.31: So Long, Lion�Hello, Lamb!
Atlanta was the lion: she got the shaft while Mets, Yankees, BoSox, A�s, and Cards�they were the lambs. And to think Atlanta finalized her deal for Chipper to stay for 3 more years and likely retire with her!