The 2009 World Baseball Classic

(Note: Italy vs. Venezuela and Dominican Republic were in process while this was being written, so bear with some of the tense changes)

I feel like I am alone when I say that I actually look forward to the World Baseball Classic. Seeing international competition between countries playing sports is one of my most favorite things to watch. Weather it is the Summer or Winter Olympics or something like watching the international side of the Little League World Series, there is something to me about representing your country. Unfortunately, like most of America, my least favorite sport is soccer. I feel like soccer could make some rule changes that could appeal to the non-fan (like the recent rule changes in the NHL). Although, I did watch this past years European Soccer Championship, Euro '08, and fall in love with the underdog/miracle run that Turkey made. One of my favorite sayings is that sports are poetry in motion. Watching a quarterback drop back and read the coverage and make the right read and throw a magnificent pass, or watching Dave Roberts take his lead off of first base when everybody in the house knows that he is going to steal in what turned out to be the series changing moment in the 2005 ALCS, or where an Autistic member of a high school basketball who was only a team manager before the head coach let him not only dress, but play during senior night where after missing his first career high school shot with three minutes and forty six seconds left in the game, ended up finishing the game shooting 7 for 13, 6 of 10 from behind the arch, accumulating 20 points and posting the high school for the game... his only game. To me, nothing is better than the magic of sports and competition when it is not played for financial purposes, but for national pride.

With Major League Baseball being in its offseason, all we have been hearing are the normal news updates: Steroids. The names of the past being Mark McGwire, Raphael Palmero, Sammy Sosa, Jose Canseco, and of coarse Barry Bonds. This post season is all about one Alex Rodriguez and how he is admitting to taking steriods and just recently went under the knife to repair his hip. I think I speak for most sports fans when I say that nothing gets more annoying than tuning into their favorite sports source and it is about steroids. Although, in the past week, those talks have kind of dwindled a bit and a lot of it has to do with the World Baseball Classic. Sure, Grapefruit, Cactus, and whatever the rest of the names of the spring training baseball leagues are have started and we're starting to see highlights and start to watch our favorite players take a couple of meaninful hacks at the plate before getting taken out in the third inning to let players who won't make the team show what they have. Personally, spring training baseball isn't my cup of tea, exibition games are boring. However, the oppertunity to make a big play in an international game for your country is incredible. Sure, you can argue that the first rounds of the WBC are boring and it weeds out the garbage, some would argue that 16 teams are too many because teams like China, South Africa, and Australia stand no chance against the teams of America, Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic and Japan. But games are not played on paper which provides for oppertunity. A team can beat another team on any given day, thats the great part about sports.

I don't think anyone saw the following to take place: Netherlands over the Dominican Republic and Australia over Mexico (by mercy rule, none the less). Yeah Japan, America, Venezuela, Puerto Rico and Korea have already advanced, but the fact that Australia and the Netherlands have oppertunities to move on is awesome. It is comparable to watching that 5 vs. 12 game each March. I for one would love to see the Netherlands make it to the next round and make a George Mason-eqsue run for the glory.

Sure the overglaring thing with the WBC is the pitch count rule, but after all you have to realize that a lot of these players are under salary and the last thing that MLB clubs want is for their star player to throw 25 innings and be worn out by mid-August when Division and Wild Card races really start to heat up, only to risk injury. As much as I look at this in comparison to the LLWS pitch count rules, it is after all a good idea even though I'd love to see a magical 9 inning performance.

Personally, I can overlook the pitch count because of the double-elimination format of the Classic. If it were a 'Series,' that would be different because pitchers single handedly have the ability to take over games, where as batters typically get 4 or 5 at-bats per game. This causes teams to be forced to have depth and rise to the occasion. This is also similar to the most recent LLWS tournaments where it used to be that teams could get away with having two stud pitchers who consistantly threw one hitters. It would be interesting if in some way this could be countered offensively however, such as having batters be limited to something like 10 conscutive at-bats before having to take a game off (i.e., going 2-4 in Game 1, 1-4 in Game 2, and having to be taken out of the game after his second at bat in Game 3). That is something that just popped into my brain, but I'm sure there could be better ideas out there that could balance what should be reason for there to be more offense during the Classic.

To me what really separates the WBC from other sports is the fans, espically the ones that represent the Latin American and Asian teams teams. They proudly wave their flags around and paint their faces and simply are in the stands having *fun*. This is not a knock against any other fans, it just so happens that the L.A. and Asian fans tend to be more over the top, but thats what gets noticed. Also, naturally I wouldnt imagine Italian fans to travel to Toronto to watch Baseball, and other such teams go to various cities where the games are being played. If it was the World Cup, that would be a different story. But these games tend to have a World Cup feel to them, at least based on the fans reaction. Thats what sports are supposed to come down to: Fun.

Steroids, steroids, steroids, blah, blah, blah. We get it, Alex Rodriguez took steroids, I would guess that most of the public doesn't care too much about which specific steroid it was and which little store in the Carribean he was able to send someone to buy them over the counter for. I get it, Rodriguez took steroids. The bigger story coming out of New York should be that the Yankees went out and spent $423 million dollars on four players and then have the balls to ask the city of New York for $400 million dollars so that their stadium is finished in time for opening day. I'm not too upset that the Yankees went out and spent the money on free agents, thats the business behind the game and because there is no salary cap, the sky is the limit(the salary cap is a separate issue for another day). I'm not upset that they spent the money and going to wine about 'the evil empire buying a championship.' Thats not my style, even as a Red Sox fan.

I'd rather be seeing storys about the Neatherlands, a team with few major league stars playing top baseball against a glorified MLB All-Star team and beating them 3-2, and then taking them into extra innings in an elimination game a few days later. This is why sports are great. If the Dominican Republic go on to win the game, will I be upset? No, not really, I think that they can compete with the best and it could make some awesome potential match ups in the later rounds... But to see a team that nobody though had a chance stand up to the Golaith and prevail is special. Thats why sports are special. I am going to be watching the gamecast on www.worldbaseballclassic.com like I have been while I have been writing this article.

One things for sure: WBC, I'm interested.