Two big mysteries involving the World Baseball Classic were solved Tuesday.
First, after much deliberation, Alex Rodriguez has decided to play for the United States. Secondly, the team from the Dominican Republic was revealed and not surprisingly, it is loaded with All-Stars.
On Tuesday, the Yankees third baseman was among the 60 players named to the Dominican Republic's preliminary roster, but he later decided to join Team USA. Even without Rodriguez, the Dominican roster includes a who's who of players like David Ortiz, Albert Pujols, Pedro Martinez, Alfonso Soriano and Bartolo Colon, among others.
Miguel Tejada, Adrian Beltre, Vladimir Guerrero, Julio Franco and Robinson Cano are also on the preliminary roster. Additionally, Sammy Sosa has been included on the list for the Dominican Republic team although he did not fill out the letter of intent to participate in World Baseball Classic. The final 30-man rosters for the tournament are due five days before each team's opener.
The World Baseball Classic is the first international tournament to boast Major League players and is currently scheduled for March 3-20 in the U.S., Japan and Puerto Rico.
First-round action will be played at four sites. Pool A, consisting of Japan, Korea, Chinese Taipei and China, will meet at the Tokyo Dome on March 3-5. Pool B, featuring USA, Canada, Mexico and South Africa, will play at Chase Field, home of the Arizona Diamondbacks, and Scottsdale Stadium, Spring Training home of the San Francisco Giants, on March 7-10. Pool C is Puerto Rico, Cuba, Panama and the Netherlands and will play at Hiram Bithorn Stadium in San Juan, Puerto Rico, on March 9-10. Pool D, featuring the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, Australia and Italy, will play at the Disney Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando, Fla., on March 7-10.
The top two teams from each pool will advance to the second round, which takes place March 12-15 at Hiram Bithorn Stadium in Puerto Rico and Angel Stadium in Anaheim. The semifinals and finals will be held at San Diego's PETCO Park on March 18-20.
The team from the Dominican Republic will be managed by Mets third base coach Manny Acta. Coaches will include Felix Fermin, Alfredo Griffin, Juan Samuel, William Castro, Junior Noboa, Ricardo Aponte, Ramon Henderson, Hector de la Cruz, Nelson Silverio, Rafael Landestoy and Luis Silverio.
The Dominican Republic's training camp is scheduled for March 3-6 in Kissimmee, Fla., with an exhibition game against the Astros scheduled for March 5. The first scheduled tournament game for the Dominican Republic team is on March 7 at 1 p.m. ET against Venezuela at the Disney complex.
http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/...t_id=1296743&vkey=news_mlb&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb
First, after much deliberation, Alex Rodriguez has decided to play for the United States. Secondly, the team from the Dominican Republic was revealed and not surprisingly, it is loaded with All-Stars.
On Tuesday, the Yankees third baseman was among the 60 players named to the Dominican Republic's preliminary roster, but he later decided to join Team USA. Even without Rodriguez, the Dominican roster includes a who's who of players like David Ortiz, Albert Pujols, Pedro Martinez, Alfonso Soriano and Bartolo Colon, among others.
Miguel Tejada, Adrian Beltre, Vladimir Guerrero, Julio Franco and Robinson Cano are also on the preliminary roster. Additionally, Sammy Sosa has been included on the list for the Dominican Republic team although he did not fill out the letter of intent to participate in World Baseball Classic. The final 30-man rosters for the tournament are due five days before each team's opener.
The World Baseball Classic is the first international tournament to boast Major League players and is currently scheduled for March 3-20 in the U.S., Japan and Puerto Rico.
First-round action will be played at four sites. Pool A, consisting of Japan, Korea, Chinese Taipei and China, will meet at the Tokyo Dome on March 3-5. Pool B, featuring USA, Canada, Mexico and South Africa, will play at Chase Field, home of the Arizona Diamondbacks, and Scottsdale Stadium, Spring Training home of the San Francisco Giants, on March 7-10. Pool C is Puerto Rico, Cuba, Panama and the Netherlands and will play at Hiram Bithorn Stadium in San Juan, Puerto Rico, on March 9-10. Pool D, featuring the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, Australia and Italy, will play at the Disney Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando, Fla., on March 7-10.
The top two teams from each pool will advance to the second round, which takes place March 12-15 at Hiram Bithorn Stadium in Puerto Rico and Angel Stadium in Anaheim. The semifinals and finals will be held at San Diego's PETCO Park on March 18-20.
The team from the Dominican Republic will be managed by Mets third base coach Manny Acta. Coaches will include Felix Fermin, Alfredo Griffin, Juan Samuel, William Castro, Junior Noboa, Ricardo Aponte, Ramon Henderson, Hector de la Cruz, Nelson Silverio, Rafael Landestoy and Luis Silverio.
The Dominican Republic's training camp is scheduled for March 3-6 in Kissimmee, Fla., with an exhibition game against the Astros scheduled for March 5. The first scheduled tournament game for the Dominican Republic team is on March 7 at 1 p.m. ET against Venezuela at the Disney complex.
http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/...t_id=1296743&vkey=news_mlb&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb
