world-baseball-classic Page 5 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

Google Translating WBC Coverage: Jason Grilli Is The Author Of Our Salvation
The World Baseball Classic is well underway, which means that the eyes of the international media are fixated upon the games. It also means that we have the opportunity to run game recaps from foreign media outlets through Google Translate for the sake of our own amusement....

Fernando Rodney's Cap Alignment Status Shows He's Already In Regular Season Form
The World Baseball Classic is underway, and while the quadrennial exhibition tournament of pre-authorized or discarded players has featured a few upsets (Italy beats Mexico! Holland beats Cuba!) there are, fortunately, a few things you can rely upon....

Spring Training Long And Boring, Baseball Players Report
Baseball! It's the perfect sport for a laid-back afternoon, but it can drag. After what seems like an eternity of game after game, inning after inning, baking under the hot sun and trying not to get injured, you finally power through the dog days and arrive at the games that really matter: opening d...

Russell Martin Leaves Canada's WBC Team Because They Won't Let Him Play Shortstop
Pirates backstop Russell Martin doesn't want to be a catcher. It's boring. You have to crouch all game. You never get to run around. You rarely get to throw the ball beyond returning it to the pitcher. Rather than getting to enjoy a sunny afternoon on the diamond, you have to spend every moment goin...

South Korean Pro Team Cancels WBC Exhibition Against Cuba Because The Cubans Brought Weird Balls
Mildly scandalous behavior continues to plague the run-up to the World Baseball Classic. Yesterday, we had Taiwanese scouts disguising themselves as umpires and infiltrating a South Korean exhibition, and today we have a South Korean pro team refusing to play against the Cuban national team because...

Ahead Of The WBC, Taiwan Sends Scouts Posing As Umpires To Spy On South Korean Team
You might not realize it from the USA's roster, but many countries think the World Baseball Classic is important. One of those is Taiwan, which is expecting big things. After failing to get out of a group of death in the 2009 tournament, they enter this year's WBC ranked fifth in the world—just a sp...

Bruce Chen Is Switching Teams For The World Baseball Classic
When you think of Bruce Chen, you think: trailblazer. The journeyman starter may have to fight to crack the Royals' rotation in spring training, but he's going to make some baseball history in March. Chen will become the first major leaguer to play for China when he pitches in the 2013 World Basebal...

Someone Needs A Refund
Sir Sidney Ponson, in the midst of leading the Dutch Honkball team to the quarterfinals of the WBC, tested positive for Phentermine, a stimulant and appetite suppressant. He's also the reason we invented Deadspin widescreen. [AP]...

Congratulations To Our Japanese Baseball Overlords
Ichiro Suzuki drives in the game-winning RBI as Japan wins the WBC again. Why do we call it the "World Series" when Japan is the only country that's good at this game? [MLB]...

Tommy Lasorda Can Do This Interview In His Sleep
Tommy Lasorda has an impressive amount of energy for a man his age, but he does seem a little lethargic in this interview—and by lethargic, I mean, he can barely hold his own head up....

It's Chipper Jones Vs. The City Of Toronto. Let's Watch The Fun
If you play for the Braves and you're going to be at war with a city, it might as well be a Canadian one. On the whole, Chipper Jones would rather be in Atlanta....

U.S. Rallies In Bottom Of Ninth To Defeat Tiny Island
David Wright's two-run single fuels three-run rally as U.S. beats Puerto Rico 6-5 to advance to semifinals. Any other self-governing unincorporated territories want to mess with us? [NBC Sports]...

Mercy Is For The Weak. (The U.S. Is Weak.)
Thank to the Little League mercy rule, the United States was spared nine full innings against a country that we literally own, but cannot beat in baseball. Just wait until Tommy Lasorda hears about this....

Venezuela Defeats Upstart Dutch. Good.
The cuddly Dutch honkballers lost to Venezuela, 3-1, in this afternoon's edition of the World Small Sample Size Bingo Tournament, which means the Netherlands' Cinderella run may soon come to a close. Dank God....

Meet Your New Dutch Baseball Overlords
The Dominican Republic, a team stacked from top to bottom with MLB talent, will not make it out of the first round of the World Baseball Classic because they couldn't handle the puny Netherlands....

Dan Serafini Wins One For Team Italy
Much head scratching over Italy's defeat of Canada in the World Baseball Classic on Monday. How could such a thing happen? Easy. It was pretty much just a glorified MLB spring training game....

Wacky Dutchmen Upset Dominican Republic
The Netherlands gets three off Edinson Volquez in the first and make it hold up (Sidney Ponson!) to upset the D.R. juggernaut in the WBC. Naturally, I blame A Rod. [ESPN; Canada/US liveblog here]...

Tommy Lasorda: Clinically Delusional At Any Altitude
For those who think that Tommy Lasorda should pack up his follow-the-flag, I-love-the-good-ole-USA act and ship off to a nice assisted living community, here's more evidence to have him sent away....

World Baseball Classic Will Only Happen In Your Dreams
The World Baseball Classic has begun! Too bad you were asleep and missed the whole thing. [MLB.com]...

Cyst May Force Alex Rodriguez To Cease
Alex Rodriguez is having a bang up year in 2009. The latest calamity? A bone cyst that may force him to bail on Team D.R. at the World Baseball Classic....