Round Up
I got back from Houston late Sunday night, sorry I haven't had time to get around to posting since then.
Early Sunday morning, Korea and Japan played what was so far been the best nine innings of the World Baseball Classic. Unfortunately, I was in the team van and couldn't get signal on my satelitte radio hand set for the last inning of the game. But I did hear Korea's 8th inning game winning 2-run homerun, and I later read about Chan Ho Park's dominance of the tough Japanese hitting in the ninth inning. Korea and Japan came in first and second in Pool A, so both teams will advance to the next round.
Saturday night (before this game) , Hall of Fame analyst Peter Gammons predicted that Japan would "sneak by" the U.S. and go on to win the WBC. But if Japan couldn't hit Chan Ho Park in the late innings, how are they going to be able to hit any of the American relievers?
Korea definetely has some momentum now, and I wonder how far they'll be able to carry it now that they are moving on to the second round. They're pitching has been the best in the tournament so far, though I do not expect this to continue. And the Korean offense has shown its versatility by manufacturing runs and playing for the big inning. Their best hitter, Heep Sop Choi, seems to be heating up. Although he has not hit for much power yet this tournament, I think he's going to start crushing the ball like he's capable in the next round.
I'm not counting Japan out of the classic yet though. Their manager Sadahara Oh will most definetely have them ready to play in the next round, and they have a lot of time to prepare for the next round. A Japan run in the next round wouldn't be the most supring thing in the world.
The U.S. has it's first game today against Mexico. Jay Peavy is going to be the starting pitcher, and that's all I know right now. I'll tell you this much though, I'm super pumped to see who is going to start in the field for team U.S.A., and I'm excited about watching Buck Martinez utalize all of the great players on the team.
Check back later tonight for another WBC update.
I'm also pretty sad about the passing of Kirby Puckett. When I was kid, I always liked Puckett because I was impressed with his positive attituted. Even when he lead the Twins past my Braves, I couldn't help but be happy for him and his team. He had some tough times at the end of his carreer and after his retirement that tarnished his reputation. But I don't think it's too much of a stretch to compare what he did for baseball in Minnesota to what Dimaggio, Gehrigh, or Mantle did for the Yankees.