1. Venezuela vs. Dominican Republic
Where to Watch the World Baseball Classic
- Wednesday, March 11
- 8:00 pm ET
- FS1
As intriguing as the other four games are, this is the only matchup where both teams have legitimate cases as the best rosters in the tournament.
The Dominican Republic was one of the biggest disappointments of the 2023 WBC, finishing third in Pool A after dropping contests to Puerto Rico and Venezuela.
Though it was inevitable that one juggernaut would be eliminated in the so-called “Pool of Death,” it was still shocking to see a team loaded with MLB stars go home so early.
If there is a silver lining for the DR, it was that their only other first-round exit in 2009 was followed by a dominant 8-0, championship run in 2013. They certainly have the talent to repeat the feat, with eight of the nine projected starters having at least one All-Star appearance to their name.
Of course, the star of the show is Juan Soto, fresh off a career-high 43 home runs in his first season in New York, but he is hardly the only big bat looming in this thunderous lineup.
First baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr., second baseman Ketel Marte, and centerfielder Julio Rodríguez are arguably the best at their positions in the MLB., while Manny Machado, Junior Caminero and Fernando Tatis Jr. would each be the best player on many other WBC teams.
Though the pitching staff may be a notch down, last year’s NL Cy Young runner-up Christopher Sánchez is one of the best pitchers in the entire tournament, while flamethrowers Camilo Doval and Abner Uribe will lead a deep and talented bullpen.
The only real weakness that the Dominican Republic has is the starting rotation after Sánchez and former Cy Young winner Sandy Alcántara, as both Luis Severino and Brayan Bello have been prone to blowup matchups.
Fortunately for the DR, this is a problem they share with Venezuela, a team with a remarkably similar roster makeup. The injury to Pablo López leaves their starting rotation fairly shallow after All-Star Ranger Suárez, but it may not matter that much with how deep their bullpen is.
Both José Alvarado and Danny Palencia have closing experience and can touch triple-digits with their fastball, while Eduard Bazardo, Ángel Zerpa, Keider Montero, and José Buttó give manager Omar López a diverse assortment of weapons to bridge the gap to them.
Other than former MVP Ronald Acuña Jr., Venezuela can’t quite match the Dominican Republic starpower, but their lineup is chock-full of proven MLB talent.
William Contreras and Salvador Perez make up the best catching tandem in the WBC; Maikel Garcia, Luis Arraez and Gleyber Torres will wear out opposing pitchers; and Willson Contreras, Wilyer Abreu and Eugenio Suárez will form a thunderous trio in the middle of the order.
This lineup has a little bit of everything, and that’s without even mentioning Jackson Chourio, the Milwaukee Brewers’ 22-year-old superstar whose assortment of tools may only be matched by his teammate Acuña.
It’s hard to wrap your head around just how much talent will be on the field at the same time, and we can only hope it’s a precursor to a rematch in the quarterfinals.
