Truly a Classic
Event an all-around win for U.S. team and MLB
LOS ANGELES — Even before the United States took the field to face Puerto Rico for the World Baseball Classic championship Wednesday night, Rob Manfred was confident in declaring this tournament — troubled at times since the event debuted in 2006 — to be a smashing success.
The Major League Baseball commissioner’s confidence seemed well-founded when the Americans claimed their first WBC title in grand style with an 8-0 victory in front of 51,565 spectators at raucous Dodger Stadium. But even without that highlight for the United States and MLB, the fourth edition of the WBC was the best-attended, the most-viewed worldwide and arguably the most entertaining.
But the event’s longterm health was undeniably improved by the fact that the home team won it all for the first time.
“We’ve had crowds that not only were record-number crowds, but had passion that it’s hard to think where you saw something that good the last time,” Manfred said shortly before the first pitch. “Just really amazing. And best of all, the games on the field have been absolutely unbelievable, compelling. Our players at their best, combined with a little nationalism, has really been a great thing.”
Manfred and players’ union head Tony Clark appear to be in complete agreement on the success of the 2017 WBC, which attracted more than 1 million fans for the first time and expanded its television reach as a unique worldwide platform for the game. Even before the enthusiastic worldwide reception and the U.S. team’s winning surge at home, the WBC was expected to top $100 million in revenue this year for the first time, according to organizers.
Although no deal is firmly in place, Manfred and Clark are confident there will be a fifth WBC, most likely in 2021 after baseball makes its return to the Olympics in the 2020 Tokyo Games.
“I think when you have a tournament that gets the kind of traction that the 2017 edition did, it will make it easier to get players the next time around,” Manfred said. “Not only for the U.S., but for all the countries.”
The robust ratings for MLB Network’s game broadcasts and the raucous crowds of costumed, singing fans in Los Angeles and Miami belied the WBC’s biggest problem, one that still prevents a dwindling number of American fans and players from taking it seriously.
While the WBC sells out stadiums and sparks baseball curiosity from Tokyo to Tel Aviv, the event still must persuade U.S. players and fans that it’s a world-class competition even as the biggest American stars are skipping it in favor of spring training. Mike Trout, Clayton Kershaw, Kris Bryant, Madison Bumgarner, Chris Sale and Bryce Harper were among the standouts who stayed in their big-league camps.
The confetti-strewn celebration in Chavez Ravine should have a few superstars realizing they missed out on something great. The Americans pounded out 13 hits against Puerto Rico and finished with a 6-2 record while making the final for the first time. Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Marcus Stroman was named tournament MVP after giving up one hit in six-plus innings while striking out three and walking one.
“I don’t mean this to sound wrong, but for the most part, up until this point, the other countries were probably into this event a little bit more than the United States,” manager Jim Leyland said. “But in talking to our players, I know they’re going to spread the word. I’ve had some players already tell me this is the greatest experience of their life. So hopefully we can get guys to play.
“But we had the right players. We had players that wanted to be here, and that’s the kind of players you want.”
The international appeal of the WBC still was a tough sell to MLB teams and players understandably preoccupied with their paying jobs. Yet dozens of lesser American big-leaguers filled out the rosters of other nations by virtue of their ancestry, and this year’s U.S. team was likable and entertaining.
“... talking to our players, I know they’re going to spread the word. I’ve had some players already tell me this is the greatest experience of their life.”
– MANAGER JIM LEYLAND