Bruce Jenkins:
Not into the WBC? That’s your loss
A great event is about to unfold, although some critics prefer other descriptions, such as “wasteful” and “ill-timed.” It’s the World Baseball Classic, a world in which the United States barely fits — and it’s no problem at all.
To major-league teams, the WBC is a threat, an annoyance and a distraction. There’s a constant fear of someone getting hurt, and the team — supposedly a country at its very best — never looks quite right. Those fears are entirely justified, by the way.
Imagine the likes of Mike Trout, Clayton Kershaw, Madison Bumgarner, Kris Bryant, Josh Donaldson, Jake Arrieta or Noah Syndergaard getting seriously injured in a springtime event against China or Australia.
The residue: None of those players will appear for the U.S. If you can’t get interested in a team featuring Nolan Arenado, Paul Goldschmidt, Brandon Crawford, Buster Posey, Chris Archer and Daniel Murphy, just look elsewhere — because that’s the entire point.
Everywhere else in the world, this is a very big deal. Here at the 3-Dot Lounge, not a minute of action will be missed involving Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, Cuba, Mexico, Japan, Venezuela or the Netherlands. Stock the semifinals with any four of those teams, and it’s a dream scenario.
There are assorted regrets. Pablo Sandoval, a long-standing legend for his feats with the Venezuelan team, will concentrate on winning back his third-base job with the Red Sox. Cuba refuses to send its defectorsturned-MLB stars, leaving Yoenis Céspedes’ younger brother, Yoelkis, as perhaps its most intriguing player (he’s 19, built like an NFL running back and is known for his tremendous throwing arm). The noble Ichiro Suzuki has played his last international game for Japan. And there’s a 22-year-old Japanese superstar named Shohei Otani who reportedly threw 100 mph-plus fastballs as a pitcher and hit .322 with 22 homers for the Nippon-Ham Fighters last year. Alas, Otani, originally on Japan’s roster, won’t play because of an ankle injury, so it’s a grand opportunity lost.
Not a bother, for there’s so much else going on.
The Dutch team is one of eternal fascination, thanks largely to the Netherlands’ Caribbean constituent countries of Aruba and Curacao. Four years ago, its WBC team unveiled infielders Xander Bogaerts, Andrelton Simmons, Jonathan Schoop and Jurickson Profar. They all return, along with yet another top infielder (Didi Gregorius), a power-hitting legend on the international scene (Wladimir Balentien of Curacao) and knighted manager Sir Hensley “Bam-Bam” Meulens, who takes great pride in this brief departure from the Giants’ coaching staff.
Its delightful to imagine Sergio Romo hearing the roars of a home-country crowd as he stares down Puerto Rico’s Carlos Correa, Francisco Lindor and Javier Baez during the first round of games in Jalisco, Mexico. The Dominican Republic’s “heart of the order” never really ends with Jose Bautista, Adrian Beltre, Robinson Cano, Nelson Cruz, Manny Machado and Carlos Santana available. The D.R. reliever asked to save a theatrical gem by Johnny Cueto — should he join the WBC after the first round — just might be his old teammate, Santiago Casilla. Venezuela looks typically magnificent with Miguel Cabrera, Jose Altuve, Carlos Gonzalez, Felix Hernandez and many others, managed by Hall of Famebound Omar Vizquel.
For the U.S., action starts in Miami with the four-team Group C (including Canada, Colombia and the Dominican) March 9-13. Perhaps the WBC doesn’t sound like much. Invest a bit of time, and you may feel differently.
Spice it up
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