Opinion

The Dominican Republic was eliminated from the World Baseball Classic last night after the team from the Netherlands, who clearly took everyone by surprise, pulled off an upset victory in the 11th inning.

The Netherlands won both of the contests against the Dominican Republic, who admitted after the first game that they took the team from the Netherlands too lightly.  The second and final victory was considered by many to be more of a managerial and executional failure than game approach.

For as little as Americans don't care about the World Baseball Classic, it's obvious watching the games that this tournament means as much as anything to the rest of the countries participating.

And last night, when the Netherlands defeated the favored Dominican Republic, the Caribbean stood still.

The first round elimination is being touted as a national disgrace in the Dominican today, with an entire nation in mourning because their all-world all-star team didn't win the tournament.

The Dutch have done it—they made the world say DAM(N)

It has nothing to do with the creative way with which they divert water around The Hague.

The Netherlands have added another chapter to The Classic!!

Since Kennisaw Landis was elected commissioner of baseball in November 1920, nine different men have occupied the office. With only a few short-lived exceptions, they are not popular while serving.

They’re not supposed to be. 

Fans want to watch the action on the field. The commissioner’s job is to handle everything off the field. We see billionaires trying to suck the fun out of a great game. We usually don’t see executive actions as being an essential part of that enjoyment. 

New York Yankees pitcher Kei Igawa has gotten off to a hot start this spring, and it has gotten the attention of a few fans—some of which are even thinking he might contribute to the club this season.

After all, he’s pitched eight dominant innings this spring while surrendering zero runs, just 3 hits, and no walks. He’s also a lefty, happears comfortable on the mound, and he cost the Yankees $46 million that they would like to see put to good use after years.

Francisco Cervelli is a defensive catcher mostly known for getting his arm broken when he was bowled over by a member of the Tampa Bay Rays last spring training.

He’s also one of the next in line to get called up if the Yankees need to carry three catchers if Jorge Posada’s shoulder isn’t healthy enough to play over 100 games behind the plate. In that case, it would either be him or journeyman Kevin Cash.

If the race for the Philadelphia Phillies' fifth starter is on, Kyle Kendrick has some major ground to pick up, so he will look for a good outing today against the Atlanta Braves.

Today will mark Kendrick's third outing of the spring, including his appearance in the exhibition against Team USA. Kendrick has been under a microscope from the start of the spring, and the close examination continues today.

It's really starting to look like Chris Duncan is healthy.

He had another strong game against the Tigers yesterday, going 2-for-2 with his second home run of the spring, raising his average up to .385. I don't think anyone expects Duncan to be challenging for a batting title this season, but if he can continue to show that he's healthy, he could be a valuable guy for this team.

Sometimes even a loss can be rewarding. South Africa may have been beaten last night by Mexico, 14-3, but they won respect as a group that is working hard to learn the game.

Team Mexico pounded out 16 hits and four home runs, two by Adrian Gonzalez, who had three hits and six RBI.

The other two Mexicans with homers, Oscar Robles and Jorge Cantu, also had three hits. Seven different pitchers were used by South Africa, one only 16 years old! They are young and they are hungry, but also inexperienced.

Angel Pagan was sent to New York for an MRI on his sore elbow. It was then discovered that he has a bone spur.

If he elects to have it removed now, he will miss six to eight weeks of baseball. If he does not have the spur removed, chances are that he will not be able to play.  So, he will most likely  have the surgery and try to rejoin the team once he is recovered.