USA 002 102 000 5 8 0 Dominican Republic 000 002 14X 7 10 2
The Dominican Republic overcame a 0-5 deficit to beat Team USA 7-5 in first-round action at Marlins Park in Miami, Florida on Saturday evening. In front of a sellout crowd the Dominican Republic completed the comeback with a four-run eighth highlighted by a pair of big home runs.
The United States took a quick 2-0 lead on an error and a RBI single by Christian Yelich in the third. A RBI single by Brandon Crawford in the fourth and RBI doubles by Giancarlo Stanton and Crawford in the sixth raised the advantage to 5-0.
Manny Machado and Carlos Santana got the defending champion on the board in the bottom half of the sixth with a solo home run and a RBI single. A RBI single by Welington Castillo in the seventh cut the deficit to two runs. In the eighth Nelson Cruz turned the game around with one swing, going deep for a three-run home run to give the Dominicans a 6-5 lead. Starling Marte capped the rally with a solo home run shortly after.
The Dominican Republic improved to 2-0, while Team USA dropped to 1-1.