Finally the wait is over. After months of anticipation, withdrawing players, committing players, numerous workouts and exhibition games, the 2013 World Baseball Classic will be played from Saturday, March 2 to Tuesday, March 19. Japan will take field as two-time winner, having defeated Cuba respective Korea to win the title at the first two editions in 2006 and 2009. Europe will be represented in the field of 16 teams with IBAF Baseball World Cup winner Netherlands, European champion Italy and WBC Qualifier winner Spain.
The first round of the 2013 WBC will be played in Taichung (Taiwan), Fukuoka (Japan), San Juan (Puerto Rico) and Phoenix (Arizona). After a round-robin phase the top two teams from each pool advance to the second round, which will be played in a double elimination format in Tokyo (Japan) and Miami (Florida). Again half of the field will be eliminated and the top four will advance to the final round at AT&T Park in San Francisco (California), where the semi-finals and the final will be played.
As usual the European teams face an uphill battle en route to the final rounds. Spain has a near-impossible task in the San Juan group. Italy hopes for another upset in Phoenix. The Dutch team in Taichung – on paper at least – might be the most realistic choice to advance to the second round out of the trio from the old continent. Overall picking a favorite is nearly impossible. The usual suspects Japan, USA, Cuba, Venezuela and Korea are named first by many experts. But there is no clear-cut favorite going into the 2013 World Baseball Classic.
First Round Pools:
- Taichung: Chinese Taipei, Netherlands, Korea, Australia
- Fukuoka: Japan, Cuba, China, Brazil
- San Juan: Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, Venezuela, Spain
- Phoenix: USA, Canada, Mexico, Italy
Full schedule available at www.worldbaseballclassic.com
For the first time the 2013 World Baseball Classic, which is the only baseball tournament where the crème de la crème of Baseball will suit up, will also crown the Baseball World Champion. The Classic has basically replaced the IBAF Baseball World Cup.
Europe not only will be represented through Spain, Italy and the Netherlands as participants, but also with a bunch of officials. Jan Esselman (NED), Xavier Mateu (ESP) and Giuseppe Guilizzoni (ITA) will be part of the Technical Commission in Phoenix, Taichung and San Juan. Michael Ulloa (ESP), who already worked the WBC Qualifier in Regensburg, will be the lone European Umpire.
All 39 games will be broadcasted live worldwide. In Europe ESPN America (except in Spain) and Eurosport2 (in Spain) will be the designated TV stations. In the United States MLB Network will cover all games live. ESPN Deportes is the Spanish language choice. Additionally an iOS app has been launched, which is freely available on iTunes. If live streaming video will be available through the app or WorldBaseballClassic.com respective MLB.com remains to be seen and might varies depending where you’re living.
Photo: © Walter Keller, www.catchthefever.de