Baseball World Cup Pool F, Rotterdam:
Netherlands – Cuba 3-5
CUB 003 000 020 5 9 0 NED 001 000 020 3 4 1
After their loss to Puerto Rico on Friday, Cuba couldn’t afford another defeat on Sunday afternoon facing the 6-0 Netherlands. And they accomplished that goal with a 5-3 win in Rotterdam. Yosvany Peraza put the record champion up in front in the top of the third with a three-run double. The Dutch team answered right away to cut the deficit to two runs on a solo homerun by Sharlon Schoop.
The score stood until the eighth, when Alfredo Despaigne and Luis Navas extended the lead to four runs with a solo homerun and a RBI double. The Netherlands countered again with a two-run shot by Hainley Statia. But it was too little, too late.
Yulieski Gonzalez went 7 1/3 innings, allowing four hits, three runs and a walk. He struck out five and threw only 88 pitches, 67 for strikes. Juan Carlos Sulbaran issued two runs on one hit and two bb in two-plus innings for the loss. Just 20 of his 42 pitches found the strike zone.
Both teams will travel to Italy for round three in the Baseball World Cup, hoping to clinch a spot in the championship game.