WIR: Puerto Rico Goes Down!

Round 2 of the World Baseball Classic begins on Saturday at Dolphins Stadium in Florida, and Sunday at Petco Park in San Diego. Even though my Dominican team lasted about as long as Bill Richardson’s Commerce Secretary gig (thank you…wait for it…KINGDOM OF THE NETHELANDS), rest assured friends, Latin American countries are still representing in the tournament. Cuba took down Group B, the much-maligned (but scrappy) Venezuelan team won Group C, Puerto Rico cruised to victory in Group D, Mexico moved on as a runner-up, and the Dominicans dominated every game just like I predicted (please, just let me hold on to that dream).

Side note: Following the whole D. Republic collapse and Salma marrying the old French dude, if Eva Mendes “puts a ring on it,” I’m officially packing up and moving to the woods.

With Round Dos only a day away, let’s take a look at the Latin American teams still in contention in the WBC.

Mexico

Record: 2-2

Next Opponent: Korea (Sunday 11PM ET, Petco Park)

Player to Watch: Adrian Gonzalez (7 RBI, 2 HR, .333 BA)

Prediction: Upset special. Even though they’re as inconsistent as John Leguizamo’s film career, Mexico moves onto the semi-final round instead of Japan (sorry defending champs).

Venezuela

Record: 3-1

Next Opponent: Wait for it…Kingdom of the Netherlands (Saturday, 1PM ET, Dolphins Stadium)

Player to Watch: Francisco Rodriguez (1 SV, 0 ER, 3 SO)

Prediction: The year the powerhouses fall.  Which means Venezuela advances over Puerto Rico or the U.S. (but which one????)

Puerto Rico

Record: 3-0

Next Opponent: U.S.A. (Saturday, 8PM ET, Dolphins Stadium)

Player to Watch: Jonathan Sanchez (1-0, 0 ER, 4 SO)

Prediction: Down goes PR! Down goes PR! Puerto Rico played three home games (Panama once and The K.O.N. twice), had the easiest road to the second round, and honestly looked strong, but not dominant. A bitter U.S. squad wins game one, then PR either loses to the States again or to the scrappy Venezuelan squad.

Cuba

Record: 3-0

Next Opponent: Japan (Sunday 4PM ET, Petco Park)

Player to Watch: Frederich Cepeda (6 RBI, 3 HR, .500 BA) and Norge Vera (1-0, 0 ER, 6 SO)

Prediction: Cuba looks good. Expect them to advance to the semi-finals with little-to-no problem.

OK, and now on to the Week in Review:

Pedro, dude, are the Dodgers checking you out? Seriously, I think they’re checking you out.

Manny being…not too complimentary of Boston fans.

Jonathan Papelbon being…well…he calls Manny a cancer!

Valencia striker David Villa likes Spain better than England. Deal with it!

Ervin Santana to start season…on the DL.

Other Santana doing just fine. Mets fans across the country breath a sigh of relief.

Phare-well Philly Spectrum.

Video of the Week: Manny on a tricycle. Enjoy!