The violent misdeeds of the Mexican and Canadian baseball teams will go unpunished.
The World Baseball Classic decided no players will be suspended in the aftermath of Saturday’s nasty brawl between the teams. Video of the fighting spread across the globe, giving the WBC a major league dose of unwanted attention.
The organizers said yesterday that although the mayhem “runs counter to the spirit of sportsmanship and respectful competition,” suspensions would not be appropriate because one team and possibly both will not advance to the second round. Both teams ultimately were eliminated over the weekend.
The brawl began in the ninth inning Saturday when Canada’s Rene Tosoni was hit by a pitch from Mexico’s Arnold Leon after Canadian Chris Robinson reached on a bunt single.
Seven players were ejected, — four from Mexico and three from Canada.
Dominican Rep. 4, Puerto Rico 2
In San Juan, Puerto Rico, Robinson Cano hit a game-tying home run and was named the Group C MVP, Alejandro De Aza doubled home Carlos Santana in the sixth inning with what proved to be the winning run and the Dominican Republic beat Puerto Rico in a WBC first-round game.
Both teams knew before the game they were headed to the second round in Miami, to join the United States and Italy.
Japan 16, Netherlands 4
In Tokyo, two-time defending champion Japan hit a record-tying six home runs, scoring in all seven innings in a mercy-rule rout of the Netherlands to reach the WBC semifinals.
Japan built a 12-0 lead by the sixth inning, when the Netherlands closed on Wladimir Balentine’s three-run double and Andruw Jones’ RBI single.
Venezuela 11, Spain 6
In San Juan, Puerto Rico, Miguel Cabrera and Pablo Sandoval hit consecutive home runs for Venezuela in a victory over Spain that came too late to matter as both teams already had been eliminated.