World Baseball Classic 2013 Results: What We Learned from Pool Play

One of the best and worst things about baseball is the pace at which the game is played. The World Baseball Classic has been underway for nearly two full weeks, yet there hasn't been time to thoroughly absorb everything that has happened. 

There have been 29 games played since the event started, with 10 more to go before putting a bow on this year's Classic. With upsets, surprises and dominating performances, this has been the most unpredictable event yet.

In an effort to show you where things might be headed, here is a look back at what we have learned from Pool play thus far. 

2013 WBC POOL RESULTS
Pool A Winner: Cuba (3-0)
Pool A Runner-Up: Japan (2-1)
Pool B Winner: Chinese Taipei (2-1)
Pool B Runner-Up: Netherlands (2-1)
Pool C Winner: Dominican Republic (3-0)
Pool C Runner-Up: Puerto Rico (2-1)
Pool D Winner: United States (2-1)
Pool D Runner-Up: Italy (2-1)

Offense is the name of the game

The World Baseball Classic falls at an interesting time for Major League Baseball players, making it hard to try and properly gauge how effective certain aspects of the game are going to be played. 

This year, not surprisingly, the offensive fireworks have been flying because pitching is so far behind where the hitting is at. That's not to say that everyone pitching in the event is on a big league team, but those that are happen to be far behind the curve. 

There has been an average of 6.5 runs scored per game so far in the World Baseball Classic. The mercy rule has been used three times, with Japan scoring the most runs in a game (16). 

Whoever wins the World Baseball Classic will be the team that finds enough pitching to get through it. Some teams, like Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic, pitched well in Pool play. 

Being able to sustain that over the next week is paramount. 

Team USA is overrated

We love to look at the stars on the United States roster and think it is going to be a cakewalk to a World Baseball Classic title. That is certainly the hope for Major League Baseball and Bud Selig, though the execution hasn't been there. 

Team USA survived a game against Italy on Saturday, with David Wright providing the one big hit before the bats went silent. It took another eight innings on Sunday against Canada before the team got another big hit, as Adam Jones gave the U.S. a 4-3 lead. 

The floodgates came open in the ninth inning, but it still doesn't change the fact that the United States has major issues to solve if it wants to win this event. Being 10-for-43 with runners in scoring position is not going to get it done against a team like the Dominican Republic. 

The starting pitching has been shaky thus far. R.A. Dickey didn't have his knuckleball moving against Mexico, which makes him very hittable. Ryan Vogelsong and Derek Holland started slow before minimizing the damage and giving the U.S. a chance to win. 

This is a good U.S. team, but it is not better than the Dominican Republic or Japan. It might not even be better than Puerto Rico, based on the way that group has played so far. 

The Dominican Republic can't be stopped

How do you slow down a team that overpowers a lineup that we all assumed would be one of the best in the tournament (Venezuela), then comes back to outpitch one of the best run-prevention teams in the tournament (Puerto Rico)?

The Dominican Republic is the best and most complete team in the tournament, at least based on what we saw from it in Pool C. This was thought to be the best group in the World Baseball Classic, with Venezuela, Puerto Rico and Spain all boasting strong rosters. 

Yet the Dominican Republic steamrolled all three of them in similar fashion. There was the power in the lineup, provided by Hanley Ramirez and Carlos Santana. Then the pitching took over, allowing just eight runs in three games. 

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