USA vs Mexico on ESPN2 this afternoon 4EST. Viva Vinny Castilla!!!



[Edited on March 7, 2006 at 9:39 AM. Reason : PAGE 2]

3/7/2006 9:39:19 AM

I'm so excited. I've been waiting for something like this for a long time.

3/7/2006 9:44:48 AM

holy shit, Santana is hot and Big Papi just took him yard

i don't give a shit who wins, this is an awesome game and you can feel the intensity

3/7/2006 1:29:22 PM

The starters can only pitch like 3 innings. Colon is gonna come out now even though he is mowing them down. What Major Leaguers are on Mexico besides Nomar?

3/7/2006 2:20:10 PM

MEXICO:

Pitchers
No. Player Pos. Ht. Wt. Born
13 Rodrigo Lopez P 6'1" 180 12/14/1975
21 Esteban Loaiza P 6'3" 205 12/31/1971
33 Pablo Ortega P 6'2" 170 11/7/1976
45 Elmer Dessens P 6'0" 188 1/13/1971
46 Roberto Ramirez P 5'11" 170 8/17/1972
47 Jorge de la Rosa P 6'1" 190 4/5/1981
48 Francisco Campos P 6'0" 165 8/12/1972
50 Pedro Osuna P 5'10" 225 4/12/1973
51 David Cortes P 5'11" 195 10/15/1973
52 Dennys Reyes P 6'3" 246 4/19/1977
54 Edgar Gonzalez P 6'2" 213 2/23/1983
56 Luis Ayala P 6'2" 175 1/12/1978
57 Oscar Villarreal P 6'1" 215 11/22/1981
59 Oliver Perez P 6'3" 160 8/15/1981
73 Ricardo Rincon P 5'10" 187 4/13/1970

Catchers
No. Player Pos. Ht. Wt. Born
20 Miguel Ojeda C 6'2" 190 1/29/1975
24 Geronimo Gil C 6'2" 195 8/7/1975
29 Adan Munoz C 6'1" 195 3/9/1977

Infielders
No. Player Pos. Ht. Wt. Born
8 Alfredo Amezega SS 5'10" 165 1/6/1978
3 Jorge Cantu SS 6'1" 169 1/30/1982
9 Vinny Castilla 3B 6'1" 205 7/4/1967
17 Juan Castro SS 5'10" 187 6/20/1972
Luis Cruz SS 6'1" 185 2/10/1984
44 Erubiel Durazo 1B 6'3" 225 1/23/1975
22 Benji Gil 1B 6'2" 190 10/6/1972
23 Adrian Gonzalez 1B 6'2" 190 5/8/1982

Outfielders
No. Player Pos. Ht. Wt. Born
28 Karim Garcia OF 6'0" 172 10/29/1975
18 Luis Alfonso Garcia OF 6'4" 180 5/11/1978
36 Luis C. Garcia OF 6'3" 210 9/22/1975
7 Mario Valenzuela OF 6'2" 209 3/10/1977

3/7/2006 3:04:31 PM

Also DR is beating Venezuela 6-1 in the top of the 5th.

3/7/2006 3:06:09 PM

Venezuela makin a comeback... Down 6-4 now after HR's from Cabrera and Alfonzo.

Dominican's lineup is stacked, but their pitching isn't very deep at all. But they have enough hitting to make up for that.

Dominican and the US should be the two top teams.

3/7/2006 3:16:48 PM

6 to 4 dominican in 7th inning now

3/7/2006 3:18:20 PM

good lord, the Marlins are beating the Nat's 20-1 in Spring Training play, without Miguel Cabrera.

I know it's just spring training, but damn... 20-1?

3/7/2006 3:22:39 PM

GG Vic..

3/7/2006 3:26:31 PM

the marlins will be lucky to score 20 runs all season

3/7/2006 3:28:51 PM

lol.

Venezuela might have a chance in this game. The DR bullpen might cost them. Marte is pretty nice though.


Bobby Abreu could be a hero right here.

3/7/2006 3:31:02 PM

damaso marte blows, for serious

3/7/2006 3:31:02 PM

damn, Abreu just about tied this thing up.

3/7/2006 3:32:00 PM

I'm just amazed at how stacked both these teams are.

3/7/2006 3:33:14 PM

haha, thats true. especially when you have teams like Italy, South Africa, Canada, Austraila, etc...

3/7/2006 3:34:25 PM

I would never bring a white woman to a game like this.

lol, the venezuelans are about to riot

[Edited on March 7, 2006 at 3:38 PM. Reason : .]

3/7/2006 3:35:23 PM

Damn, that should be a HR in my opinion.

3/7/2006 3:38:44 PM

Talk about stacked teams, look at USA's #1-#6: damon//jeter//griffey//a-rod//texiera//d. lee

3/7/2006 3:40:41 PM

Wow... Venezuela is posing a hell of a comeback

3/7/2006 3:41:37 PM

I don't see all the fuss. That wasn't a home run. They keep showing it on the replay. The way it bounced back made it obvious and that other wall is like 20 feet behind the first one.

3/7/2006 3:45:48 PM

I don't either...

Zambrano's pitched the entire game so far.

3/7/2006 3:48:12 PM

santana started, then c zambrano came in, and now v zambrano

3/7/2006 3:53:53 PM

Victor had some nasty stuff today. If he can harness that it will help the Mets a TON this year...

3/7/2006 3:55:32 PM

eh. My bad.

3/7/2006 3:56:36 PM

God damn papi.

3/7/2006 4:06:40 PM

ortiz goes yard.

3/7/2006 4:09:02 PM

wtf espn2

3/7/2006 4:09:04 PM

What happened? I am at work and can't watch it

3/7/2006 4:09:32 PM

i'm glad there are actually fans at these games

the asian games were a snore

3/7/2006 4:10:55 PM

david ortiz just crushed the ball, second home run of the day for him

dominican republic is up 8-5 in the top of the 9th

well, Adrian Beltre just hit a 2 run homer, 10-5 DR over Venezuela

3/7/2006 4:11:29 PM

the Domincan Republic team is ridiculous:

Pitchers
Miguel Batista, RHP, Arizona Diamondbacks
Daniel Cabrera, RHP, Baltimore Orioles
Bartolo Colon, RHP, Los Angeles Angels
Francisco Cordero, RHP, Texas Rangers
Jose Lima, RHP, free agent (formerly Kansas City Royals)
Francisco Liriano, LHP, Minnesota Twins
Damaso Marte, LHP, Pittsburgh Pirates
Pedro Martinez, RHP, New York Mets
Jose Mesa, RHP, Colorado Rockies
Odalis Perez, LHP, Los Angles Dodgers
Fernando Rodney, RHP, Detroit Tigers
Wandy Rodriguez, LHP, Houston Astros
Duaner Sanchez, RHP, New York Mets
Ervin Santana, RHP, Los Angeles Angels
Jorge Sosa, RHP, Atlanta Braves
Julian Tavarez, RHP, Boston Red Sox
Salomon Torres, RHP, Pittsburgh Pirates
Jose Valverde, RHP, Arizona Diamondbacks


Catchers
Juan Brito, Arizona Diamondbacks
Alberto Castillo, Washington Nationals
Miguel Olivo, Florida Marlins


Infielders
Adrian Beltre, 3B, Seattle Mariners
Luis Castillo, 2B, Minnesota Twins
Pedro Feliz, 3B, San Francisco Giants
David Ortiz, 1B, Boston Red Sox
Placido Polanco, Detroit Tigers
Albert Pujols, 1B, St. Louis Cardinals
Jose Reyes, SS, New York Mets
Alfonso Soriano, 2B, Washington Nationals
Miguel Tejada, SS, Baltimore Orioles


Outfielders
Moises Alou, San Francisco Giants
Juan Encarnacion, St. Louis Cardinals
Vladimir Guerrero, Los Angeles Angels
Manny Ramirez, Boston Red Sox
Sammy Sosa, free agent (formerly Baltimore Orioles)
Willy Taveras, Houston Astros


I wish I wouldve gone to this game, they are playing it in Orlando I believe, I'm about two hours from there right now, and will be in Orlando tomorrow

3/7/2006 4:12:59 PM

aha

'the big lumber of vinny castilla'

party like its 1998

3/7/2006 4:13:59 PM

They are. It was a hell of a game before ortiz/beltre took em out.

3/7/2006 4:14:31 PM

It's kind of funny hearing the announcer say "..and these mexicans are getting upset."

[Edited on March 7, 2006 at 4:21 PM. Reason : .]

3/7/2006 4:21:14 PM

Some trivia questions you'll hear in 20 years maybe:

First ever pitch, hit allowed, and earned strikeout: Jake Peavy
First ever at-bat: Johnny Damon (flyout)
First ever walk: Ken Griffey Jr.
First ever batter to leave a man on base: Alex Rodriguez (Griffey)
First ever error: Derek Jeter
First ever hit: Randy Winn (single)
First ever relief pitcher: Mike Timlin
First ever strikeout: Alex Rodriguez
First ever home run: Derrek Lee
First ever triple: Johnny Damon

[Edited on March 7, 2006 at 5:23 PM. Reason : .]

3/7/2006 5:03:03 PM

Derek Lee with the solo!

3/7/2006 5:06:33 PM

I was sort of lukewarm on this but I'm liking it. Intense games..

GO USA.. gg Fredo on the triple...

3/7/2006 5:19:39 PM

Chipper touchin-em-all

we're playin very nicely

3/7/2006 5:53:18 PM

Pool B

United States 2, Mexico 0
Canada 11, South Africa 8

Pool C

Puerto Rico 2, Panama 1

Pool D

Dominican Republic 11, Venezuela 5
Italy 10, Australia 0 (7 innings - mercy rule)

3/8/2006 7:01:01 AM

I'm really enjoying this. I hope it's a success because I would like to see this as an annual event... maybe bi-annual or it could be really exclusive like the olympics or the world cup.

3/8/2006 8:36:31 AM

This is why I am loving the World Baseball Classic:

Quote :

"I never would have said this yesterday," Lee said after Team USA's 2-0 victory over Mexico in the World Baseball Classic opener for both teams, "but today, being on the field, I think this means more [than winning the World Series]. It's like Jake Peavy said, 'You're not playing for your city, you're playing for your country.' When you have your country behind you, there's a lot of responsibility. There's no monetary motivation for this. Guys came to this team to play for their country. It's as simple as that."

It gets the greedy guys who play for money off the field and lets those who love the game play. They're risking injury that could hamper their lucrative MLB careers to play for their country. I love this. This is sports. This is what it's supposed to be about.

Quote :

" Lee, who started at first base on Tuesday and played the duration, said the feeling of running around the bases after taking Lopez deep to right-center with two out in the fourth was unparalleled. "I was floating, I really was," Lee said. "It was just a great feeling. Really hard to explain. When you hit a home run during the season, you feel like you did your job. When you hit a home run in something like this, it's kind of different." Jones had just replaced Rodriguez as a defensive replacement at third base in the seventh. He was the second batter in the bottom of the inning, and batting left-handed against new Braves teammate, righty reliever Oscar Villarreal, the switch-hitting Jones went the opposite way to left. Jones also hit a two-run poke against the San Francisco Giants in a 12-7 tune-up win at Scottsdale Stadium on Sunday. "I'm just trying to play my way into the lineup. That's what I'm trying to do," Jones said about his early stellar play for Team USA. But seriously, folks. "I said the other day after the exhibition game that if I don't get another hit the whole tournament, just going around the bases with that USA across my chest is a career highlight," Jones said. "To come back and do it again today and give our bullpen a little breathing room was another huge thrill." And this comes from a man who has played in 92 postseason games, all for the Braves, including a victory in the 1995 World Series. "

[Edited on March 8, 2006 at 8:41 AM. Reason : .]

3/8/2006 8:38:58 AM

Quote :

"I am disappointed the Wright, Crawford, and Mauer were left off. These three are some of the best young stars in the game and all could have helped the team more than Chipper (tough to admit as a Braves fan), Winn/Francouer/Holliday, and Barrett/Schneider respectively. I also wish they had kept Sheets (assuming he's healthy) over Sabathia since Sheets was awesome against the international competition back in the 2000 Olympics. Sabathia had a great 2nd half last year, but I think Sheets deserved a spot on the team."

Looks like Chipper helped the team out yesterday in the first game!

3/8/2006 9:44:08 AM

yeah, everyone underestimates chipper. i do it too

3/8/2006 10:56:25 AM

Whose this Chipper everyone keeps talking about?



All I know is "LAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!"

3/8/2006 11:18:47 AM

I would have liked to see Crawford get an invite over Randy Winn.

3/8/2006 11:21:03 AM

this panama vs. cuba game is just crazy

3/8/2006 4:35:15 PM

Quote :

"Whose this Chipper everyone keeps talking about?"

mets fans are smart

3/8/2006 4:36:53 PM

On ESPN2, Canada leading USA 5-0 in the 3rd.

3/8/2006 5:05:18 PM

7-0 wtf

that panama/cuba game was pretty good

3/8/2006 5:32:21 PM