The Dominican Republic versus the Netherlands, that's the matchup headlining Monday night's 2013 World Baseball Classic semifinals. The teams have a past as the Netherlands eliminated the Dominicans in 2009. However, after bringing a brand new attitude to this year's tournament, find out why the Dominicans have what it takes to defeat the Netherlands in this game.
The team is having fun, which is the most important thing. Nobody seems to be pressing and there's definitely no choking going around. The Dominicans have been successful in their first six games in the tournament. They have yet to lose a game and their chemistry is going well. Because they are playing like a unit, if one struggles, you can expect another player to step up.
Tonight, their weakest link will be on the mound as Edison Volquez takes the hill for the Dominicans. He made two starts combining for 5.1 innings, four earned runs our four walks, three hits and four strikeouts. He's lacked control and surrendered one home run to the Italians. The Dominicans eventually came back to win these games, but they don't have the luxury of falling behind a Netherlands team that has scored 39 runs in the tournament, which is third most in the 2013 WBC.
Overall, the Dominicans have the better hitters, but it's pretty close. The Dominicans have hit seven home runs and are batting .291, while the Netherlands have hit five home runs while batting .274 in their seven games played. Both teams strikeout plenty, which could be a good sign for pitchers. The Dutch have struck out 49 times, while the Dominicans have 44 strikeouts in the tournament.
If the Dominicans are to win this one, they will need to be efficient at bat as they face Diegomar Markwell who's 2-0 in the tournament and almost hitless. He's pitched 10 innings allowing just one run on 11 hits, two walks and two strikeouts. Though his numbers indicate he's been excellent, the 11 hits given up tie him for the most in the tournament. Only R.A. Dickey of Team USA matched this number. What Markwell proved is that he's capable of keeping the ball in the park. However, he is hittable.
The Dominicans are on a roll. If they get runs early on, the Netherlands might be in trouble as the Dominican bullpen has been lights out in this tournament. Pedro Strop, Fernando Rodney, Kelvin Herrera, Octavio Dotel, Juan Cedeno and Santiago Casilla have combined for 20.1 innings of scoreless baseball.
If there is one thing to point out about the Dominican team, it's that they have been scoring lesser and lesser runs as the tournament has progressed. However, their pitching seems to improve as the tournament goes along.
Final Score: Dominicans win 6-3 over the Netherlands to advance to the 2013 WBC against Puerto Rico.
Who are you rooting for or think can win this game?
