2013 World Baseball Classic qualification

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2013 World Baseball Classic qualification
Tournament details
CountriesFlag of Germany.svg  Germany
Flag of Panama.svg  Panama
Flag of the Republic of China.svg  Taiwan
Flag of the United States (23px).png  United States
DatesSeptember 19 – November 19, 2012
Teams16
Tournament statistics
Games played24
Attendance103,774 (4,324 per game)
2017  

The qualifying round of the 2013 World Baseball Classic was held from September 19 to November 19, 2012. It was the first ever qualifiers for the tournament.

Contents

Although the 2006 and 2009 editions of the World Baseball Classic were contested by the same pre-selected field of 16 teams, for the 2013 tournament only the 12 teams that won at least one game in 2009 were guaranteed a berth in the main tournament. Due a agreement with then International Baseball Federation (now World Baseball Softball Confederation), other four (Canada, Chinese Taipei, Panama, and South Africa) contested the qualifying round along with 12 additional teams invited by the confeeration. [1]

The qualifiers were organized as four independent modified double-elimination tournaments featuring four teams each. The final game was winner-take-all, even if won by the team emerging from the loser's bracket. That is, the team emerging from the winner's bracket might be eliminated despite losing only one game (as, in fact, happened to Israel in Qualifier 1).

Canada and Chinese Taipei dominated in Qualifiers 2 and 4 to advance easily. In Qualifier 1, Spain and Israel both won in the first round, then Israel beat Spain in the winner's bracket. Spain then eliminated South Africa (the only team in the qualifier to have previously contested the WBC) to earn a rematch with Israel, which was without its several Major League players due to the qualifier taking place during the MLB season. Spain won the winner-take-all final game, 9–7 in 10 innings, to advance to the main tournament.

In Qualifier 3, favorites Panama and Nicaragua lost in the first round, and Panama then eliminated Nicaragua. After both teams defeated Colombia, underdog Brazil defeated Panama 1–0 to advance to the main tournament.

Players

Under the Classic's rules, Team Israel was entitled to have non-Israeli citizens of Jewish heritage play for the team. Such players included major leaguers catcher Ryan Lavarnway, first baseman Ike Davis, second basemen Ian Kinsler and Josh Satin, third basemen Kevin Youkilis and Danny Valencia, outfielders Ryan Braun (whose father is Israeli), Sam Fuld, Ryan Kalish, and Gabe Kapler, and pitchers Jason Marquis, Scott Feldman, Craig Breslow, and John Grabow, as well as what were then recent major leaguers catcher Brad Ausmus and pitcher Scott Schoeneweis. [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] Kinsler said:

"Wow, I would be happy to play for Team Israel.... The truth is that if a proposal comes from Team USA to play for them, I will have a very difficult decision to make. Yuk [Kevin Youkilis], Braun [Ryan Braun], and I could make a fantastic team. I am sure that I'll talk it over with Yuk – we always laugh about things like this." [8]

Outfielder Shawn Green, who retired in 2007, was also eligible because he is Jewish. In early June 2011 he said it "would be an honor" and he "would love to" play for Israel in the Classic. [9] [10]

Because they were held in September, while the Major League Baseball season was still in progress, Qualifiers 1 and 2 could not feature major league players. [11] [12] Kevin Youkilis announced that he would play for the team if they made it past the qualifying round. [13]

The highest-level players involved in Qualifiers 1 and 2 were minor-league prospects ranked among the top 20 in their respective organizations. [14] Team Israel, managed by former major league All Star Brad Ausmus, included minor league pitchers Eric Berger (1–0) and Brett Lorin, first baseman Nate Freiman (.417; 4 HR in 12 AB), second baseman Josh Satin (.273), shortstops Jake Lemmerman and Ben Orloff, and outfielders Adam Greenberg, Ben Guez, Joc Pederson (.308), and Robbie Widlansky. [15] [16] Retired major leaguer Shawn Green played for Israel (.333). [15]

Similarly, Joey Votto and Justin Morneau were unable to play for Canada. [17] They were led by minor league first baseman Jimmy Van Ostrand (.538; 10 RBIs in 13 at-bats). [16] Although Canada advanced easily despite the unavailability of its Major Leaguers, Israel was eliminated after narrowly losing the final game to Spain.

By contrast, all four teams in Qualifier 3 boasted Major League players, as it took place in November and did not conflict with the MLB season. Established Major Leaguers included Carlos Ruiz, Rubén Tejada, Manny Acosta, Manny Corpas, and Carlos Lee of Panama; and Everth Cabrera and J. C. Ramírez of Nicaragua. Major League rookies and prospects included Erasmo Ramírez and Cheslor Cuthbert of Nicaragua; Yan Gomes of Brazil; and Luis Martinez and brothers Donavan and Jhonatan Solano of Colombia. Retired Major Leaguers included Ramiro Mendoza of Panama and Édgar Rentería of Colombia. [18]

Although Qualifier 4 also took place in November, it did not feature any current MLB players, as both Wei-Yin Chen and Chien-Ming Wang of Chinese Taipei elected to skip the qualifier. Chinese Taipei did feature Japanese major leaguer Yao-Hsun Yang as well as Taiwanese league players such as Peng Cheng-min and Lin Chih-sheng, and qualified easily. Both New Zealand and the Philippines included minor league players, while Thailand included former Major Leaguer Johnny Damon. [19]

Venues

Four stadiums were used during the qualifying round: [20] [21]

Qualifier 1Qualifier 2Qualifier 3Qualifier 4
Flag of the United States.svg Jupiter, United States Flag of Germany.svg Regensburg, Germany Flag of Panama.svg Panama City, Panama Flag of the Republic of China.svg New Taipei City, Taiwan
Roger Dean Stadium Armin-Wolf-Arena Rod Carew Stadium Xinzhuang Baseball Stadium
Capacity: 6,871Capacity: 10,000Capacity: 27,000Capacity: 12,500
Roger Dean Stadium.JPG Armin wolf arena wm2009.jpg Rodcarew.jpg Xin Zhuang Bang Qiu Chang .JPG

Pools composition

Note: Numbers in parentheses indicate positions in the WBSC World Rankings at the time of the tournament. [22]

Qualifier 1Qualifier 2Qualifier 3Qualifier 4
Flag of France.svg  France (30)Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada (6)Flag of Brazil.svg  Brazil (20)Flag of Chinese Taipei for Olympic games.svg  Chinese Taipei (5)
Flag of Israel.svg  Israel (74)Flag of the Czech Republic.svg  Czech Republic (25)Flag of Colombia.svg  Colombia (19)Flag of New Zealand.svg  New Zealand (28)
Flag of South Africa.svg  South Africa (27)Flag of Germany.svg  Germany (17)Flag of Nicaragua.svg  Nicaragua (15)Flag of the Philippines.svg  Philippines (22)
Flag of Spain.svg  Spain (16)Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  Great Britain (21)Flag of Panama.svg  Panama (14)Flag of Thailand.svg  Thailand (23)

Qualifying round

Qualifier 1

PreliminariesSemifinalsQualifier
Flag of Israel.svg  Israel 7
Flag of South Africa.svg  South Africa 3
W1Flag of Israel.svg  Israel 4
W2Flag of Spain.svg  Spain 2
Flag of France.svg  France 0
Flag of Spain.svg  Spain 8
W3Flag of Israel.svg  Israel 7
W5Flag of Spain.svg  Spain 9
Lower round 1Lower final
W4Flag of South Africa.svg  South Africa 3
L1Flag of South Africa.svg  South Africa 5L3Flag of Spain.svg  Spain 13
L2Flag of France.svg  France 2
DateLocal timeRoad teamScoreHome teamInn.VenueGame durationAttendanceBoxscore
Sep 19, 201219:00 Israel  Flag of Israel.svg7–3Flag of South Africa.svg  South Africa   Roger Dean Stadium 3:161,581 Boxscore
Sep 20, 201219:00 France  Flag of France.svg0–8Flag of Spain.svg  Spain   Roger Dean Stadium 2:51975 Boxscore
Sep 21, 201213:00 Israel  Flag of Israel.svg4–2Flag of Spain.svg  Spain   Roger Dean Stadium 2:43814 Boxscore
Sep 21, 201219:00 South Africa  Flag of South Africa.svg5–2Flag of France.svg  France 11 Roger Dean Stadium 3:57922 Boxscore
Sep 22, 201219:00 Spain  Flag of Spain.svg13–3Flag of South Africa.svg  South Africa   Roger Dean Stadium 3:111,183 Boxscore
Sep 23, 201217:00 Spain  Flag of Spain.svg9–7Flag of Israel.svg  Israel 10 Roger Dean Stadium 4:504,463 Boxscore

Qualifier 2

PreliminariesSemifinalsQualifier
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  Great Britain 1
Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada 11
W1Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada 16
W2Flag of Germany.svg  Germany 7
Flag of the Czech Republic.svg  Czech Republic 1
Flag of Germany.svg  Germany 16
W4Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada 11
W5Flag of Germany.svg  Germany 1
Lower round 1Lower final
W3Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  Great Britain 1
L1Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  Great Britain 12L4Flag of Germany.svg  Germany 16
L2Flag of the Czech Republic.svg  Czech Republic 5
DateLocal timeRoad teamScoreHome teamInn.VenueGame durationAttendanceBoxscore
Sep 20, 201219:00 Great Britain  Flag of the United Kingdom.svg1–11Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada 7 Armin-Wolf-Arena 2:283,704 Boxscore
Sep 21, 201219:00 Czech Republic  Flag of the Czech Republic.svg1–16Flag of Germany.svg  Germany 6 Armin-Wolf-Arena 2:153,019 Boxscore
Sep 22, 201213:00 Great Britain  Flag of the United Kingdom.svg12–5Flag of the Czech Republic.svg  Czech Republic   Armin-Wolf-Arena 3:101,806 Boxscore
Sep 22, 201219:00 Canada  Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg16–7Flag of Germany.svg  Germany   Armin-Wolf-Arena 4:004,085 Boxscore
Sep 23, 201214:00 Germany  Flag of Germany.svg16–1Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  Great Britain 7 Armin-Wolf-Arena 2:351,452 Boxscore
Sep 24, 201219:00 Germany  Flag of Germany.svg1–11Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada 8 Armin-Wolf-Arena 2:333,120 Boxscore

Qualifier 3

PreliminariesSemifinalsQualifier
Flag of Brazil.svg  Brazil 3
Flag of Panama.svg  Panama 2
W1Flag of Brazil.svg  Brazil 7
W2Flag of Colombia.svg  Colombia 1
Flag of Nicaragua.svg  Nicaragua 1
Flag of Colombia.svg  Colombia 8
W3Flag of Brazil.svg  Brazil 1
W5Flag of Panama.svg  Panama 0
Lower round 1Lower final
W4Flag of Panama.svg  Panama 9
L1Flag of Panama.svg  Panama 6L3Flag of Colombia.svg  Colombia 7
L2Flag of Nicaragua.svg  Nicaragua 2
DateLocal timeRoad teamScoreHome teamInn.VenueGame durationAttendanceBoxscore
Nov 15, 201220:00 Brazil  Flag of Brazil.svg3–2Flag of Panama.svg  Panama   Rod Carew Stadium 3:2313,728 Boxscore
Nov 16, 201220:00 Nicaragua  Flag of Nicaragua.svg1–8Flag of Colombia.svg  Colombia   Rod Carew Stadium 3:314,028 Boxscore
Nov 17, 201214:00 Colombia  Flag of Colombia.svg1–7Flag of Brazil.svg  Brazil   Rod Carew Stadium 3:332,952 Boxscore
Nov 17, 201220:00 Nicaragua  Flag of Nicaragua.svg2–6Flag of Panama.svg  Panama   Rod Carew Stadium 3:468,531 Boxscore
Nov 18, 201219:00 Panama  Flag of Panama.svg9–7Flag of Colombia.svg  Colombia   Rod Carew Stadium 3:305,317 Boxscore
Nov 19, 201220:00 Panama  Flag of Panama.svg0–1Flag of Brazil.svg  Brazil   Rod Carew Stadium 2:3810,638 Boxscore

Qualifier 4

PreliminariesSemifinalsQualifier
Flag of the Philippines.svg  Philippines 8
Flag of Thailand.svg  Thailand 2
W1Flag of the Philippines.svg  Philippines 0
W2Flag of Chinese Taipei for Olympic games.svg  Chinese Taipei 16
Flag of New Zealand.svg  New Zealand 0
Flag of Chinese Taipei for Olympic games.svg  Chinese Taipei 10
W4Flag of Chinese Taipei for Olympic games.svg  Chinese Taipei 9
W5Flag of New Zealand.svg  New Zealand 0
Lower round 1Lower final
W3Flag of New Zealand.svg  New Zealand 10
L1Flag of Thailand.svg  Thailand 2L4Flag of the Philippines.svg  Philippines 6
L2Flag of New Zealand.svg  New Zealand 12
DateLocal timeRoad teamScoreHome teamInn.VenueGame durationAttendanceBoxscore
Nov 15, 201211:30 Philippines  Flag of the Philippines.svg8–2Flag of Thailand.svg  Thailand   Xinzhuang Baseball Stadium 3:10923 Boxscore
Nov 15, 201218:30 New Zealand  Flag of New Zealand.svg0–10Flag of Chinese Taipei for Olympic games.svg  Chinese Taipei 7 Xinzhuang Baseball Stadium 2:299,788 Boxscore
Nov 16, 201211:30 New Zealand  Flag of New Zealand.svg12–2Flag of Thailand.svg  Thailand 8 Xinzhuang Baseball Stadium 3:051,168 Boxscore
Nov 16, 201218:30 Chinese Taipei  Flag of Chinese Taipei for Olympic games.svg16–0Flag of the Philippines.svg  Philippines 7 Xinzhuang Baseball Stadium 2:5610,911 Boxscore
Nov 17, 201214:00 New Zealand  Flag of New Zealand.svg10–6Flag of the Philippines.svg  Philippines   Xinzhuang Baseball Stadium 3:13503 Boxscore
Nov 18, 201214:00 New Zealand  Flag of New Zealand.svg0–9Flag of Chinese Taipei for Olympic games.svg  Chinese Taipei   Xinzhuang Baseball Stadium 3:318,163 Boxscore

Attendance

103,774 (avg. 4,324; pct. 30.7%)

Statistics leaders

Additional rules

A pitcher threw no more than 85 pitches per game in the qualifying round unless the pitcher needed more to complete a batter's plate appearance.

A pitcher must:

A mercy rule came into effect when one team led by either fifteen runs after five innings, or ten runs after seven innings.

An alternative version of the IBAF's extra inning rule was also used. If after 12 innings the score was still tied, each half inning thereafter would have started with runners on second and first base. The runners would have been the eighth and ninth hitters due in that inning respectively. For example, if the number five hitter was due to lead off the inning, the number three hitter would have been on second base, and the number four hitter on first base. However, this rule was never actually employed in this year's qualifiers, as the two extra-inning games in the qualifying round ended prior to a 13th inning.

References

  1. "2013 World Baseball Classic Field expands to 28 Teams". IBAF . June 1, 2011. Retrieved June 1, 2011.
  2. "World Baseball Classic: Israel, managed by Bra". Sporting News. May 21, 2012. Archived from the original on May 23, 2012. Retrieved March 14, 2013.
  3. Belson, Ken (June 1, 2011). "Israel to Participate in 2013 World Baseball Classic". The New York Times. Retrieved July 16, 2011.
  4. "Israel invited to qualify for World Baseball Classic". JTA. June 2, 2011. Retrieved June 2, 2011.
  5. Jeremy Fine. "The Great Rabbino" . Retrieved July 16, 2011.
  6. Aaron Yellin (June 7, 2011). "Israel to Participate in 2013 World Baseball Classic". The Forward. Retrieved July 16, 2011.
  7. "Jews to Play in Baseball All-Star Game - Shalom Life". Archived from the original on November 6, 2013. Retrieved March 20, 2013.
  8. Ben, Daniel (May 1, 2010). "Baseball / Jewish MLB stars could play for Israel". Haaretz. Retrieved July 16, 2011.
  9. Leichenger, Alex (June 21, 2011). "Jewish baseball player supports Little League efforts". Jewish Journal. Retrieved September 5, 2011.
  10. Belson, Ken (June 8, 2011). "Shawn Green Says He'd Play for Israel in World Baseball Classic". The New York Times. Retrieved September 5, 2011.
  11. Neistat, Aimee (August 24, 2012). "Baseball / World Classic / Youkilis says he will play for Israel, if it qualifies for tournament". Haaretz. Retrieved March 14, 2013.
  12. "World Baseball Classic: Israel squad could be dangerous with stars Ryan Braun, Ian Kinsler available". Sporting News. May 21, 2012. Archived from the original on November 25, 2012. Retrieved March 14, 2013.
  13. Neistat, Aimee (August 24, 2012). "Baseball / World Classic / Youkilis says he will play for Israel, if it qualifies for tournament". Haaretz. Retrieved March 12, 2013.
  14. "World Baseball Classic: There are plenty of prospects to watch in this month's World Baseball Classic qualifiers". worldbaseballclassic.com. September 21, 2012. Archived from the original on February 9, 2013. Retrieved March 14, 2013.
  15. 1 2 "World Baseball Classic: Team – Israel". worldbaseballclassic.com. Archived from the original on February 9, 2013. Retrieved March 14, 2013.
  16. 1 2 "World Baseball Classic: Stats". worldbaseballclassic.com. Archived from the original on April 12, 2013. Retrieved March 14, 2013.
  17. "World Baseball Classic: Canada: Team – Canada". worldbaseballclassic.com. Archived from the original on January 11, 2013. Retrieved March 14, 2013.
  18. "Panama City set to host World Baseball Classic qualifying action". World Baseball Classic. November 14, 2012. Archived from the original on February 9, 2013. Retrieved March 14, 2013.
  19. "World Baseball Classic: Chinese Taipei favorites in World Baseball Classic qualifier". worldbaseballclassic.com. November 14, 2012. Archived from the original on February 9, 2013. Retrieved March 14, 2013.
  20. "World Baseball Classic Qualifier in Florida scheduled for September". IBAF . July 4, 2012. Retrieved July 4, 2012.
  21. "World Baseball Classic Qualifier to Take Place in Regensburg from September 20–24th". IBAF . March 19, 2012. Retrieved March 19, 2012.
  22. "WBSC Rankings - Men's baseball on 12/31/2012". World Baseball Softball Confederation . Retrieved May 2, 2021.