2006 World Baseball Classic

Tournament between national baseball teams December 2023 December 2023 2006 World Baseball Classic logo.svg 200px March 3–20, 2006 16 Japan 1 Cuba South Korea 1997 Dominican Republic 39 737112 JPN Daisuke Matsuzaka 2009 The 2006 World Baseball Classic (WBC) was the inaugural tournament between national baseball teams that included players from Major League Baseball. It was held from March 3 to 20 in stadiums in or around Tokyo, Japan, and the American cities of San Juan, Puerto Rico; Lake Buena Vista, Florida; Phoenix, Arizona; Scottsdale, Arizona; Anaheim, California; and San Diego, California. The first two rounds had a round-robin format, which led to two teams being eliminated on run difference tiebreakers: in the first round, Canada was eliminated despite its 2–1 record, due to a blowout loss to Mexico as well as failing to run up the score on South Africa; and in the second round, eventual champion Japan advanced despite its 1–2 record, due to a blowout win over Mexico and losing more narrowly to South Korea than did the United States. The higher-seeded teams generally advanced to the second round, including Puerto Rico and Venezuela, as well as the teams mentioned elsewhere in this summary. Although South Korea defeated Japan twice in the earlier rounds, they were matched against each other again in the semifinals as the two teams emerging from the same second round pool, and Japan won that game to advance to the final against Cuba (which had defeated the Dominican Republic in the other semifinal). Japan defeated Cuba 10–6 to be crowned the first champion of the World Baseball Classic. Daisuke Matsuzaka, a Nippon Professional Baseball veteran who was little-known outside Japan at the time, was crowned the Most Valuable Player of the tournament. The following year, he made his debut in the Major Leagues with the Boston Red Sox. Format The first World Baseball Classic featured 16 teams in a round-robin. Each team played the other three teams in their pool once. Teams were ranked by winning percentage in the first round, with the top two teams in each pool advancing to the second round, where the teams from Pools A and B (in Pool 1) and the teams from Pools C and D (in Pool 2) competed against each other in another round-robin. thumb|Flags of all the nations of the 2006 WBC at Petco Park Teams were ranked by winning percentage in the second round, without regard to the results of the first round, with the top two teams from each pool entered a four-team single-elimination bracket, with the pool winners and runners-up from each pool facing each other in the semifinals. The winners of the semifinals then met to determine the World Baseball Classic Champions. In the final, the team with the higher winning percentage of games in the tournament were to be the home team. If the teams competing in the final had identical winning percentages in the tournament, then World Baseball Classic Inc. (WBCI) would conduct a coin flip or draw to determine the home team. In the first two rounds, ties were to be broken in the following order of priority: The winner of head-to-head games between the tied teams; The team allowing the fewest runs per nine innings (RA/9) in head-to-head games between the tied teams; The team allowing the fewest earned runs per nine innings (ERA) in head-to-head games between the tied teams; The team with the highest batting average (AVG) in head-to-head games between the tied teams; Drawing of lots, conducted by World Baseball Classic, Inc. (WBCI). Rosters 2006 World Baseball Classic rosters Each participating national federation initially submitted a 45-man provisional roster. Final rosters of 28 players, which also must include a minimum of 13 pitchers and two catchers, were later submitted. If a player on the submitted roster was unable to play, usually due to injury, he could be substituted at any time before the start of the tournament. Venues thumb|240px|A game on March 13, 2006, Angel Stadium, Anaheim, USA Seven stadiums were used during the tournament: Pool APool BPool BPool C & 2JPN Tokyo, JapanUSA Phoenix, United StatesUSA Scottsdale, United StatesPUR San Juan, Puerto RicoTokyo DomeChase FieldScottsdale StadiumHiram Bithorn StadiumCapacity: 42,000Capacity: 49,033Capacity: 8,500Capacity: 18,264200px200px200px200px Pool DPool 1ChampionshipUSA Lake Buena Vista, United StatesUSA Anaheim, United StatesUSA San Diego, United StatesChampion Stadium at Disney's Wide World of SportsAngel Stadium of AnaheimPetco ParkCapacity: 9,500Capacity: 45,037Capacity: 42,445200px200px200px Pools composition thumb|300px|Countries that participated The teams selected for the inaugural World Baseball Classic were chosen because they were judged to be the "best baseball-playing nations in the world and provide global representation for the event."World Baseball Classic http://web.worldbaseballclassic.com/2006/about/index.jsp?sid=wbc dead https://web.archive.org/web/20150123003823/http://web.worldbaseballclassic.com/2006/about/index.jsp?sid=wbc January 23, 2015 March 13, 2009 There was no official qualifying competition. In addition, there were no world rankings by the International Baseball Federation to determine the strength of the countries.IBAF World Ranking Released https://websites.mygameday.app/assoc_page.cgi?c=1-6035-0-0-0&sID=83786&news_task=DETAIL&articleID=7837069 MyGameday August 20, 2022IBAF publishes first-ever World Ranking https://www.mister-baseball.com/ibaf-publishes-firstever-world-ranking/ Mister-Baseball August 20, 2022 Pool APool BPool CPool DCHNCANCUBAUSTPEMEXNEDDOMJPNRSAPANITAKOR 1997USAPURVEN First round Pool A 2006 World Baseball Classic Pool A Standings Mar 3, 2006 11:30 KOR 1997 2–0 TPE Tokyo Dome 3:19 5,193 Boxscore Mar 3, 2006 18:30 JPN 18–2 CHN 8 Tokyo Dome 3:04 15,869 Boxscore Mar 4, 2006 11:00 CHN 1–10 KOR 1997 Tokyo Dome 2:52 3,925 Boxscore Mar 4, 2006 18:00 JPN 14–3 TPE 7 Tokyo Dome 3:10 31,047 Boxscore Mar 5, 2006 11:00 TPE 12–3 CHN Tokyo Dome 3:31 4,577 Boxscore Mar 5, 2006 18:00 KOR 1997 3–2 JPN Tokyo Dome 3:02 40,353 Boxscore |} Pool B 2006 World Baseball Classic Pool B Standings Mar 7, 2006 14:00 MEX 0–2 USA Chase Field 2:06 32,727 Boxscore Mar 7, 2006 19:00 CAN 11–8 RSA Scottsdale Stadium 3:38 5,829 Boxscore Mar 8, 2006 14:00 CAN 8–6 USA Chase Field 3:02 16,993 Boxscore Mar 8, 2006 19:00 RSA 4–10 MEX Scottsdale Stadium 3:17 7,937 Boxscore Mar 9, 2006 18:00 MEX 9–1 CAN Chase Field 3:00 15,744 Boxscore Mar 10, 2006 13:00 USA 17–0 RSA 5 Scottsdale Stadium 1:47 11,975 Boxscore |} Pool C 2006 World Baseball Classic Pool C Standings Mar 7, 2006 20:00 PAN 1–2 PUR Hiram Bithorn Stadium 2:47 19,043 Boxscore Mar 8, 2006 14:00 CUB 8–6 PAN 11 Hiram Bithorn Stadium 4:11 6,129 Boxscore Mar 8, 2006 20:30 PUR 8–3 NED Hiram Bithorn Stadium 3:29 15,570 Boxscore Mar 9, 2006 20:00 CUB 11–2 NED Hiram Bithorn Stadium 3:19 7,657 Boxscore Mar 10, 2006 14:00 NED 10–0 PAN 7 Hiram Bithorn Stadium 2:18 6,337 Boxscore Mar 10, 2006 20:30 PUR 12–2 CUB 7 Hiram Bithorn Stadium 3:01 19,736 Boxscore |} Pool D 2006 World Baseball Classic Pool D Standings Mar 7, 2006 13:00 DOM 11–5 VEN 1954 Cracker Jack Stadium 3:16 10,645 Boxscore Mar 7, 2006 20:00 AUS 0–10 ITA 7 Cracker Jack Stadium 2:16 8,099 Boxscore Mar 8, 2006 19:00 ITA 0–6 VEN 1954 Cracker Jack Stadium 2:48 10,101 Boxscore Mar 9, 2006 13:00 ITA 3–8 DOM Cracker Jack Stadium 2:39 9,949 Boxscore Mar 9, 2006 20:00 VEN 1954 2–0 AUS Cracker Jack Stadium 2:45 10,111 Boxscore Mar 10, 2006 19:00 AUS 4–6 DOM Cracker Jack Stadium 2:52 11,083 Boxscore |} Second round Pool 1 2006 World Baseball Classic Pool 1 Standings Mar 12, 2006 13:00 JPN 3–4 USA Angel Stadium of Anaheim 3:09 32,896 Boxscore Mar 12, 2006 20:00 MEX 1–2 KOR 1997 Angel Stadium of Anaheim 2:57 42,979 Boxscore Mar 13, 2006 19:00 USA 3–7 KOR 1997 Angel Stadium of Anaheim 3:27 21,288 Boxscore Mar 14, 2006 16:00 JPN 6–1 MEX Angel Stadium of Anaheim 2:36 16,591 Boxscore Mar 15, 2006 19:00 KOR 1997 2–1 JPN Angel Stadium of Anaheim 2:44 39,679 Boxscore Mar 16, 2006 16:30 USA 1–2 MEX Angel Stadium of Anaheim 2:50 38,284 Boxscore |} Pool 2 2006 World Baseball Classic Pool 2 Standings Mar 12, 2006 14:00 CUB 7–2 VEN Hiram Bithorn Stadium 2:56 13,697 Boxscore Mar 12, 2006 21:00 PUR 7–1 DOM Hiram Bithorn Stadium 3:01 19,692 Boxscore Mar 13, 2006 14:00 DOM 7–3 CUB Hiram Bithorn Stadium 3:48 6,594 Boxscore Mar 13, 2006 20:00 VEN 6–0 PUR Hiram Bithorn Stadium 3:09 19,400 Boxscore Mar 14, 2006 20:00 VEN 1–2 DOM Hiram Bithorn Stadium 3:02 13,007 Boxscore Mar 15, 2006 20:00 CUB 4–3 PUR Hiram Bithorn Stadium 3:56 19,773 Boxscore |} Championship round Semifinals Final 40 180 2R CUB 3 2W DOM 1 1R JPN 6 1W KOR 1997 0 SF1W CUB 6 SF2W JPN 10 Semifinals Mar 18, 2006 12:00 CUB 3–1 DOM Petco Park 3:42 41,268 Boxscore Mar 18, 2006 19:00 JPN 6–0 KOR 1997 Petco Park 2:40 42,639 Boxscore |} Semifinal 1 – Cuba 3, Dominican Republic 1 March 18 12:00 Petco Park CUB CUB 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 3 12 3 DOM DOM 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 8 1 Pedro Luis Lazo (1–0) Odalis Pérez (2–1) 41,268 (97.2%) HP − Bob Davidson, 1B − Tom Hallion, 2B − Chris Guccione, 3B − Neil Poulton,LF − Carlos Rey, RF − Ed Hickox http://mlb.mlb.com/wbc/2009/stats/boxscore.jsp?gid=2006_03_18_cubint_domint_1 Semifinal 2 – Japan 6, South Korea 0 March 18 19:00 Petco Park JPN JPN 0 0 0 0 0 0 5 1 0 6 11 0 KOR 1997 KOR 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 0 Koji Uehara (2–0) Byung-doo Jun (0–1) Kosuke Fukudome (1), Hitoshi Tamura (1) 42,639 (100.5%) HP − Ed Hickox, 1B − Chris Guccione, 2B − Bob Davidson, 3B − Carlos Rey,LF − Tom Hallion, RF − Neil Poulton http://mlb.mlb.com/wbc/2009/stats/boxscore.jsp?gid=2006_03_18_jpnint_korint_1 Final 2006 World Baseball Classic championship Mar 20, 2006 18:00 JPN 10–6 CUB Petco Park 3:40 42,696 Boxscore |} Final standings Organizer WBCI has no interest in the final standings and did not compute. So, it was calculated by IBAF. In the final standings, ties were to be broken in the following order of priority: The team allowing the fewest runs per nine innings (RA/9) in all games; The team allowing the fewest earned runs per nine innings (ERA) in all games; The team with the highest batting average (AVG) in all games; RkTeamWLTiebreaker1JPN53–Lost in Final2CUB53–Lost in Semifinals3KOR 199761–4DOM52–Eliminated in Second Round5PUR42–6MEX332.77 RA/97VEN333.40 RA/98USA333.75 RA/9Eliminated in First Round9CAN21–10ITA125.48 RA/911NED126.84 RA/9, 6.48 ERA12TPE126.84 RA/9, 6.84 ERA13AUS036.85 RA/914PAN036.92 RA/915CHN0314.40 RA/916RSA0315.55 RA/9 bb 2006 World Baseball Classic champions JPN First thumb|right|Championship Trophy Attendance 737,112 (avg. 18,900; pct. 67.1%) First round 326,629 (avg. 13,610; pct. 55.3%) Pool A – 100,964 (avg. 16,827; pct. 40.1%) Pool B – 91,205 (avg. 15,201; pct. 52.8%) Chase Field – 65,464 (avg. 21,821; pct. 44.5%) Scottsdale Stadium – 25,741 (avg. 8,580; pct. 100.9%) Pool C – 74,472 (avg. 12,412; pct. 68.0%) Pool D – 59,988 (avg. 9,998; pct. 105.2%) Second round 283,880 (avg. 23,657; pct. 74.7%) Pool 1 – 191,717 (avg. 31,953; pct. 70.9%) Pool 2 – 92,163 (avg. 15,361; pct. 84.1%) Championship round 126,603 (avg. 42,201; pct. 99.4%) Semifinals – 83,907 (avg. 41,954; pct. 98.8%) Final – 42,696 (avg. 42,696; pct. 100.6%) 2006 All-World Baseball Classic team right 600 Tomoya Satozaki on August 6, 2011 (1).jpg Adrián Beltré on April 15, 2007 (1).jpg Derek Jeter on April 13, 2010 (1).jpg Ken Griffey Jr. on March 25, 2006 (1).jpg Ichiro Suzuki on June 3, 2010 (1).jpg DSC03272 Chan Ho Park (1).jpg Players named to the All-WBC Team (from left to right); Catcher – Tomoya Satozaki of JapanThird baseman – Adrián Beltré of the Dominican RepublicShortstop – Derek Jeter of the United StatesOutfielder – Ken Griffey Jr. of the United StatesOutfielder – Ichiro Suzuki of JapanPitcher – Chan Ho Park of South Korea Note: The tournament Most Valuable Player was Daisuke Matsuzaka.https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/world-baseball-classic-previous-champs-results-medal-count-mvps-all-wbc-teams/ World Baseball Classic: Previous champs, results, medal count, MVPS, All-WBC teams March 23, 2017 PositionPlayerCJPN Tomoya Satozaki1BKOR 1997 Seung-yuop Lee2BCUB Yulieski Gourriel3BDOM Adrián BeltréSSUSA Derek JeterOFUSA Ken Griffey Jr.KOR 1997 Jong-beom LeeJPN Ichiro SuzukiDHCUB Yoandy GarloboPCUB Yadel MartíJPN Daisuke MatsuzakaKOR 1997 Chan Ho Park Statistics leaders Batting Statistic Name Total/AvgBatting average* CAN Adam Stern .667Hits JPN Nobuhiko Matsunaka 13Runs JPN Nobuhiko Matsunaka 11Home runs KOR 1997 Seung-yuop Lee 5RBI USA Ken Griffey Jr.KOR 1997 Seung-yuop Lee 10Walks DOM David Ortiz 8Strikeouts JPN Hitoshi Tamura 9Stolen bases JPN Tsuyoshi Nishioka 5On-base percentage* CAN Adam Stern .727Slugging percentage* CAN Adam Stern 1.333OPS* CAN Adam Stern 2.061 * Minimum 2.7 plate appearances per game Pitching Statistic Name Total/AvgWins JPN Daisuke Matsuzaka 3Losses MEX Rodrigo LópezVEN Johan SantanaUSA Dontrelle Willis 2Saves KOR 1997 Chan Ho Park 3Innings pitched JPN Koji Uehara 17.0Hits allowed JPN Koji Uehara 17Runs allowed RSA Carl Michaels 10Earned runs allowed RSA Carl Michaels 10ERA* CUB Yadel Martí 0.00**Walks USA Dontrelle Willis 6Strikeouts JPN Koji Uehara 16WHIP* NED Shairon Martis 0.14 * Minimum 0.8 innings pitched per game ** Martí is tied with 10 others with a 0.00 ERA but he pitched the most innings with 12.2 Additional rules There were several rule changes from normal major league play. Pitchers were held to a pitch count of 65 in the first round, 80 in the second round, and 95 in the championship round. (Netherlands pitcher Shairon Martis used exactly 65 pitches to throw a seven inning no-hitter of the tournament, a 10–0 win over PanamaDutch Minor Leaguer No-Hits Panama https://apnews.com/article/bf76bf68cc5ea2e1e9a66e7a3cbb087e March 14, 2023 AP NEWS en stopped by the mercy rule [see below].) If a pitcher reached his maximum pitch count in the middle of an at-bat, he could continue to pitch to that batter, but was required to be replaced once that at-bat ended. A 30–pitch outing needed to be followed by one day off, and a 50–pitch outing by four days off. No one would be allowed to pitch on three consecutive days. A mercy rule came into effect when one team led by either fifteen runs after five innings, or ten runs after seven innings in the first two rounds. In addition, ties could be called after fourteen innings of play. The designated hitter rule was in place for all games. Controversies Controversies at the 2006 World Baseball Classic Format South Korea completed the first two rounds undefeated (6–0) but was still forced to play Japan, a team it had beaten twice, in the semifinal round. South Korea lost and thus placed 3rd, even though South Korea's final standings were 6–1, with the most wins. Other international sporting competitions, such as the FIFA World Cup, are formatted so teams cannot play each other three times but can only face each other twice at most – in round robin group play and again for the championship or 3rd-place match. In addition, the regional grouping of teams was questioned because the groups were perceived as unevenly distributed, and the four-team pool system and subsequent three-way tiebreakers were widely seen as awkward. Umpires Tournament organizers could not reach an agreement with the MLB umpires' union and so the Classic was overseen by umpires from the minor leagues. South Korea When South Korea beat Japan, they planted South Korean national flags into a pitcher's mound at Angels Stadium at Anaheim.http://www.worldbaseballclassic.com/2006/news/recap.jsp?ymd=20060316&content_id=1351845&gameid=2006_03_15_korint_jpnint_1 https://web.archive.org/web/20070426232804/http://www.worldbaseballclassic.com/2006/news/recap.jsp?ymd=20060316&content_id=1351845&gameid=2006_03_15_korint_jpnint_1 dead April 26, 2007 World Baseball Classic: News April 26, 2007 June 4, 2019 Chinese Taipei The Chinese Taipei team was originally listed as "Taiwan" and bearing the ROC national flag, but following pressure from the People's Republic of China the listing was later changed to Chinese Taipei with the Chinese Taipei Olympic flag. Drug testing The World Anti-Doping Agency criticized IBAF's drug testing program and threatened to withdraw sanction of the event under claims the MLB was attempting to "brush the issue under the carpet."http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/11863168/ https://web.archive.org/web/20071029055229/http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/11863168/ October 29, 2007 MSN South Korean pitcher Myung-hwan Park tested positive for a banned substance during the event, and he was subsequently kicked out of the WBC.. Venezuelan pitcher Freddy García tested positive for marijuana. Player participation Numerous MLB players pulled out of the competition for various reasons, such as Barry Bonds,Bonds says he doesn't want to risk injury https://www.espn.com/mlb/worldclassic2006/news/story?id=2303604 ESPN January 23, 2006 January 12, 2021 https://web.archive.org/web/20210112000303/https://www.espn.com/mlb/worldclassic2006/news/story?id=2303604 January 12, 2021 live Vladimir Guerrero,Guerrero Pulls Out of Classic https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2006-mar-02-sp-angelrep2-story.html Los Angeles Times Digiovanna, Mike March 2, 2006 January 12, 2021 https://archive.today/20210112000729/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2006-mar-02-sp-angelrep2-story.html January 12, 2021 live and Manny Ramírez,Red Sox owner: Manny not playing in WBC https://www.espn.com/mlb/worldclassic2006/news/story?id=2342169 ESPN February 23, 2006 January 12, 2021 https://web.archive.org/web/20210112000044/https://www.espn.com/mlb/worldclassic2006/news/story?id=2342169 January 12, 2021 live among others. Cuba in particular barred players such as Orlando Hernández, his half-brother Liván Hernández, and José Contreras from its team as Cubans who had previously defected.Searching for a Home Base Cuban Defectors Are Left Without a Country to Play for in Inaugural Classic https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/sports/2006/03/03/searching-for-a-home-base-span-classbankheadcuban-defectors-are-left-without-a-country-to-play-for-in-inaugural-classicspan/d6d27db3-a76e-418b-ab6d-baa8d2e40ec8/ The Washington Post Sheinin, David Fainaru, Steve March 3, 2003 January 4, 2021 https://web.archive.org/web/20210104045211/https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/sports/2006/03/03/searching-for-a-home-base-span-classbankheadcuban-defectors-are-left-without-a-country-to-play-for-in-inaugural-classicspan/d6d27db3-a76e-418b-ab6d-baa8d2e40ec8/ January 4, 2021 live Success of tournament Many members of the United States press were skeptical of the Classic since its inception. The event proved to be quite popular, however, providing many memorable moments including a first-round game between Venezuela and the Dominican Republic. Attendance was higher than expected at several sites, including the 18,000-seat Hiram Bithorn Stadium in San Juan, which was sold out for every Puerto Rico game in the first two rounds. In addition, 4,000 media credentials were issued – more than the World Series – which bodes well for the stated goal of internationalizing the sport. Sports Illustrated writer Tom Verducci reported that "more merchandise was sold in the first round than organizers projected for the entire 17-day event." https://web.archive.org/web/20120224202804/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2006/writers/tom_verducci/03/14/wbc.classic/1.html February 24, 2012 He also reported that, at one point, jerseys for the Venezuelan team were selling at the rate of one every six seconds. The U.S. television ratings on ESPN were stronger than initially expected, drawing more than one million television sets for some games, more than almost any other ESPN program in the month of March. This occurred despite less than stellar airing times for the games. Most were not aired live but taped, and sometimes with innings cut, as the WBC was organized well after ESPN had committed to much of its programming. Outside the U.S. TV ratings were very high. In Latin America, a first-round game between the United States and Mexico, was the third-most-watched game in the history of ESPN Dos, one of the three Spanish-language channels of ESPN in Latin America. The allocation of earnings The total earnings of the World Baseball Classic is divided into net profit (53%) and prize money (47%). Net profit (53%) World Baseball Classic Inc.: 17.5% Baseball Players Union: 17.5% Japanese Baseball Organization: 7% Korea Baseball Organization: 5% International Baseball Federation: 5% Miscellaneous expenses: 1% Prize money (47%) Japan (champions): 10% Cuba (runners-up): 7% South Korea and Dominican Republic (semifinalists): 5% each The four teams that lost out in Round 2: 3% each The eight teams that lost out in Round 1: 1% each References Unofficial chat forum of The World Baseball Classic (Archived) 2 External links Official website World Baseball Classic Category:World Baseball Classic Category:March 2006 in sports