Final Olympic baseball qualifier Day 3: NED vs. DOM historical preview, starting pitchers

PUEBLA, Mexico -- The national teams of the Netherlands (0-1) and Dominican Republic (1-0) will close the Opening Round of the WBSC Baseball Final Qualifier this afternoon at Estadio Hermanos Serdán, with Venezuela (1-1) having already concluded their opening round games . First pitch is scheduled for 5 p.m. local time. The pivotal game will shape the semifinal match-up and confirm which of the three participating teams head directly into the final game.

Netherlands’ manager Hensley Meulens will send Tom de Blok to the mound. De Blok, born in 1996, is a former minor leaguer in the Detroit Tigers organization. He helped the Netherlands win the 2016 European Baseball Championship. He also represented his country at the World Baseball Classic 2017 and the WBSC Europe/Africa Olympic Qualifier 2019. This year, the right hander tossed the fourth perfect game in the history of the Dutch Hoofdklasse, the country’s top baseball league.

For Dominican Republic, Osvaldo Bido will take tha ball. Bido, 25, has tallied a 2-0 record in 7 starts for the Pittsburgh Pirates AA affiliate, Altoona Curve. He has struck out 30 in 31.2 innings, with 3.41 ERA. He was added to the Dominican roster after the Americas Olympic qualifier in Florida.

Historical Match-ups

• In their last meeting with their men's national teams, Dominican Republic defeated Netherlands 14-4 in Jalisco, Mexico, in the opening round of the 2019 WBSC Premier12.
• Dominican Republic won the 2013 World Baseball Classic and their route to the title included a 4-1 win over the Netherlands in the semifinals.
• Netherlands recorded two wins against Dominican Republic in the first round of the 2009 World Baseball Classic.