San Juan. Venezuela defeated Spain 11-6 on Sunday afternoon at Hiram Birthorn Stadium in San Juan, Puerto Rico to close out first-round play in Pool C. Both teams will miss the second round, Venezuela in third place, Spain in fourth.
It didn’t look good for Venezuela also in their last game of this year’s 2013 World Baseball Classic. Spain opened the game with a RBI double by Yunesky Sanchez and a two-run home run of Barbaro Canizares to take a quick 3-0 lead.
But Venezuela’s offense finally woke up in the fourth inning. Six runs in the bottom half of the frame, highlighted by Elvis Andrus’ two-run go-ahead single, turned the game around.
Even though Spain was able to answer with a two-run single by Salomon Manriquez in the fifth to make it 5-6, Venezuela had control of the outcome. Five insurance runs in the sixth and eighth sealed the deal.
Miguel Cabrera and Pablo Sandoval hit back-to-back home runs in the eighth to close out the tournament in style. Engel Beltre did the same with a solo shot for Spain in the ninth.
It was too late for Venezuela, as the reigning American League MVP and Triple Crown winner Miguel Cabrera found his stroke. He finished the game with three hits, three runs and three RBI. Venezuela erupted for 16 hits against the underdog.
R.A. Ramirez (W, 1-0) received the win, allowing four hits, three runs and a walk in four innings. Spain’s starter Richard Castillo gave his manager Mauro Mazzotti hopes for an upset, as he issued just four hits in three scoreless innings. But relievers Chris Manno and Eddie Morlan (L, 0-1) blew the three-run lead in just one frame.
For both teams the 2013 World Baseball Classic is history. Venezuela, which claimed third place in the 2009 event, managed just one win in three games in this year’s first round and misses the qualification for the next phase.
Spain showed impressive performance in their World Baseball Classic debut, but still remained winless. They had won the WBC Qualifier in Jupiter, Florida last September, edging out Israel, France and South Africa.
