Korea's Quarterfinal Opponent Revealed...Dominican Republic Led by Soto

Dominican Republic Defeats Venezuela 7-5 in WBC Group D

Dominican Republic Advances as Top Seed, Venezuela Takes Second Place

Italy and United States Secure Quarterfinal Berths as Group B’s First and Second Place Teams

The World Baseball Classic (WBC) has determined the quarterfinal opponent for the Korean national baseball team. It will be the Dominican Republic, whose roster is packed with Major League Baseball players.

On March 12 (Korean Standard Time), the Dominican Republic defeated Venezuela 7-5 in the WBC Group D round-robin held at loanDepot Park in Miami, Florida, USA. By winning all four of their group stage games, the Dominican Republic advanced to the quarterfinals as the top seed in Group D. The Dominican Republic will compete with Korea, the second-place team from Group C, on March 14 for a spot in the semifinals. Meanwhile, Venezuela, which finished second in Group D, will face Japan, the first-place team from Group C, in the quarterfinals on March 15.

Juan Soto of the Dominican Republic is celebrating after hitting a two-run home run in the first inning of the fourth game of the WBC Group D round against Venezuela. Miami=AFP Yonhap News Agency

The Dominican bats came alive in this game. Juan Soto (New York Mets) opened the scoring in the first inning with a two-run home run over the center field wall with one out and a runner on first. In the third inning, Ketel Marte (Arizona Diamondbacks) and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (Toronto Blue Jays) each added solo home runs. Fernando Tatis Jr. (San Diego Padres) blasted a three-run homer over the left field wall in the fourth inning with two outs and runners on first and third.

Venezuela, trailing 3-7, created a bases-loaded, no-out opportunity in their final at-bat in the ninth inning by drawing three consecutive walks. Luis Arraez (San Francisco Giants) brought in a run with a sacrifice fly, and then, when pitcher Elvis Alvarado (Oakland Athletics) fielded a grounder from Wilson Contreras (St. Louis Cardinals) and threw wildly to second base, Ronald Acuna Jr. (Atlanta Braves), who was on second, came home to score. That was as far as Venezuela's comeback would go. Salvador Perez (Kansas City Royals) grounded into a double play to end the game.

In Group B, the Cinderella team Italy defeated Mexico by a wide margin, 9-1, and swept their group with an undefeated record. Italy, which has already beaten the United States, powerhouse Mexico, as well as Great Britain and Brazil, secured the top spot in Group B with four consecutive wins. Italy will face Puerto Rico, the second-place team from Group A, in the quarterfinals on March 15.

The United States advanced to the quarterfinals as the second-place team in Group B, thanks to Italy's victory over Mexico. The U.S., with a 3-1 record, finished second in Group B and will compete against Canada, the first-place team from Group A, on March 14. These two countries, which have recently clashed over trade tariff issues, will face each other for the third time this year in a major sports tournament.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.