February 24, 2009
World Baseball Classic
I was there in 2006 when the inaugural World Baseball Classic began play. One of the venues chosen for these games was Chase Field. I was eagerly looking forward to what was being touted as the baseball equivalent to the soccer World Cup. Finally major league baseball players from around the world would suit up and see which country had the strongest team. The rosters looked like a who’s who of baseball’s greatest stars. Unlike the annual all-star game these World Baseball Classic games actually meant something or at least that was what we were led to believe. I was there in attendance to watch the round-robin pool play which included Team USA. After the first couple of games I began to realize that this wasn’t anything like I was expecting. Many of the major league players were not yet in playing shape while others were viewing this as a glorified exhibition series. The players on Team USA were going through the motions and it was soon evident that they were destined to an early departure from the tournament.
