MIAMI — The mercy rule is designed to spare Little Leaguers from humiliation, not a bunch of big league all-stars.
But it was Jimmy Rollins, David Wright and their United States teammates who found themselves shuffling off the field in the seventh inning Saturday night. Puerto Rico scored four times in the seventh to complete an 11-1 victory that left Team USA on the ropes in round two of the World Baseball Classic.
“Everybody is embarrassed,” U.S. shortstop Derek Jeter said. “But 2-1 or 11-1, we’re still in the same position. You can’t sit around and hang your head too long.”
Carlos Beltran and Felipe Lopez homered, and Puerto Rico rocked Jake Peavy for six runs in the first two innings to send the U.S. team into the loser’s bracket. Roy Oswalt will start for the Americans when they face the Netherlands in an elimination game tonight.
To cap a Classic blowout, Mike Aviles hit a two-out, two-run single in the seventh, triggering the tournament’s 10-run rule and sending Puerto Rico’s players pouring out of the dugout in jubilation. Several players on both teams said they didn’t realize the game was over, including Puerto Rico’s hot-hitting Ivan Rodriguez.
“I was putting on my catching equipment,” he said. “When I walked out, I saw everyone on the field. I thought maybe somebody got hurt.”
Javier Vazquez (2-0) allowed one run in five innings for Puerto Rico, which remained unbeaten through four games. Rodriguez, playing in Miami for the first time since he helped the Marlins win the 2003 World Series, went 3-for-4 with two doubles and an RBI to hike his WBC batting average to .600 (9-for-15).
The Americans were eager to make amends for a humiliating eighth-place finish in the inaugural WBC three years ago, and they came into the tournament considered a strong contender for the title. But they’re 2-2 this time around.
Venezuela 3, Netherlands 1
Miguel Cabrera and Jose Lopez each had solo home runs for Venezuela.
Carlos Silva allowed one run and four hits in seven innings, and Lopez’s homer in the eighth gave Venezuela all the cushion it needed.
The Associated Press
