Albeit not as popular as the Olympics and World Cup, the World Baseball Classic still has its share of exciting baseball action, highlighted by the bench-clearing brawl between Mexico and Canada. Here’s a recap of a thrilling first round:hits that they got from Robinson Cano, Jose Reyes and Nelson Cruz. Italy managed to put up a four-run first inning, but was scoreless for the rest of the game. Puerto Rico will play the U.S. in the second game.

Pool A – Fukuoka, Japan

Japan, China, Cuba and Brazil participated in this pool. At first glance, this seems to be the “Group of Death” in the first round. Japan and Cuba are the big hitters in this group, with Japan winning their first two games by a combined score of 10-5 and Cuba winning their first two games 17-2. With both teams winning their first two games, they earned a pass to the next round, but they still had to play each other, with Cuba coming out on top by a score of 6-3.

Pool B – Taichung, Taiwan

The most competitive group in the first round was group B, with the Chinese Taipei, Netherlands and Korea finding themselves in a three-way tie for first place in the group, as all teams had a record of 2-1 with lowly Australia going home without a win. The Chinese Taipei and the Netherlands advanced to the second round.

Pool C – San Juan, Puerto Rico

This pool played out like most had expected it. The Dominican Republic and host Puerto Rico advanced to the second round, while Venezuela and Spain went home. Led by Yankees second-baseman Robinson Cano, who has clubbed nine hits in 15 at-bats, the Dominican Republic rolled through group C with a 3-0 record. Angel Pagan and Mike Aviles have been two solid hitters through the first round for Puerto Rico, combining for eight hits and seven RBI’s so far.

Pool D – Phoenix, Arizonahits that they got from Robinson Cano, Jose Reyes and Nelson Cruz. Italy managed to put up a four-run first inning, but was scoreless for the rest of the game. Puerto Rico will play the U.S. in the second game.

The United States and Italy advanced, while Canada and Mexico were eliminated. The highlight of the tournament came during the game between Canada and Mexico, where the Canadians brought some of their talents from the ice to the diamond and got into a bench-clearing brawl with Mexico after a pitcher for Mexico hit a Canadian batter. The U.S. lost to Mexico, 5-2, in their opener, but rebounded to beat Italy, 6-2, and Canada, 9-4. Italy, the surprise team of the first round, beat Mexico in their opener and dispatched Canada with a 14-4 victory in their second game. Both Canada and Mexico ended up with 1-2 records.hits that they got from Robinson Cano, Jose Reyes and Nelson Cruz. Italy managed to put up a four-run first inning, but was scoreless for the rest of the game. Puerto Rico will play the U.S. in the second game.

Second Round Recap – Pool 1 – Tokyo, Japan

Pool 1 in the second round started play four days earlier than Pool 2. The Netherlands beat Cuba 6-2, largely helped by Jonathan Schoop’s 4 RBI’s, while the Chinese Taipei lost an extra-inning affair to Japan 4-3, and then got walloped by Cuba 14-0 in an elimination game. In their next game, Cuba lost a rematch with the Netherlands in the final at-bat, 7-6, sending them home. Japan crushed the Netherlands in their second game 16-4, in a game that was ended in the seventh inning and saw Japan score at least one run every time they were at bat. Runs were aplenty in the rematch on Tuesday. Japan, riding an eight-run second inning in which Japanese hitter Shinnosuke Abe hit a homer twice, took over the game early. The Netherlands made a valiant effort in the latter part of the game, scoring two runs in the seventh inning and three in the eighth, but could not muster enough offense to climb out of the hole that they got themselves in earlier in the game. The two teams now wait to see who their opponents will be in the semifinals.

Second Round Preview – Pool 2 – Miami, Florida

The U.S., Italy, Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic will compete for the other two spots in the WBC semifinals. In the first game, the Dominican Republic beat Italy 5-4, largely in part by the combined seven hits that they got from Robinson Cano, Jose Reyes and Nelson Cruz. Italy managed to put up a four-run first inning, but was scoreless for the rest of the game. Puerto Rico will play the U.S. in the second game.

Contact Chris Ginley at [email protected].