The Baseball Desert

Thursday, March 09, 2006

North Country Boy

If you thought that Canada was going to be a pushover for the U.S. team, then it's time to think again. Fuelled by a stellar afternoon from Adam Stern (3-for-4, including a triple and an inside-the-park homer, 4 RBIs and two great catches in center field) and some tough pitching from a bunch of minor-league players, Team Canada held off a sixth-inning six-run surge by the U.S. (including a grand slam by Jason Varitek) to score a surprise victory.

Canada now has the upper hand in Pool B, with a 2-0 record, but all is still left to play for. If Mexico beats Canada tonight and the U.S. beats South Africa tomorrow, then three teams will finish with a 2-1 record. According to WBC rules, ties are broken in the following order of priority:
  1. The winner of head-to-head games between the tied teams;
  2. The team allowing the fewest runs per nine innings (RA/9) in head-to-head games between the tied teams;
  3. The team allowing the fewest earned runs per nine innings (ERA) in head-to-head games between the tied teams;
  4. The team with the highest highest batting average (AVG) in head-to-head games between the tied teams;
  5. Drawing of lots, conducted by WBCI.
If the pool plays out as outlined above, tiebreaker no. 1 wouldn't be much help, because each of the three teams would have one head-to-head win, so it may all go down to the number of runs / earned runs allowed.

Of course, since all of these theories are on paper and the games are in fact being played on grass, none of the above may happen. Which is, when you think about it, baseball's raison d'ĂȘtre and the reason we're all watching in the first place.