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2013 World Baseball Classic

The 2013 World Baseball Classic (WBC) was an international professional baseball competition, held from March 2 to 19, 2013. This was the third iteration of the WBC, following the two previous tournaments, held in 2006 and 2009.

2013 World Baseball Classic
Tournament details
CountriesJapan
Puerto Rico
Taiwan
United States
DatesMarch 2–19, 2013
Teams16
Final positions
Champions Dominican Republic (1st title)
Runner-up Puerto Rico
Third place Japan
Fourth place Netherlands
Tournament statistics
Games played39
Attendance781,438 (20,037 per game)
MVPDominican Republic Robinson Canó
← 2009
2017 →

Unlike the two previous WBCs, which consisted of the same sixteen countries, only the twelve countries that won at least one game in the 2009 WBC were guaranteed a berth in the main tournament.[1] The automatic qualifiers were Australia, China, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Italy, Japan, Mexico, the Netherlands, Puerto Rico, South Korea, the United States, and Venezuela. Four qualification brackets were held in late 2012 and respectively won by Canada, Taiwan, Spain, and Brazil, who joined the WBC as the final four teams (the latter two making their Classic debuts).

As in the 2006 tournament, the first round had a round-robin format, which led to South Korea being eliminated on a run difference tiebreaker. Venezuela also failed to advance out of a tough group. The fourth-place teams in each group – Brazil, Australia, Spain, and Mexico – had to participate in the qualifying round in order to return for the 2017 tournament.

The second round was a modified double-elimination format, as in the 2009 tournament, where the modification was that the final game of each bracket was winner-take-all, even if won by the team emerging from the loser's bracket, although that game only affected seeding as two teams advanced from each bracket. The Netherlands improved on its surprising 2009 run by advancing to the semifinal game, as did two-time defending champion Japan. However, the two-time defending champions Japan were eliminated in the semi-finals game against stunning Puerto Rico. In the final game, the Dominican Republic defeated Puerto Rico to become the first WBC champion from the Western Hemisphere, as well as the first team to complete the WBC with an undefeated record, and the only one to do so until Japan also finished with a perfect record in the 2023 World Baseball Classic. Robinson Canó was named the Most Valuable Player of the Classic.[2]

Revenue-sharing dispute

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The preparations for the third World Baseball Classic were complicated by a dispute between the Japanese Professional Baseball Players Association (JPBPA), the union for all Nippon Professional Baseball players, and MLB over revenue sharing. JPBPA demanded a larger share of advertising and merchandise sponsorship revenue for the tournament, a large chunk of which came from Japanese companies. MLB resisted the move in part due to the fact that the World Baseball Classic is a joint production of MLB and the MLB Player's Association, meaning that those two organizations bore the cost of the tournament.

In July 2012, the JPBPA voted unanimously to boycott the 2013 World Baseball Classic.[3][4] The move was interpreted by some news outlets as a non-final decision, aimed at raising the pressure on MLB.[5][6] In September 2012, Japanese players agreed to take part after reaching a compromise with tournament organizers on sharing sponsorship and licensing revenue.[7]

Qualification

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Main article: 2013 World Baseball Classic qualification

The top three teams from each pool of the first round of the 2009 World Baseball Classic automatically qualified.

Team World ranking[8] Method of qualification Classic appearance Previous best position
  Australia 10th 2009 World Baseball Classic 3rd Round 1
  China 18th 2009 World Baseball Classic 3rd Round 1
  Cuba 1st 2009 World Baseball Classic 3rd Runners-up (2006)
  Dominican Republic 13th 2009 World Baseball Classic 3rd Fourth place (2006)
  Italy 9th 2009 World Baseball Classic 3rd Round 1
  Japan 3rd 2009 World Baseball Classic 3rd Champions (2006, 2009)
  Mexico 11th 2009 World Baseball Classic 3rd Round 2 (2006, 2009)
  Netherlands 7th 2009 World Baseball Classic 3rd Round 2 (2009)
  Puerto Rico 12th 2009 World Baseball Classic 3rd Round 2 (2006, 2009)
  South Korea 4th 2009 World Baseball Classic 3rd Runners-up (2009)
  United States 2nd 2009 World Baseball Classic 3rd Fourth place (2009)
  Venezuela 8th 2009 World Baseball Classic 3rd Third place (2009)
  Spain 16th Qualifier 1 1st —
  Canada 6th Qualifier 2 3rd Round 1
  Brazil 20th Qualifier 3 1st —
  Chinese Taipei 5th Qualifier 4 3rd Round 1

Format

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In the first round, each team played the other three teams in its pool once. Teams were ranked by winning percentage in the first round, with the top two teams in each pool advancing to the second round. There, the teams from Pools A and B (in Pool 1) and the teams from Pools C and D (in Pool 2) competed in a double-elimination format.

The top two teams in each pool in the second round entered the four-team single-elimination semifinals. The four qualifying teams crossed over for the semifinals, with the winner of each pool playing against the runner-up from the other pool.

In the final, the team with the higher winning percentage of games in the tournament were to be the home team. If the teams competing in the final had identical winning percentages in the tournament, then World Baseball Classic, Inc. (WBCI) would conduct a coin flip or draw to determine the home team.

In the first round, ties were to be broken in the following order of priority:[9]

  1. The winner of head-to-head games between the tied teams;
  2. The team with the highest Team's Quality Balance (TQB=(runs scored (RS)/innings batted (IPO))–(runs against (RA)/innings pitched (IPD))) in head-to-head games between the tied teams;
  3. The team with the highest Earned Runs Team's Quality Balance (ER–TQB=(earned runs scored (ERS)/IPO)–(earned runs against (ERA)/IPD)) in head-to-head games between the tied teams;
  4. The team with the highest batting average (AVG) in head-to-head games between the tied teams;
  5. Drawing of lots, conducted by World Baseball Classic, Inc. (WBCI).

Rosters

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Main article: 2013 World Baseball Classic rosters

The deadline for submitting provisional rosters was January 16, but teams had until February 20 to finalize their roster decisions. Many Major League Baseball (MLB) players participated. The United States provisional roster was made up entirely of players from MLB, and champions Dominican Republic provisional roster had only one player not signed to an MLB team in 2013. The Canadian team had 12 players who appeared in MLB in 2012. Japan had none and two prominent Japanese MLB players, Yu Darvish and Ichiro Suzuki, chose not to play. Though five members who competed for the Cuban national team in the 2009 WBC have since defected, the Cuban team was considered strong despite its 2nd-round sacking. Three members of MLB.com's Top 100 prospect participated: Xander Bogaerts, Eddie Rosario, and Jameson Taillon.

Venues

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Eight stadiums were used during the main tournament:

Pool A Pool B Pool C Pool D
  Fukuoka, Japan   Taichung, Taiwan   San Juan, Puerto Rico   Phoenix, United States
Fukuoka Dome Taichung Intercontinental Baseball Stadium Hiram Bithorn Stadium Chase Field
Capacity: 38,561 Capacity: 20,000 Capacity: 18,264 Capacity: 48,633
       
Pool D Pool 1 Pool 2 Championship
  Scottsdale, United States   Tokyo, Japan   Miami, United States   San Francisco, United States
Salt River Fields at Talking Stick Tokyo Dome Marlins Park AT&T Park
Capacity: 11,000 Capacity: 42,000 Capacity: 36,742 Capacity: 41,915
       

Pools composition

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The top 12 teams that participated in the 2009 World Baseball Classic were invited back for the 2013 tournament.[10] Spain, Canada, Brazil, and Chinese Taipei won their pools of qualification.[11]

Note: Numbers in parentheses indicate positions in the WBSC World Rankings at the time of the tournament.[8]

Pool A Pool B Pool C Pool D
  Japan (3)   South Korea (4)   Venezuela (8)   United States (2)
  China (18)   Netherlands (7)   Puerto Rico (12)   Mexico (11)
  Cuba (1)   Australia (10)   Dominican Republic (13)   Italy (9)
  Brazil (20)   Chinese Taipei (5)   Spain (16)   Canada (6)

First round

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Pool A

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Main article: 2013 World Baseball Classic Pool A

Pos Team
 Pld W L RF RA RD PCT GB Qualification
1   Cuba 3 3 0 23 5 +18 1.000 — Advance to second round
Qualification for 2017 World Baseball Classic
2   Japan (H) 3 2 1 13 11 +2 .667 1
3   China 3 1 2 7 19 −12 .333 2 Qualification for 2017 World Baseball Classic
4   Brazil 3 0 3 7 15 −8 .000 3
Source: [citation needed]
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers
(H) Hosts
Date Local time Road team Score Home team Inn. Venue Game duration Attendance Boxscore
Mar 2, 2013 19:00 Japan   5–3   Brazil   Fukuoka Dome 3:20 28,181 Boxscore
Mar 3, 2013 12:30 Cuba   5–2   Brazil   Fukuoka Dome 3:22 4,003 Boxscore
Mar 3, 2013 19:00 China   2–5   Japan   Fukuoka Dome 2:57 13,891 Boxscore
Mar 4, 2013 16:30 China   0–12   Cuba 7 Fukuoka Dome 2:38 3,123 Boxscore
Mar 5, 2013 17:00 Brazil   2–5   China   Fukuoka Dome 3:12 3,110 Boxscore
Mar 6, 2013 19:00 Japan   3–6   Cuba   Fukuoka Dome 3:39 26,860 Boxscore

Pool B

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Main article: 2013 World Baseball Classic Pool B
Pos Team
 Pld W L RF RA RD PCT GB Qualification
1   Chinese Taipei (H) 3 2 1 14 7 +7 .667[a] — Advance to second round
Qualification for 2017 World Baseball Classic
2   Netherlands 3 2 1 12 9 +3 .667[a] —
3   South Korea 3 2 1 9 7 +2 .667[a] — Qualification for 2017 World Baseball Classic
4   Australia 3 0 3 2 14 −12 .000 2
Source: [citation needed]
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers
(H) Hosts
Notes:
  1. ^ a b c Chinese Taipei 0.235 TQB, Netherlands 0.000 TQB, South Korea -0.235 TQB
Date Local time Road team Score Home team Inn. Venue Game duration Attendance Boxscore
Mar 2, 2013 12:30 Australia   1–4   Chinese Taipei   Intercontinental Baseball Stadium 2:53 20,035 Boxscore
Mar 2, 2013 19:30 South Korea   0–5   Netherlands   Intercontinental Baseball Stadium 3:24 1,085 Boxscore
Mar 3, 2013 14:30 Netherlands   3–8   Chinese Taipei   Intercontinental Baseball Stadium 3:09 22,689 Boxscore
Mar 4, 2013 18:30 South Korea   6–0   Australia   Intercontinental Baseball Stadium 3:31 1,481 Boxscore
Mar 5, 2013 12:30 Australia   1–4   Netherlands   Intercontinental Baseball Stadium 2:50 1,113 Boxscore
Mar 5, 2013 19:30 Chinese Taipei   2–3   South Korea   Intercontinental Baseball Stadium 3:27 23,431 Boxscore

Pool C

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Main article: 2013 World Baseball Classic Pool C
Pos Team
 Pld W L RF RA RD PCT GB Qualification
1   Dominican Republic 3 3 0 19 8 +11 1.000 — Advance to second round
Qualification for 2017 World Baseball Classic
2   Puerto Rico (H) 3 2 1 11 7 +4 .667 1
3   Venezuela 3 1 2 17 21 −4 .333 2 Qualification for 2017 World Baseball Classic
4   Spain 3 0 3 9 20 −11 .000 3
Source: [citation needed]
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers
(H) Hosts
Date Local time Road team Score Home team Inn. Venue Game duration Attendance Boxscore
Mar 7, 2013 19:30 Venezuela   3–9   Dominican Republic   Hiram Bithorn Stadium 3:55 15,055 Boxscore
Mar 8, 2013 18:30 Spain   0–3   Puerto Rico   Hiram Bithorn Stadium 3:05 14,974 Boxscore
Mar 9, 2013 12:00 Dominican Republic   6–3   Spain   Hiram Bithorn Stadium 3:47 13,421 Boxscore
Mar 9, 2013 18:30 Puerto Rico   6–3   Venezuela   Hiram Bithorn Stadium 3:35 18,800 Boxscore
Mar 10, 2013 12:30 Spain   6–11   Venezuela   Hiram Bithorn Stadium 3:59 13,395 Boxscore
Mar 10, 2013 19:30 Dominican Republic   4–2   Puerto Rico   Hiram Bithorn Stadium 3:41 19,413 Boxscore

Pool D

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Main article: 2013 World Baseball Classic Pool D
Pos Team
 Pld W L RF RA RD PCT GB Qualification
1   United States (H) 3 2 1 17 11 +6 .667[a] — Advance to second round
Qualification for 2017 World Baseball Classic
2   Italy 3 2 1 22 15 +7 .667[a] —
3   Canada 3 1 2 18 26 −8 .333[b] 1 Qualification for 2017 World Baseball Classic
4   Mexico 3 1 2 13 18 −5 .333[b] 1
Source: [citation needed]
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers
(H) Hosts
Notes:
  1. ^ a b United States defeated Italy 6–2.
  2. ^ a b Canada defeated Mexico 10–3.
Date Local time Road team Score Home team Inn. Venue Game duration Attendance Boxscore
Mar 7, 2013 13:00 Italy   6–5   Mexico   Salt River Fields at Talking Stick 3:41 4,478 Boxscore
Mar 8, 2013 12:00 Canada   4–14   Italy 8 Chase Field[note 1] 3:27 5,140 Boxscore
Mar 8, 2013 19:00 Mexico   5–2   United States   Chase Field 3:29 44,256 Boxscore
Mar 9, 2013 12:30 Canada   10–3   Mexico   Chase Field 3:44 19,581 Boxscore
Mar 9, 2013 19:00 United States   6–2   Italy   Chase Field 3:21 19,303 Boxscore
Mar 10, 2013 13:00 United States   9–4   Canada   Chase Field 3:18 22,425 Boxscore

Second round

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Pool 1

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Main article: 2013 World Baseball Classic Pool 1
PreliminariesQualifiersSeeding
BR  Netherlands6
AW  Cuba2
W1  Netherlands4
W2  Japan16
AR  Japan4
BW  Chinese Taipei3
W4  Japan10
W5  Netherlands6
Lower round 1Lower final
W3  Cuba6
L1  Cuba14L4  Netherlands7
L2  Chinese Taipei0
Date Local time Road team Score Home team Inn. Venue Game duration Attendance Boxscore
Mar 8, 2013 12:00 Netherlands   6–2   Cuba   Tokyo Dome 3:38 38,588 Boxscore
Mar 8, 2013 19:00 Japan   4–3   Chinese Taipei 10 Tokyo Dome 4:47 43,527 Boxscore
Mar 9, 2013 19:00 Chinese Taipei   0–14   Cuba 7 Tokyo Dome 2:43 12,884 Boxscore
Mar 10, 2013 19:00 Japan   16–4   Netherlands 7 Tokyo Dome 2:53 37,745 Boxscore
Mar 11, 2013 19:00 Cuba   6–7   Netherlands   Tokyo Dome 3:52 7,613 Boxscore
Mar 12, 2013 19:00 Netherlands   6–10   Japan   Tokyo Dome 3:30 30,301 Boxscore

Pool 2

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Main article: 2013 World Baseball Classic Pool 2
PreliminariesQualifiersSeeding
DR  Italy4
CW  Dominican Rep.5
W1  Dominican Rep.3
W2  United States1
CR  Puerto Rico1
DW  United States7
W4  Dominican Rep.2
W5  Puerto Rico0
Lower round 1Lower final
W3  Puerto Rico4
L1  Italy3L4  United States3
L2  Puerto Rico4
Date Local time Road team Score Home team Inn. Venue Game duration Attendance Boxscore
Mar 12, 2013 13:00 Italy   4–5   Dominican Republic   Marlins Park 3:17 14,482 Boxscore
Mar 12, 2013 20:00 Puerto Rico   1–7   United States   Marlins Park 3:22 32,872 Boxscore
Mar 13, 2013 19:00 Italy   3–4   Puerto Rico   Marlins Park 3:46 27,296 Boxscore
Mar 14, 2013 19:00 Dominican Republic   3–1   United States   Marlins Park 3:17 34,366 Boxscore
Mar 15, 2013 19:00 Puerto Rico   4–3   United States   Marlins Park 3:24 19,762 Boxscore
Mar 16, 2013 13:00 Puerto Rico   0–2   Dominican Republic   Marlins Park 2:58 25,846 Boxscore

Championship round

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Main article: 2013 World Baseball Classic championship
Semifinals Final
      
2R   Puerto Rico 3
1W   Japan 1
SF1W   Puerto Rico 0
SF2W   Dominican Republic 3
1R   Netherlands 1
2W   Dominican Republic 4

Semifinals

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Date Local time Road team Score Home team Inn. Venue Game duration Attendance Boxscore
Mar 17, 2013 18:00 Puerto Rico   3–1   Japan   AT&T Park 3:27 33,683 Boxscore
Mar 18, 2013 18:00 Netherlands   1–4   Dominican Republic   AT&T Park 3:09 27,527 Boxscore

Final

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Date Local time Road team Score Home team Inn. Venue Game duration Attendance Boxscore
Mar 19, 2013 17:00 Puerto Rico   0–3   Dominican Republic   AT&T Park 3:06 35,703 Boxscore

Final standings

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Organizer WBCI has no interest in the final standings and did not compute. So, it was calculated by IBAF for the IBAF Men's Baseball World Rankings.

In the final standings, ties were to be broken in the following order of priority:

  1. The team with the highest Team's Quality Balance (TQB=(RS/IPO)–(RA/IPD)) in all games;
  2. The team with the highest Earned Runs Team's Quality Balance (ER–TQB=(ERS/IPO)–(ERA/IPD)) in all games;
  3. The team with the highest batting average (AVG) in all games;

Attendance

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781,438 (avg. 20,037; pct. 59.5%)

First round

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359,243 (avg. 14,968; pct. 50.2%)

  • Pool A – 79,168 (avg. 13,195; pct. 34.2%)
  • Pool B – 69,834 (avg. 11,639; pct. 58.2%)
  • Pool C – 95,058 (avg. 15,843; pct. 86.7%)
  • Pool D – 115,183 (avg. 19,197; pct. 45.3%)
    • Chase Field – 110,705 (avg. 22,141; pct. 45.5%)
    • Salt River Fields at Talking Stick – 4,478 (avg. 4,478; pct. 40.7%)

Second round

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325,282 (avg. 27,107; pct. 68.8%)

  • Pool 1 – 170,658 (avg. 28,443; pct. 67.7%)
  • Pool 2 – 154,624 (avg. 25,771; pct. 70.1%)

Championship round

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96,913 (avg. 32,304; pct. 77.1%)

  • Semifinals – 61,210 (avg. 30,605; pct. 73.0%)
  • Final – 35,703 (avg. 35,703; pct. 85.2%)

2013 All-World Baseball Classic team

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Players named to the All-WBC Team (from left to right);
Catcher – Yadier Molina of Puerto Rico
Second baseman – Robinson Canó of the Dominican Republic
Third baseman – David Wright of the United States
Outfielder – Ángel Pagán of Puerto Rico
Pitcher – Kenta Maeda of Japan
Pitcher – Fernando Rodney of the Dominican Republic
Note: The tournament Most Valuable Player was Robinson Canó.[12]
Position Player
C   Yadier Molina
1B   Edwin Encarnación
2B   Robinson Canó
3B   David Wright
SS   José Reyes
OF   Nelson Cruz
  Ángel Pagán
  Michael Saunders
DH   Hirokazu Ibata
P   Nelson Figueroa
  Kenta Maeda
  Fernando Rodney

Statistics leaders

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Additional rules

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Once again there were limits on the number of pitches thrown in a game, though the limits themselves were changed from the previous tournament:

  • 65 pitches in First Round (down from 70 in 2009)
  • 80 pitches in Second Round (down from 85 in 2009)
  • 95 pitches in Championship Round (down from 100 in 2009)

If a pitcher reached his limit during an at bat, he was allowed to finish pitching to the batter, but was removed from the game at the end of the at bat.

A pitcher must:

  • Not pitch until a minimum of four days have passed since he last pitched, if he threw 50 or more pitches when he last pitched;
  • Not pitch until a minimum of one day has passed since he last pitched, if he threw 30 or more pitches when he last pitched;
  • Not pitch until a minimum of one day has passed since any second consecutive day on which the pitcher pitched;

For purposes of the pitcher use limitation rules, both semifinal games were to be deemed to have been played on the day of the latest semifinal game.

A mercy rule came into effect when one team led by either fifteen runs after five innings, or ten runs after seven innings in the first two rounds.

Instant replay was also available to umpires during the tournament. As was introduced in Major League Baseball during the 2008 season, replays were only used to adjudicate on home run decisions, to determine whether the ball was fair or foul, over the fence or not, and the impact of fan interference.

An alternative version of the IBAF's extra inning rule was also used. If after 12 innings the score was still tied, each half inning thereafter would have started with runners on second and first base. The runners would have been the eighth and ninth hitters due in that inning respectively. For example, if the number five hitter was due to lead off the inning, the number three hitter would have been on second base, and the number four hitter on first base. However, this rule was never actually employed in this year's Classic, as the only extra-inning game in the tournament ended prior to a 13th inning.

Media coverage

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MLB Network has been announced as the English-language broadcaster of the 2013 and 2017 tournaments.[13] ESPN Deportes provided Spanish-language coverage, and ESPN Radio had audio rights.[14]

Sportsnet was the broadcaster in Canada and ESPN America in United Kingdom, Ireland and other parts of Europe.

Notes

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  1. ^ The game was originally scheduled to be played at Salt River Fields at Talking Stick, but was moved due to potential inclement weather.

References

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  1. ^ Belson, Ken (June 1, 2011). "Israel to Participate in 2013 World Baseball Classic". The New York Times. Archived from the original on July 11, 2011. Retrieved July 16, 2011.
  2. ^ Schlegel, John (March 20, 2013). "Torrid stretch earns Cano Classic MVP". MLB.com.
  3. ^ Coskrey, Jason (July 21, 2012). "JPBPA unanimously votes to boycott WBC". The Japan Times. Retrieved August 13, 2012.
  4. ^ "NPB players decide to sit out upcoming WBC". Daily Yomiuri Online. July 21, 2012. Retrieved August 13, 2012.
  5. ^ Martin, Alexander (July 20, 2012). "Japanese Pros Threaten to Boycott World Baseball Classic". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved August 13, 2012.
  6. ^ "Japan threatens to boycott World Baseball Classic". Sports Illustrated. July 20, 2012. Archived from the original on January 19, 2013. Retrieved August 13, 2012.
  7. ^ "Japan agrees to play in 2013 WBC". ESPN. Associated Press. September 4, 2012.
  8. ^ a b "WBSC Rankings – Men's baseball on 12/31/2012". World Baseball Softball Confederation. Retrieved May 2, 2021.
  9. ^ "World Baseball Classic Tournament Rules and Regulations". Secure.worldbaseballclassic.com. Archived from the original on April 12, 2013. Retrieved March 12, 2013.
  10. ^ "International venues set for 2013 Classic". Retrieved September 25, 2012.
  11. ^ "The 2013 World Baseball Classic is ready to go". Retrieved December 2, 2012.
  12. ^ See: 2013 World Baseball Classic – Championship#Final – Dominican Republic 3, Puerto Rico 0.
  13. ^ Dittmeier, Bobbie (October 23, 2012). "MLB Network to air all Classic games in '13, '17". MLB.com. Archived from the original on November 2, 2012. Retrieved October 23, 2012.
  14. ^ gabriela nunez on (January 13, 2013). "ESPN Selected to Present Spanish-Language Multimedia Coverage of 2013 and 2017 World Baseball Classic « ESPN MediaZone". Espnmediazone.com. Retrieved March 12, 2013.
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