In a nearly empty stadium that had the energy of a library, Cuba trounced China 12-0, invoking the mercy rule after the top of the seventh inning to improve to 2-0 in the first round of the World Baseball Classic.
The official attendance of the game was listed at 3,123, but whoever was counting must have included every player, coach, scout, media member and stadium employee who walked through the gate because the stadium was virtually empty. In reality, there appeared to be about 86 fans in the stadium, with neither team proving to be much of a draw for the fans in Fukuoka, creating the feeling of an Arizona Fall League game in a dome.
March 11th, 2013 at 7:46PM
That baseball powerhouse the Netherlands went on to whup the Cubans. Hup Holland Hup!
March 11th, 2013 at 8:00PM
Alan: LOL.
March 12th, 2013 at 12:37AM
Cuba, China and Venezuela all eliminated – there’d be more excitement about the WBC if the Cold War were still on.