The Chicago White Sox's powerful switch-hitter Yoan Moncada and Team Cuba defeated a good Panama team in its third game in Pool A of the World Baseball Classic being played in faraway Taipi, Taiwan. Unfortuately, Cuba lost its first two games -- 4-2 to Netherlands and 6-3 in 10 innings to Italy.
With a line-up led by two super talented Major League stars from the Chicago White Sox -- Third Baseman Yoan Moncada and Center Fielder Luis Robert Jr., Cuba was the favorite to win the 5-team Pool A in Taiwan but Moncada and Robert didn't get to practice with Team Cuba at all and their 14-hour flight to Taiwan landed just hours before Game One, perhaps causing Cuba's two close losses in the first two games. But the 13-4 win over a strong Panama team in Game Three revealed loudly that Moncada and Robert were no longer hampered by jet-lag.
Tonight at 11 PM on the Fox Sports Television Network {FS2} in its 4th game in Taipi, Team Cuba will play the home team Taipi, which has a strong 2-1 record and is tied with Netherlands for first place in the standings.
Cuba's starting pitcher tonight in Taipi again Taipi will be 33-year-old Havana-born right-hander Elian Leyva.
While Cuba's baseball-loving fans root for Team Cuba, many Cubans are also rooting for Venezuela in the 20-nation World Baseball Classic. Above is Venezuela's line-up tonight against the Dominican Republic in Miami, a vital opening game. The DR entire line-up consists of Superstar Major League players but baseball fans can see {above} that Venezuela also is loaded with Superstar Major Leaguers, also with Venezuelan Major League players making guaranteed $300-$400 Million Dollar contracts in the United States. And, as you can see above, Venezuela's starting pitcher tonight will be Sandy Alcantara, the Cy Young Winner and the best pitcher in Major League Baseball in 2023. So Venezuela will be tough to beat although Japan, the Dominican Republic, and the USA are the Big Three favorites. Japan and the USA are also playing on their home turf. Japan is already 3-and-0 and many experts have predicted that Japan, playing in the Tokyo Dome, can win this year's star-studded World Baseball Classic when Superman Ortani and the other Japanese get to Miami. But the key game tonight is Venezuela vs. Dominican Republic; the USA tonight starting at 9 PM on the prime Fox Network has an EASY game against Great Britain.
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