World Baseball Classic 2009: USA vs. Puerto Rico Video

Puerto Rico cruises past United States.

Their opponents were the ones who had an All-Star at virtually every position, lineup depth that an All-Star team might envy. But it was Puerto Rico that assaulted Team USA from all nine lineup spots on Saturday night, unleashing an offensive fury in an 11-1 win that ended in the seventh inning due to the mercy rule.
Every Puerto Rican hitter scored a run, drove in a run or both. Seven of the nine had at least one hit, and in total, Puerto Rico amassed 13 hits and four walks despite not completing seven full turns at bat. Two-time All-Star Jake Peavy, who started for Team USA, barely got out of the second inning.

"It was a group-type game," said center fielder Carlos Beltran, the offensive star of the game if you had to name just one. "Good pitching, good offensively, good defense. When you put all those things together, you have lots of chances to win ballgames, and thank God I felt good at the plate."

Geographically, Puerto Rico was the visiting team, playing on United States soil. But by any other measure, the team in the white uniforms was very much the home club. Of an announced crowd of 30,539, a good two-thirds sounded as though it was cheering for Puerto Rico, which also benefited from having the last turn at bat.

Whatever support the USA may have had from its home-nation crowd dissipated quickly when Puerto Rico jumped out to a 6-0 lead against Peavy and his mates.

"We felt as if we were playing in Puerto Rico," Beltran said. "There was great support. I wasn't expecting that it would be as it was. I thought there were going to be more Americans. ... We're in the U.S. but I appreciate the support, and we thank the Puerto Rican fans for having supported us because we really do this both for them and for Puerto Rico."

Beltran led the assault with three hits including a home run, a walk, three runs scored and two RBIs, but he had tons of help. Felipe Lopez cranked a mammoth two-run homer and an RBI double, Carlos Delgado drove in two runs and Ramon Vazquez scored twice. The final, mercy-rule-triggering runs came off the bat of Mike Aviles, who deposited a two-run single into shallow right field.

It made for appropriate symmetry because Aviles had been the only Puerto Rican hitter without an RBI or a run up to that point.

And then there was starting pitcher Javier Vazquez, who stifled a potent United States lineup. Vazquez lasted five innings, holding the USA to a run on four hits, striking out two without walking a batter. He was all but untouched through the first four innings before escaping a two-on, one-out jam in the fifth.

"As a pitcher on our team, scoring early gives me a little breather to keep going," Vazquez said, "a little bit of confidence, and the guys did a great job scoring six runs off Jake Peavy in the first two innings. That gives you a little breathing room knowing that if you make a mistake, it really doesn't matter that much."

Three of the first four batters of the game singled for Puerto Rico, with Delgado's RBI knock and Alex Rios' sacrifice fly making it 2-0 in the first. An inning later, Geovany Soto drew a leadoff walk and Lopez homered for a 4-0 lead, Beltran beat out an infield single for the fifth run and Delgado's grounder to short made it 6-0.

The runs kept coming even after Peavy was out of the game. Beltran made the seventh tally happen in the fifth inning when he walked, tagged up on a fly ball and scored on Ivan Rodriguez's double. Beltran led off the seventh with a solo homer against Matt Thornton, and after two outs, his teammates hung the remaining three runs on Thornton with two doubles, a walk and Aviles' game-ender.

The USA made it interesting only once, when it put runners on second and third with one out and one in against Vazquez in the fifth. But Vazquez struck out Mark DeRosa and got Shane Victorino to fly out, ending the chance.

"That was a big inning, especially for Javy," Puerto Rico manager Jose Oquendo said. "He worked hard in that inning to get out. He did what he had to do in that inning."

Puerto Rico will face Venezuela on Monday night in the winners' bracket of Pool 2 of the Classic. The winner of that game will be guaranteed a spot in the semifinals next weekend at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles.

Tell your friends:

rajvosa1961: This is amazing! Way to go USA! Go get Chavez's boys now! For honor and country in these hard times,nice to have something to be really proud of!

Mentallyawake568: That was boss when the announcer yells santa maria after david hit that game winner.

peruanoboricuaguy410: FUCK USA LUCKY BITCHESS

richard1972r: Santa Maria! o.O

fuckerwhereareyou: Hope the finals would be USA vs Venezuela only to watch Venezuela beat the living crap out of USA for the third time.

nikitobu: Korea is going to whip Venezuela tonight they are going night night early!

1092222: My ass Korea is going whip Venezuela. Just watch how Venezuela is going to home run Korea and hammer them down tonight.

indyfan22k: PR should NOT even be in the WBC as they are NOT a country. PR is part of USA. What's next GUAM will play USA ?

Locuan: Read our constitution

linkshellvendor: are you stupid? we are not a state just a "territory a.k.a colony". I bet you if U.S.A wanted to make P.R a state and take away our chances to b on the olimpics and events like the WBC we would preffer to be independent from US rather than having our flag taken away from the world to c.

indyfan22k: are you stupid or ignorant ??, Puerto Ricans are US citizens, so they are a part of the USA.

Macroscki: hey indyfan you are just yellous that we can kick your ass in baseball usa team is a mess, usa was just lucky. Maybe usa control us but, in baseball, we control usa!!!!!!!!!!

morellmartell: wepaaaaaaaaa!!!!!

samadafish: Dude PR is not part of the US we are an asociated terretory

indyfan22k: dude, PR citizens are Americans

D00dle15: you speek english? cause it doesnt sound like it.

circulomadrid: POR LA INDEPENDENCIA DE PUERTO RICO.

FreshSoldier1: pr is still a country

Macroscki: Mira no no hablo ingles , asik que mejor callate esa fuc.. boca. Y ahora entiendes eso machocabrio, vete para el fuc do you understand that. Just encase its to some one that replyed

FreshSoldier1: P.R is never be a state

Triumphit1: LET ME SET THE RECORD STRAIGHT! Puerto Ricans (We) have social Security cards and use The United States currency. Much of the Island is taught the same history as the Usa. ANd a lot of Puerto Ricans speak English if u actually stop by. They vote in Primary elections. I do not think they vote in the presidential election. Bam thats it.. they are not a state, nor do i believe the majority wants to be.

boricia07: esoo ehh puerto ricoooo los mejores del mundoooo!!!!

NightmareTeeVee: I love David Wright, What a clutch hit...Like shit!

Halo00yingyang: You dumb, we r part of USA.

kakometal666: puerto rico K.O USA in first game and I cant found videos of this game fucking gringos no saben perder siempre quitan los videos que puerto rico les gana

Author: morellmartell; Uploaded: Mar 15, 2009; Duration: 0:35; Views: 4238

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