MIAMI — Venezuela knew it was going to be without one of the greatest of all time in its lineup on Saturday.
And yet even without Miguel Cabrera, who sat out a World Baseball Classic game for the first time, Venezuela manager Omar Lopez had a strategy he hoped would allow his side to clear one of its historically most difficult obstacles in the tournament in the Dominican Republic.
Facing Sandy Alcantara, Lopez went with a lineup he hoped had the best chance of creating opportunities to score precious runs against the Miami Marlins ace and reigning National League Cy Young winner.
“We tried to put the best players with the highest percentage of contact,” Lopez said. “So the free swingers can hit with men on base. Especially versus a very difficult pitcher, such as Alcantara. So we are going to try to fight in each inning and to capitalize on the errors he might make.”
The strategy worked.
In front of a crowd of 35,890 at loanDepot park, many of whom were loud Venezuelan fans who could be heard despite being slightly outnumbered by their Dominican counterparts, Venezuela defeated the Dominican Republic, 5-1, in the first game of Pool D play for both teams.
It was Venezuela’s first win over the Dominican Republic in five meetings all time at the World Baseball Classic. With a potent lineup and shutdown pitching staff, the Dominican Republic entered the event considered by many as a favorite to win its second WBC championship and first since 2013.
Venezuela cleared a major hurdle in its hopes of advancing to the second round for the fourth time in five World Baseball Classic tournaments. Venezuela has only made it to the semifinals once in 2009, finishing third that year.
But the victory took down one of two major tests Venezuela is facing in this opening round.
On Sunday night, Venezuela was set to face Puerto Rico, which won its opening game on Saturday over Nicaragua, and is also considered one of the favorites in Pool D.
Lopez said Cabrera, who began his career with the Marlins and received the loudest ovation of any of the players when introduced pregame, would only start two of the four games in the opening round due to playing restrictions placed by the Detroit Tigers.
Venezuela loaded up plenty of solid contact hitters at the top of its lineup with Jose Altuve leading off, Ronald Acuna Jr. batting second and reigning American League batting champion Luis Arraez batting third.
Lopez hoped, however, that the bottom of the order would come through with Eugenio Suarez hitting eighth in the order where he felt he could “see some more of Sandy’s pitches and have come to bat with some runners on the bases.”
The bottom third of Venezuela’s lineup, Anthony Santander, Suarez and David Peralta would hit a combined 5 for 10 with a home run, a triple, a double, five RBIs, three runs and two walks, and would strikeout only once.
And it was Peralta who did the most critical damage.
With the game tied at 1 in the bottom of the fourth, Peralta reached out and laced a single to right field that plated two runs to give Venezuela a 3-1 lead.
Alcantara exited right after the Peralta hit since it was his 64th pitch of the outing with pitch counts capped at 65 during the pool-play round of the tournament. Alcantara lasted 3 2/3 innings and gave up three earned runs on five hits, three walks and two strikeouts.
Peralta would then double in another run in the sixth off Dominican reliever Luis Garcia to extend Venezuela’s lead to 4-1.
Venezuela’s own Luis Garcia would prove huge out of its bullpen.
Garcia struck out seven to set a new WBC single-game record for a reliever. He walked two over three hitless innings.
Playing before an audience that included their country’s president, Luis Abinader, and his wife, first lady Raquel Arbaje, as well as Dominican baseball legends David Ortiz, Pedro Martinez and Albert Pujols, the Dominicans would bring the tying run to the plate in the eighth after Wander Franco singled and Jeremy Pena walked.
But Anthony Santander made a great diving catch on a blooper to short right field by Jeimer Candelario for the second out. Then former Marlins reliever Jose Quijada struck out Francisco Mejia to end the inning. Jose Alvarado also escaped trouble in the ninth after allowing a double to Juan Soto and walking Manny Machado. Alvarado struck out Teoscar Hernandez and induced Rafael Devers to ground into a force out to end the game.
The Dominican Republic struck first on an RBI double by Soto which scored Julio Rodriguez. But Santander began Venezuela’s comeback in the bottom of the second when he crushed a 98.9 mph sinker by Alcantara into the upper deck in right field.
Venezuela’s starter Martin Perez would settle down after the rough start, pitching 3 1/3 innings, striking out four with two walks and four hits.
The Dominican Republic returns to action on Monday when it faces Nicaragua at noon.
