Upcoming World Baseball Classic Truly Takes the American Pastime International

In less than one week, the officials who run Major League Baseball will finally get their long-awaited wish when the upcoming World Baseball Classic begins and truly takes the great American pastime to an international level.

The inaugural tournament, which begins on March 1, was designed to give worldwide exposure to the game and offer major league players a venue to compete, on an international level - since the United States Olympic Committee would not allow players on major league rosters to compete in the Olympics.

There are 16 teams in the World Cup style tournament with four teams residing in four separate pools. Each team will play three first-round games, with the top two teams in each pool advancing to the second round. The advancing teams will each play three more games beginning March 13. Four teams will advance to a single-elimination semifinal on March 18, and those winners will compete for the championship on March 20.

Here are the pools.

China, Chinese Taipei, Japan and Korea comprise Pool A and will play their games in Japan. Pool B games feature Canada, Mexico, South Africa and the United States playing their games in Arizona. Pool C games will be played in Puerto Rico and will include Cuba, the Netherlands, Panama and Puerto Rico. Finally, Pool D will consist of Australia, the Dominican Republic, Italy and Venezuela playing in Florida.

Pool A
China
Chinese Taipei
Japan
Korea

Pool B
Canada
Mexico
South Africa
United States

Pool C
Cuba
Netherlands
Panama
Puerto Rico

Pool D
Australia
Dominican Republic
Italy
Venezuela

Now that I have explained the structure of the tournament let’s move on to the locations.

Round one will take place at five different sites: (1) Tokyo Dome, Tokyo, Japan; (2) Hiram Bithorn Stadium, San Juan, Puerto Rico; (3) The Ballpark at Disney's Wide World of Sports Complex, Orlando, FL; (4) Chase Field, Phoenix, AZ and (5) Scottsdale Stadium, Scottsdale, AZ.

Round two will take place at two sites: (1) Hiram Bithorn Stadium and (2) Angel Stadium, Anaheim, California. The semifinals and championship game will be held at PETCO Park in San Diego, California.