Puerto Rico’s Carlos Correa celebrates after scoring in winning run on a hit by Eddie Rosario in the 11th inning of a semifinal against the Netherlands in the World Baseball Classic in Los Angeles, Monday, March 20, 2017. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson)
Eddie Rosario clubbed a run-scoring sacrifice fly in the 11th inning as Puerto Rico punched their ticket to the WBC final for the second straight year with a marathon 4-3 win over the Netherlands on Monday.
Rosario’s blast brought infielder Carlos Correa home after he had advanced to third on an earlier sacrifice fly by catcher Yadier Molina in the semi-final at Dodger Stadium.
What started out as a first inning slugfest turned into a battle of the bullpens in the first game of the championship round of the 16-team elite international baseball tournament.
Undefeated Puerto Rico will face the winner of the other semi-final between the United States and Japan in the final on Wednesday, also at Dodger Stadium.
After a burst of four runs on both sides to start the four-hour contest, the relief pitchers took over in the middle innings setting the stage for Puerto Rico to win it in the extra session.
Puerto Rico has been dominating the tournament with a ferocious offence, timely hitting and dependable pitching. On Monday they helped their cause with some clutch defensive plays and aggressive base running.
The victory improved Puerto Rico’s perfect record to 7-0 as they seek redemption after finishing runner-up to the Dominican Republic in 2013.
Third baseman Correa finished with two hits, two runs and two RBIs on four at-bats Monday. He clobbered a 441 foot home run to left field in the first inning off Netherlands starter Rick Van Den Hurk that tied the game 2-2.