Dominican Republic were knocked out of the World Baseball Classic in the first round after their shocking defeat to Puerto Rico. The Dominicans were billed as one of the favorites to win the tournament, with some star-studded players in their lineup.
The disappointment of their fans is quite justified as Puerto Rico took a 5-2 win at LoanDepot Park in the final fixture of the Pool D campaign. After their huge upset victory, Puerto Rico advanced to the quarterfinals with a 3-1 record, along with Venezuela, who have a perfect record thus far.
The Dominicans finished the tournament with a .500 PCT, winning against Nicaragua and Israel but losing to the two teams advancing. With players like - Juan Soto, Manny Machado, Jeremy Pena, and Sandy Alcantara - it would surely feel they have missed out on a golden opportunity to win something for their country.
The Twitterati labeled the Dominican Republic team as the most overrated team in baseball history.
Fans even called out the playing style of the Dominicans as they reckoned there were too many swings from the entire batting lineup.
Others had different opinions about the team as they felt the teams who defeated the Dominican Republic were solid teams themselves and deserved more of the credit.
Team Dominican Republic consistently underperforms at the World Baseball Classic
The Dominicans have a reputation of underperforming in previous World Baseball Classics. They had fallen behind in the second round of the 2017 edition as well with losses to the United States and much like this edition Puerto Rico. By placing third, they have guaranteed their qualification for the 2026 WBC, where they will be fervently hoping to put the ghosts of the current iteration to rest.