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Team USA is handing the ball to Pittsburgh Pirates ace Paul Skenes, who will look to lead his side to the 2026 World Baseball Classic final. Nonetheless, it won’t be an easy task considering that Team Dominican Republic stands in their way.
Skenes was dominant in his last outing against Team Mexico, throwing four scoreless innings and allowing only one hit while striking out seven. Now, he will look to replicate that performance against a much tougher opponent.
The Dominican Republic are coming off a 10-0 thrashing of South Korea in the WBC quarterfinal. As a result, they are heading into the game against the U.S., but they now need to figure out how to beat Skenes.
Erik Kratz of Foul Territory shared what the Dominican Republic must do to get to Skenes in this clash of heavyweights.
“You’re trying to create situations where you can hit with two strikes against a guy like Paul Skenes,” Kratz said on a March 14 video from Foul Territory’s YouTube channel. “… You are trying to get him out of the game. So team at‑bats where you’re not trying to go only for damage, or if you are going only for damage, then you’re just waiting for the middle middle pitch.
“You can’t chase corners… So you have to have an approach, and if the Dominicans have the same approach for the entire team, they’ll be successful against him.”
Aaron Judge Backs Pirates’ Paul Skenes Against Dominicans
Ahead of this blockbuster showdown against the Dominicans, USA captain and New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge spoke after the win over Canada and shared his thoughts on having Skenes take the mound for them to help the team get to the final.
“I like any game that Paul Skenes pitches,” Judge told reporters (h/t SNY). “It’s just incredible stuff. Watching him work on his craft the past couple of weeks has been incredible. Seeing him in that game against Mexico, where it’s an electric environment, and he just toed the slab and went out and took care of business. It was really impressive.
“So looking forward to seeing him get out there and do his thing. And then we hand it over to that bullpen of ours. It’s going to be a tough fight, but definitely looking forward to seeing him get back on the mound.”
What Does Team USA Do After Paul Skenes?
Starting with the win over Mexico, the U.S. has played in many close games, losing to Team Italy and squeaking by Team Canada in the quarterfinals. As a result, the Americans can’t play with fire against the Dominicans, or they could be in trouble.
Nonetheless, Kevin Pillar of Foul Territory believes that if there’s any pitcher that can keep the Dominican Republic’s bats quiet, it’s Skenes. Still, Pillar has one major question when it comes to what manager Mark DeRosa does after the Pirates star.
“I think you really need to get a lot out of Paul Skenes,” Pillar said in the same Foul Territory video. “If there’s a pitcher on the planet that can kind of navigate through the star-studded lineup that Dominican has, you have the right guy on the mound.
“It’s where do you go to after Paul Skenes is done? How do you bridge the gap to the back end of the bullpen of David Bednar, Garrett Whitlock, and obviously Mason Miller there? That’s the question.”
Eduardo Razo Eduardo Razo is a sports writer for Heavy.com, covering the NFL, MLB, and college football. He has previously covered the NFL, NBA, NHL, and MLB for NBC Sports Washington and NBC Sports Bay Area & California, and has freelanced for PSG Talk, covering Paris Saint-Germain. He also worked as an editor at Athlon Sports, focusing on MLB and the NFL. More about Eduardo Razo
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