NEWSLETTER
Last night, Team America triumphed over an undefeated and magical Team Puerto Rico to win their first ever World Baseball Classic trophy:
Congratulations to Team USA! #WBC2017 pic.twitter.com/A5jQhblPAq
— WBC Baseball (@WBCBaseball) March 23, 2017
The most important name on the jersey is the one on the front. #WBC2017 pic.twitter.com/CHoR0cCJQi
— WBC Baseball (@WBCBaseball) March 23, 2017
All respect. #WBC2017 pic.twitter.com/ntpRSRWbJZ
— WBC Baseball (@WBCBaseball) March 23, 2017
If you’ve been following the tournament, you’ll know that despite the lopsided score of last night’s championship (America won 8-0), that was as good of a match-up as you could’ve hoped for.
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Perhaps not coincidentally, I recently stumbled onto something that connects both of these two teams by their catchers, Yadier Molina and Jonathan Lucroy. But to do so, you’ll have to go back two years to the 2014 NL All-Star voting.
That’s when “candidate” (and then-Brewers’ catcher) Jonathan Lucroy took out a (hilariously) negative political ad on his biggest competition, incumbent and seven-time All-Star, Yadier Molina:
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Do you want ANOTHER St. Louis Cardinal
in the All-Star Game? *Babies crying*
And it worked! Well, sorta.
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Both Yadier Molina and Jonathan Lucroy made the National League All-Star team in 2014, but it was Lucroy who got the start!
And despite Molina’s general, consistent greatness, there was no arguing that Lucroy deserved it. Moreover, Lucroy didn’t let his opportunity go to waste. He cracked two doubles and earned two RBI before coming out of the game.
Because of Lucroy’s down 2015 season I think people tend to forget how monstrous he was in 2014. That year, he was worth 6.2 WAR, after slashing .301/.373/.465 … as a catcher! According to FanGraphs, that was tied for the 30th best single season from a catcher in baseball history.
And on Wednesday night, he came out on top once again, only this time it was for Team America.
Lmao Beltre and lucroy in the WBC pic.twitter.com/jtffBAKzDK
— Baseball Swag™ (@Baseballswag_) March 16, 2017
(P.S. don’t kick dirt on him).
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