WBC Quarterfinals explainer: Can underdog Korea outlast Dominican Republic’s mighty lineup? – The Athletic

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Friday’s face-off between Team Dominican Republic and Team Korea is perhaps the most lopsided in the quarterfinals. Photo of Juan Soto, left: Rich Storry / Getty Images; Photo of Jung Hoo Lee, right: Chung Sung-Jun / Getty Images

March 13, 2026Updated 3:43 pm EDT

The Athletic has live coverage of Korea vs. Dominican Republic and USA vs. Canada in the 2026 World Baseball Classic quarterfinals.

The World Baseball Classic has moved into its knockout stage. From a field of 20 teams, eight have advanced out of round-robin pool play and into the quarterfinals. From here on out, each game is a must-win, and three wins crown a champion. The quarterfinals begin on Friday and continue through Saturday.

Korea @ Dominican Republic

Friday, March 13
6:30 p.m. ET
loanDepot Park, Miami, Fla.

How to watch: FS2

How they got here: The Dominican Republic bullied its way through Pool D, pummeling Teams Israel, Nicaragua and Netherlands before winning a highly-anticipated matchup against Venezuela. During pool play, they led all teams in nearly every meaningful offensive category, including runs, home runs and OPS. A lineup of major-league stars gives the DR a real shot at winning its second WBC title.

Team Korea, meanwhile, is in the quarterfinals for the first time since 2009 and advanced via a tiebreaker as the runner-up in Pool C. Korea went just 2-2 in pool play but hung in there against undefeated Team Japan, outhitting Japan but ultimately losing by 2 runs.

Star gazing: There is no shortage of star power in the Dominican Republic lineup. Fernando Tatis Jr., Ketel Marte, Juan Soto and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. have been their top four hitters, building a lineup with such depth that Julio Rodríguez bats seventh and Geraldo Perdomo — who finished fourth in NL MVP voting last season — bats ninth. Adding to the marquee names on Friday will be the team’s No. 1 starter, Cristopher Sanchez, who had a breakout 2025 season with the Philadelphia Phillies but faltered in his first WBC start last week. He’ll look for much better results this time out.

Great unknown: Compared to the Dominican Republic, Team Korea is light on household names. San Francisco Giants center fielder Jung Hoo Lee is the centerpiece of the lineup and had two hits in the game against Team Japan. A name to keep in mind is Bo Gyeong Moon, who currently leads the tournament with 11 RBIs, including four in a 7-2 win against Australia that proved pivotal in helping Team Korea advance. The only player who has more than six at-bats and a higher OPS than Moon is Shohei Ohtani.

Mar 13, 2026