Cristopher Sanchez Masterclass: The Dominican Republic 10-run mercy rules Korea to advance to the WBC semifinals

Cristopher Sanchez came to play Friday night in Miami and Korea had no answers.

The Phillies ace threw five shutout innings, allowing two hits and a walk while striking out eight on 63 pitches. He generated 18 swing and misses. His slider and changeup each had a 100 percent whiff rate on the night.

When those two pitches are working like that there is simply nothing a lineup can do. Max velocity of 96.9 mph. Forty-three of 63 pitches for strikes. It was as dominant a WBC start as you will see.

Cristopher Sanchez MASTERCLASS:

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The offense backed Cristopher Sanchez in a hurry.

The Dominican Republic jumped out to a 7-0 lead after three innings and never looked back. Fernando Tatis Jr. had two RBIs. Manny Machado, who had been struggling at the plate throughout the spring, showed up in an elimination game the way Hall of Famers do, going 2-for-4 with an RBI single during the third inning rally. Junior Caminero also had two hits and scored twice.

The bats went quiet for a few innings after that early explosion, until Austin Wells took matters into his own hands. The Yankees catcher stepped up in the seventh and smoked a three-run homer off the second deck in right field to trigger the 10-run mercy rule and end it 10-0.

The entire Dominican Republic team greeted him at home plate in full walk-off fashion. Game over. Korea eliminated.

Austin Wells ignites the 10-run mercy rule

AUSTIN WELLS WALK-OFF HOMER TO MERCY RULE KOREA IN 7 INNINGS 🤯

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC IS HEADING TO THE WBC SEMIS 🔥

(via @WBCBaseball)

pic.twitter.com/RLYA1Xhqfd

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) March 14, 2026

After a rough pool play start against Nicaragua that had people questioning whether Cristopher Sanchez was right, he answered every single one of those questions Friday night.

That is the Phillies Opening Day starter. That is the 2025 NL Cy Young runner-up. That performance was a reminder of exactly who he is.

Team USA is through to the WBC Semifinals, the Dominican Republic awaits…

The Dominican Republic advances to Sunday’s semifinal against Team USA at 8 PM ET in Miami on FS1.

After what Cristopher Sanchez just did to Korea and what that lineup has done to everyone in this tournament, Team USA is going to need Paul Skenes at his absolute best. This DR team is not messing around.

Two more quarterfinals are on the schedule today before Sunday’s semifinal. Puerto Rico faces Italy at 3 PM ET and Venezuela takes on Japan at 9 PM ET.

The DR and Team USA meet Sunday at 8 PM ET in Miami on FS1.

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