WBSC Men's Softball World Cup Finals 2025: Dominican Republic & Australia first two of eight finalists confirmed
Following the exciting conclusion of the WBSC Men's Softball World Cup Group A in Hermosillo, Mexico on Sunday, world No. 14 Dominican Republic and No. 2 Australia are celebrating becoming the first National Teams to clinch a spot in the XVIII WBSC Men's Softball World Cup Finals, scheduled to take place in Prince Albert, Canada from July 8 to 13 next year.
Going into Sunday's last day of the tournament, world No. 5 Venezuela had finished pool play with five wins from as many games, while underdogs the Dominican Republic were 3-2 and defending champs Australia 2-3. But it was the Dominican Republic (4-2) and Australia (4-3) who finished first and second in Hermosillo, after Venezuela, who still have a chance to advance to the Finals as one of the two third-place teams with the best record, lost both of their playoff games.
It was seen as quite an upset on the Dominican Republic's part. With Australia, Venezuela, Czech Republic (6) and Mexico (9) higher in the WBSC/KONAMI Men's Softball World Ranking, only the Philippines sat lower in 15th place. The Dominicans had also missed out on qualifying for the last two editions and have a best finish of fifth (twice) in six appearances, but in Hermosillo, they bested defending World Champions Australia in pool play before pulling off their playoff miracle.
Australia, the defending Men's Softball World Champions, entered Group A as the favourites. The 2022 World Title they earned in New Zealand was their second, after the 2009 edition in Canada, and ranked them fourth in the tournament's history, just behind the Men's Softball World royalty: New Zeland (7 World Cups), USA (5), and Canada (4).
They had also participated in 11 Men's Soiftball World Cups and earned also one silver and two bronze medals.
The Dominican Republic last participated in a WBSC Men's Softball World Cup in 2017 in Canada, where they finished 11th. Their best Men's Softball World Cup result has been fifth place, accomplished in 1984 in the US and in 2015 in Canada.
Australia struggled at the plate, combining a .215 batting average. Hayden Mathews hit three of their six home runs. The Dominicans (.276) did better thanks to a couple of over-the-top performances by José Reyes (.429) and Juan Arias (.421). They combined five home runs by five different players.
The Dominicans bested the defending World Champions also on the rubber. Their pitchers combined a 2.39 earned run average (ERA), while Australia had 2.71. Dominican Republic's Yan Gonzalez, who allowed only three earned runs in 26 innings pitched, earned Most Outstanding Player's honours.
Venezuela, meanwhile, finished third with the best batting average (.301) and the best ERA, 0.88.
The top two finishers of Groups B and C and the two third-place teams with the best record will complete the set of eight participants in the 2025 Finals.
Group B is scheduled from July 10 to 14 in Prince Albert, Canada. The hosts and World No. 3 Canada will face No. 1 Argentina, No. 10 New Zealand, No. 11 Singapore, No. 16 Israel and No. 24 Hong Kong China.
Group C is scheduled from September 17 to 21 in Oklahoma City, USA. The hosts and World No. 7 USA will compete with No. 4 Japan, No. 13 Guatemala, No. 17 Colombia, No. 18 South Africa, and No. 19 Netherlands.