Angels’ Fuentes withdraws from first round of WBC
This article was originally on a blog post platform and may be missing photos, graphics or links. See About archive blog posts.
Brian Fuentes withdrew from the first round of the World Baseball Classic today, citing family reasons. The Angels’ closer will remain with his team at their Arizona training camp rather than playing with Team USA.
If Team USA advances to the second round, Fuentes said he would join then. Fuentes said he was
‘grateful’ Team USA had consented to leaving a roster spot open for him. ‘I wanted to play,’ he said, ‘but the timing was bad.’
Fuentes returned to his Merced home last week, saying he had to deal with family matters but would not elaborate further.
Team USA is training in Florida, with first-round games scheduled for Toronto from March 7 to 11 and, assuming the team advances, second-round games scheduled for Miami from March 14 to 18.
“I’m looking forward to it,” Fuentes said.
He could join a deep USA bullpen that includes Angels teammate Scot Shields; Dodgers closer Jonathan Broxton; Minnesota Twins closer Joe Nathan; Toronto Blue Jays closer B.J. Ryan; and New York Mets setup man J.J. Putz, the former All-Star closer for the Seattle Mariners.
--Bill Shaikin