Vladimir Guerrero Jr. criticizes the World Baseball Classic for not using the ABS system

The World Baseball Classic left Dominican Republic players and fans with a bitter taste in their mouths, as the umpire behind home plate made the wrong call on two crucial at-bats in the semifinal against the United States.

Indeed, Cory Blaser called Geraldo Perdomo out on strikes on a pitch from Mason Miller that fell well below the strike zone, ending the game, while earlier in the game, Juan Soto was also penalized in the same way on a clear ball.

And like the rest of his Dominican Republic teammates, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. was furious and baffled that the international tournament did not use the automated ball-and-strike system (ABS) that will make its debut in the Majors this year.

Three days later, on his first day back in the Toronto Blue Jays' locker room since his country's loss, here's what he had to say via a team translator.

That's baseball. I'll say this: if we're going to use it this year in the regular season, why not use it in the WBC? I mean, everyone knew. The umpire thought it was a strike. That's human. But everyone knew what really happened. It would be a great idea to have it in the tournament too.

We don't know what would have happened if Blaser had made the right call, but we could have extended that incredibly exciting semifinal by at least one batter.

Vlad Guerrero Jr. on this call: “It's baseball. I'll say this — if we're going to use [ABS] this year in the regular season, why wouldn't we use it at the WBC? Everybody knew. [The umpire] thought it was a strike; he's human. But everyone who saw it knew what really happened” https://t.co/aoAE8v9QxY— Arden Zwelling (@ArdenZwelling) March 18, 2026

Instead, it was a bitter end to what had been a fantastic and spectacular run for Guerrero and the Dominicans, who were averaging over ten runs per game and were one of the two favorites to take it all after Japan's elimination.

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