Who To Watch In The WBC: Ranger Suarez Steps Up For Venezuela, Seth Lugo Control's Puerto Rico's Fate

It's no secret that there was going to be one powerhouse quarterfinal matchup in the World Baseball Classic. You could see that as soon as the bracket was released, Pool C was paired with Pool D for the quarterfinals.

That meant Japan, the defending champ and three-time WBC winner, was likely to face either Venezuela or the Dominican Republic. Unless something screwy happened.

It didn't, and so we get Pool D winner Japan vs. Pool C runner-up Venezuela in Saturday's late quarterfinal game. Surprising Pool B winner Italy squares off with the second-place team from Pool A, Puerto Rico, in the early showdown. Puerto Rico lost a tiebreaker to Canada, having dropped a 3-2 decision in pool play.

Here are some players to keep an eye on today:

Ranger Suarez, Venezuela

Boston Red Sox fans will get to see their prized offseason addition pitch in a crucial game even before he dons the team's uniform at Fenway Park for the first time. The left-hander gets the ball to start against Japan. Suarez started Venezuela's tournament opener, a 6-3 win over the Netherlands, going two innings (43 pitches), allowing one run on three hits and one walk, striking out one. He had made two starts in spring training, going a combined 4⅔ innings and giving up three runs on five hits, with no walks and four strikeouts. In case you were wondering, Suarez has faced Shohei Ohtani three times, with the Japanese slugger going 1-for-2 with a double, a walk, and a strikeout.

Kazuma Okamoto, Japan

The new Toronto Blue Jays third baseman was off to a good start in spring training as he transitions to MLB after 11 seasons in Nippon Professional Baseball. The 29-year-old was 3-for-9 with a homer and three RBIs in four games for the Jays before heading to the WBC. There, he has struggled, going just 2-for-15 (.133) with a double and an RBI. He has walked three times in four games, while striking out three times. Japan hasn't needed Okamoto's production thus far, putting up the second-highest batting average (.301) and third-best OPS (.987) in pool play, but now would be an ideal time for him to get untracked.

Seth Lugo, Puerto Rico

The 36-year-old Kansas City Royals right-hander got Puerto Rico's WBC off to a terrific start. Pitching before the home fans in San Juan, Lugo tossed four shutout innings in a 5-0 win over Colombia. He allowed three hits, walked a pair, and struck out three. Now, Lugo has to contend with a homer-happy Italy team led by Royals teammate Vinnie Pasquantino, who had the first three-homer game in WBC history in the final game of pool play vs. Mexico. Italy has 12 homers, second only to the Dominican Republic's 13. 

Jakob Marsee, Italy

The Miami Marlins center fielder hasn't been able to carry a strong start to spring training to his performance in the WBC. The 24-year-old, who had a nice rookie season, is just 3-for-16 with a double and two RBIs in the WBC. This comes after he went 4-for-9 (.444) with four walks, a double, and a homer in four games with the Royals. Marsee has hit in each of the top three spots in Italy's order in the first four games, including leadoff twice. Getting some offense out of the Marsee could help Italy's Cinderella run continue.