Dunn Lets America Down

 Adam Dunn led the American team to defeat in last night's semifinal of the World Baseball Classic.

Last night, he was 0-4 against Japan, with three pretty ugly strikeouts and some uglier defense.

In the first, with a runner on second, Dunn took strike three -- a backdoor slider from Dice-K that froze him.

Dunn came up in the fifth with two runners on.  Japan brought in left-hander Toshiya Sugiuchi, and Dunn was helpless, striking out to end the inning.

In the 9th, Dunn was America's last hope.  Once Yu Darvish got two strikes on him, you knew the game was over.  The only question was what pitch, and where. 

As it was, the ol' fastball down Broadway was all it took.  Who knows what Dunn was looking for there?  Curve?  Slider?  Daydreaming of that big ol' bass he caught last November?

The strikeouts are frustrating to watch, but that's the Adam Dunn experience.  You get those, but you also get 100 walks and 40 homers.  It's just too bad that he can't control exactly when he gets them.

While his strikeouts were hard to watch, he might've been worse in the field.

When he filled in at first in another game, he put on a bad defense clinic -- the Goofus to Keith Hernandez's Galant.  That doesn't bode well if Nick Johnson goes down, does it?

Dunn mostly played right field in the tourney.  Although his performance in right in the semifinal probably warrants scare quotes around "played."

Dunn showed a weak, inaccurate arm on a few key throws.  Range-wise ... oy.

Late in the game, a Japanese batter hit a line drive toward the gap in right, an easy play for a right fielder.

Dunn indifferently lumbered over on a strange angle.  The ball rolled past him further toward the wall, where the centerfielder picked it up.

He can turn singles into doubles and outs into singles.

The Nats' pitchers are sure to love him.

Chris Needham used to write Capitol Punishment.  He has, on occasion, been embarrassed to write about sports.

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