In case you had an unfortunate accident yesterday wherein a giant boulder rolled right on top of you, you might have missed that the Netherlands beat the heavily favored Dominican Republic in the World Baseball Classic.

No, that’s not a repeat of the other time the Netherlands beat the Dominicans. This time, it hurts more, since the WBC is a double-elimination tournament, at least in the first round. (Figuring out how the tournament works is damn near impossible from the WBC site. MLB loves usability experts as much as Marty Brennamen loves Adam Dunn.)

The Dutch advance thanks to the incompetence of Chicago Cub Carlos Marmol. That’s right, in the bottom of the 11th, he must have had a goat in his eye when he threw wildly to first, allowing the tying run to advance all the way to third. After that, I had a feeling he was toast. Cubs don’t exactly have a history of succeeding, especially in the face of adversity.

While the Reds seem to be doing fairly well in Spring Training, the Houston Astros are anything but. Currently, they have won 1 game. That’s right. One game out of 10. That’s not exactly the kind of hope that spring is eternally known for.

In positive news, Aaron Boone, who apparently is with the Astros now, had a hit recently. So there’s that.

How’s the manager Cecil Cooper taking the losing?

We talk about not being spectacular — in other words, routine.

Sounds…motivational. Good luck with that, Cecil!

In a quote from Reds reporter John Fay’s blog, Brandon Phillips had this to say.

I don’t believe that on-base percentage stuff. That’s overrated to me. If you get hits, you’ll be on base. That’s what it’s about.

My first reaction is similar to Fay’s and others: that it does nothing more than piss off baseball fans with brains. However, the more I think about it, the more I think the quote wasn’t for us.

Phillips was directing that comment directly to “manager” Dusty Baker. That’s right, Brandon Phillips is kissing ass.