WORLD BASEBALL CLASSIC: POOL D - DOMINICAN REPUBLIC VS VENEZUELA

March 11, 2026

Seranthony Dominguez

Abner Uribe

LoanDepot Park

Team Dominican Republic

Pregame Press Conference

Q. Question for both. The Dominican offense always stands out. Pitching has been underestimated, and you have been doing a great job at this World Classic. Was that a motivation for you to do your best or what?

SERANTHONY DOMINGUEZ: Good afternoon. Thank God for this opportunity to be here. This is a dream come true for me. Every time I talk to my teammates, every time I come here, I do my best, and I thank God for that.

If we were underestimated or not, I don't know. It doesn't affect me personally speaking. I'm here to do my best and to defend my country.

ABNER URIBE: Just like he said, I could add that, okay. We can be underestimated, but no one knows what could happen until the end out. We have been doing a great job in the bullpen.

Q. Question for both. Speaking with the leaders, with the managers, some of the people outside, the fans, because of the rivalry, they care about this game. If you want to win a Classic, you have to beat the U.S., Japan, you name it. Are you going to -- you have do an extra motivation for this game, knowing that you should be the winner of this pool to avoid Japan?

SERANTHONY DOMINGUEZ: Basically speaking, we are here to do our job, to be our best version, to face all the teams. All the teams are very good, and that's why they are here. They're here for a reason. We are going to help our team win.

Q. (No microphone.)

ABNER URIBE: Just like he said, there is no weak rival. We all have the same goal. The mission is to win this game no matter what. We have to win.

Q. Question for both. How important is it to be in this World Baseball Classic? And when you were training as pitchers, did you dream about being in this big tournament?

SERANTHONY DOMINGUEZ: To me, like I said before, this is a dream come true for me. I asked God for this opportunity to represent my country in a WBC. This is a great experience with a teammate, learning from them, supporting and helping the elders. It's been a beautiful experience. We are doing our best representing our country in the best possible way, and we hope to be successful.

ABNER URIBE: I'm still dreaming. My dream is not -- has not come true until I win this tournament. We are very proud to represent my country, competing at the highest level in baseball. For every young player, this is a dream come true, you know? This is great.

Q. Question for both. You are going to be pitching in the last innings of the game. What's the process like to train for that, because you have you two, Gregorio, you are all closers. What's the process in the bullpen? Because you have to be ready when the manager calls you?

SERANTHONY DOMINGUEZ: Yeah, exactly. We have to be available to support our country and our teammates. We have to be ready from the first inning. When they call your name, you will have to be ready and go out and do your best.

ABNER URIBE: Pujols said that no one is a closure here. All the pitchers have a role in the team, and we are here to play for the country and not for ourselves. He said that, and we understood that we have to be ready at any point in time.

Q. Question for both. Are you mentally prepared for this game? How did you prepare yourselves mentally to deal with the adrenaline on the field so that it doesn't impact your performance, especially you, Anthony. You have an experience playing in a World Series and playoffs in the majors.

SERANTHONY DOMINGUEZ: We just do what we do before every game. We follow our routine to be both mentally and physically prepared to help the team, good communication, maybe let them know if you don't feel well now, I'm feeling okay, I'm ready to compete, to do my best and try to win the game today.

ABNER URIBE: Well, bottom line, you put pressure on us because for us it's just another game that we have to win. The goal is the same. The mission is the same. And adrenaline will be always present.

Especially me. I mean, my adrenaline is always very high. We just have to control our emotions. It is just another game, but our goal is to avoid mistakes and win.

Q. I know that you were focused on the team, on the pool, et cetera. Have you seen what happened in the other pools of the tournament, how competitive are the other pools, what's happened with the U.S. pool yesterday? Abner, can you tell us about the history of that jersey?

ABNER URIBE: Pardon, he speaks a lot. What was your question by the way?

Q. Are you aware of what happened yesterday with the United States?

ABNER URIBE: No. We didn't pay attention to what's going on with the other teams. We focus on our pool, our games. But yes, it was a surprise to me, that game, U.S.-Italy. That was insane; right? And they need good luck as we do.

SERANTHONY DOMINGUEZ: Yes. We are focused on ourselves. We hear about other games, et cetera, but we are aware of what's going on, but we are focused on this moment to do our best and to help the team win.

Q. Abner, Seranthony, question for both. You signed an extension to cover your career, the contract. In your case, Abner, you were a leader. But you are a reliever, and you don't have a contract yet in the majors. And I mean money. So you are going to the spring training, in your case, Seranthony, to justify the contract. Was that important for you to make that decision?

A It was not tough for me to make the decision to come here. I was calling Nelson every day. "When are you going to confirm my participation in WBC?" It has nothing to do with having a contract or not. Because I had to even go out and compete even when I had a contract.

SERANTHONY DOMINGUEZ: Like I said before, it's a dream come true for me. In the previous WBC, I couldn't come because of insurance problems, and it hurt me a lot because I wanted to be here with the team. But thank God this time I'm healthy. I didn't have problems with insurance. I'm here, and I'm going to try hard.

(FastScripts by ASAP Sports)