only face twice at most – in round robin group play and then again for the championship or 3rd-place match. In addition, the regional grouping of teams was called into question, for the groups were perceived to be unevenly distributed, and the four-team pool system and subsequent three-way tiebreakers were widely seen as awkward. Umpires Tournament organizers were unable to reach an agreement with the MLB umpires' union and so the Classic was overseen by umpires from the minor leagues. South Korea When South Korea beat Japan, they planted South Korean national flags into a pitcher's mound at Angels Stadium at Anaheim. Chinese Taipei The Chinese Taipei team was originally listed as "Taiwan" and bearing the ROC national flag, but following pressure from the People's Republic of China the listing was later changed to Chinese Taipei with the Chinese Taipei Olympic flag. Drug testing The World Anti-Doping Agency criticized IBAF's drug testing program and threatened to withdraw sanction of the event. South Korean pitcher Myung-hwan Park tested positive for a banned substance during the event, and he was subsequently kicked out of the WBC.. Venezuelan pitcher Freddy García tested positive for marijuana. Player participation Numerous MLB players pulled out of the competition for various reasons, such as Barry Bonds, Vladimir Guerrero, and Manny Ramírez, among others. Cuba in particular barred players such as Orlando Hernández, his half-brother Liván Hernández, and José Contreras from its team as Cubans who had previously defected. Success of tournament Many members of the United States press were skeptical of the Classic since its inception. The event proved to be quite popular, however, providing many memorable moments including a first round game between Venezuela and the Dominican Republic. Attendance was higher than expected at several sites, including the 18,000-seat Hiram Bithorn Stadium in San Juan, which was sold out for every Puerto Rico game in the first two rounds. In addition, there were 4,000 media credentials issued — more than the World Series — which bodes well for the stated goal of internationalizing the sport. Sports Illustrated writer Tom Verducci reported that "more merchandise was sold in the first round than organizers projected for the entire 17-day event." He also reported that, at one point, jerseys for the Venezuelan team were selling at the rate of one every six seconds. The U.S. television ratings on ESPN were stronger than initially expected, drawing in more than one