100,964 (avg. 16,827; pct. 40.1%) Pool B – 91,205 (avg. 15,201; pct. 52.8%) Chase Field – 65,464 (avg. 21,821; pct. 44.5%) Scottsdale Stadium – 25,741 (avg. 8,580; pct. 100.9%) Pool C – 74,472 (avg. 12,412; pct. 68.0%) Pool D – 59,988 (avg. 9,998; pct. 105.2%) Second round 283,880 (avg. 23,657; pct. 74.7%) Pool 1 – 191,717 (avg. 31,953; pct. 70.9%) Pool 2 – 92,163 (avg. 15,361; pct. 84.1%) Championship round 126,603 (avg. 42,201; pct. 99.4%) Semifinals – 83,907 (avg. 41,954; pct. 98.8%) Final – 42,696 (avg. 42,696; pct. 100.6%) 2006 All-World Baseball Classic team Note: The tournament Most Valuable Player was Daisuke Matsuzaka. Statistics leaders Batting * Minimum 2.7 plate appearances per game Pitching * Minimum 0.8 innings pitched per game ** Martí is tied with 10 others with a 0.00 ERA but he pitched the most innings with 12.2 Additional rules There were several rule changes from normal major league play. Pitchers were held to a pitch count of 65 pitches in the first round, 80 pitches in the second round, and 95 in the championship round. (Netherlands pitcher Shairon Martis used exactly 65 pitches to throw the only no-hitter of the tournament, a 10–0 win over Panama that was stopped by the mercy rule [see below].) If a pitcher reached his maximum pitch count in the middle of an at-bat, he could continue to pitch to that batter, but was required to be replaced once that at-bat ended. A 30–pitch outing needed to be followed by one day off, and a 50–pitch outing by four days off. No one would be allowed to pitch on three consecutive days. A mercy rule came into effect when one team led by either fifteen runs after five innings, or ten runs after seven innings in the first two rounds. In addition, ties could be called after fourteen innings of play. The designated hitter rule was in place for all games. Controversies Format South Korea completed the first two rounds undefeated (6-0) but was still forced to play Japan, a team it had already beaten twice, in the semifinal round. South Korea lost the match and subsequently was placed 3rd, despite the fact that South Korea's final standings were 6-1, with the most wins. Other international sporting competitions, such as the FIFA World Cup, are formatted so as to make it impossible for teams to play each other three times. They can