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TAMPA (SNN-TV) – Rodney Linares, one of the top managerial prospects in Major League Baseball, will manage the Dominican Republic in the World Baseball Classic.

Linares is in his fourth season as the third base coach of the Tampa Bay Rays. He’ll lead what could be the early favorite for the WBC title, considering young superstars like Vladimir Guerrero Jr. of the Toronto Blue Jays and Julio Rodriguez of the Mariners have already committed to play.

The announcement comes a week after Washington Nationals DH Nelson Cruz was named the Dominican Republic general manager.