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ORLANDO, Fla. -- With the last two American League Cy Young Award winners on the mound and lots of All-Stars ready to swing the bat, the Dominican Republic and Venezuela will open up Pool D on Tuesday in the first round of the World Baseball Classic.

Lefty Johan Santana, the Cy Young winner in 2004, will face Dominican right-hander Bartolo Colón, who won the award last year. The matchup will be played at the Disney Complex in Orlando (ESPN, 1 p.m. ET).

The best two teams will advance to the next round, in Puerto Rico, where they will face the best two teams in Pool C (Cuba, Holland, Panama and Puerto Rico).

There are 16 participants in the Classic, organized by Major League Baseball and the players union and approved by the International Baseball Federation, divided into four pools, and the tournament will feature some of the best players in the world.

The game between Venezuela and the Dominican Republic will be the first meeting between the two countries since Venezuela defeated the Dominican twice to win this year's Caribbean Series in February (in Maracay and Valencia).

Because of the vast amount of stars, both teams are the biggest favorites to win the Classic.

"On paper we are the favorites along with the Dominican Republic and the United States, but things are not predictable in baseball. Every country has their best players on their squads and have plans to win it all," said Venezuelan manager Luis Sojo.

"If you're looking for the best players at this time, you can be sure to find them on the Dominican team," said Dominican manager Manny Acta.

"We left the fear at home," added Acta.

Because of the special rules that were approved for the WBC, starting pitchers will be limited to 65 pitches, and any pitcher who surpasses 30 pitches will not be allowed to play in consecutive games.

Sojo said that Carlos Zambrano and Victor Zambrano will follow Santana, while Acta said right-handers Miguel Batista and Julian Tavarez will do the same with Colon.

In their exhibition games that took place over the weekend, both the Dominican Republic and Venezuela exhibited their respective strong points.

Six Venezuelan pitchers combined for five hits in a 1-0 shutout victory over the Philadelphia Phillies.

"This game was a message to the Dominicans, Australia and Italy," said Sojo after the game.

Meanwhile, the Dominicans had 16 hits, including home runs by David Ortiz and Ron Belliard, and defeated the Houston Astros 12-8 on Sunday.

"It is a sign of what we can do," said Acta, referring to their offensive firepower.

While Sojo plans to use the same lineup that defeated the Phillies, Acta included fast Willy Taveras in place of powerful Mo Peña.

The Dominican Republic will have Alfonso Soriano at second base, Miguel Tejada at shortstop, Albert Pujols at first, Ortiz as the designated hitter, Moises Alou in left, Adrian Beltre at third, Juan Encarnacion in right, Alberto Castillo behind the plate, Taveras in center and Colón on the mound.

Venezuela's lineup will be the following: Omar Vizquel (SS), Carlos Guillen (DH), Bobby Abreu (CF), Miguel Cabrera (3B), Víctor Martinez (C), Magglio Ordóñez (RF), Ramon Hernandez (1B), Edgardo Alfonzo (2B) and Juan Rivera (LF).

"I am prepared for what is being considered a patriotic event, not just a baseball game," said Colón, who had a 21-8 record and an ERA of 3.48 with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in 2005.

"It is the first time I will represent my country and I am psyched. Although the most important game will be against the Dominican Republic, the other two games also count in order to advance to the second round," said Santana, who had a 16-7 record and an ERA of 2.87 with the Minnesota Twins last year.

"This will be a game watched by every Dominican soul, the 8 million we have on the island and all the others spread around the world," said Acta.

"Everything will also stop in Venezuela because of the game," he said. "Baseball is that important for both these countries."

Enrique Rojas is a reporter and columnist for ESPNdeportes.com and ESPN.com.