Venezuela is in the World Baseball Classic final for the first time in six iterations of the tournament following a 4-2 semifinal win over Italy Monday before a sold-out crowd of 35,382 at loanDepot park. The win sets up a WBC title game against the U.S. on Tuesday at 8pm ET, in a rematch of a 2023 quarterfinal game. No matter how Tuesday plays out, this tournament “has been a success for Venezuela.” They had “one of the upsets of the tournament” with an 8-5 win over Japan in the quarterfinals on Saturday -- a win that “also secured their spot” in the 2028 L.A. Games (MIAMI HERALD, 3/17). The U.S. won a coin toss and will be the home team for Tuesday’s game, but “there is little doubt the crowd at loanDepot Park will be overwhelmingly in favor of Venezuela, as has been the case throughout the tournament” (SI, 3/17).
Italy, the first European nation to reach a WBC semifinal, had been 5-0 in the tournament. Italy manager Francisco Cervelli said, “I just told the guys that they are the champions of this tournament. ... They revolutionized Italy. They put another sport on the map.” Following the loss, Italy players “spent 10 minutes in front of their dugout hugging each other and saluting fans.” Italy 1B Vinnie Pasquantino talked about the “millions thought to have watched on television in Italy,” where the first pitch was thrown at 1:08am local time Tuesday. He said, “We weren’t successful on the field tonight, but we were successful in Italy. And that’s what this is all about” (AP, 3/17).
