2026 World Baseball Classic Quarterfinals: Venezuela ousts Japan, Italy stuns Puerto Rico
On March 14 at loanDepot Park in Miami, defending World Baseball Classic champion Japan was eliminated by Team Venezuela with an eight-to-five victory led largely by Wilyer Abreu's three-run home run and a dominant bullpen performance.
Key Points
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1Team defeated defending World Baseball Classic champion Japan with an eight-to-five score in their quarterfinal match on March 14.
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2Venezuela's Wilyer Abreu contributed significantly by hitting a three-run home run during the sixth inning of his team's victory at loanDepot Park, Miami. The game concluded after Venezuela executed what was described as a stunning bullpen effort to secure elimination for Japan and advancement in their Cinderella story.
Developments
Perspectives
Venezuela defeated defending WBC champion Japan with an eight-run victory in their quarterfinal match at loanDepot Park, advancing past the previous tournament winner.
— [Mar 15, 04:46] Venezuela eliminates defending WBC champion Japan with stunning bullpen effort (Yardbarker)"Venezuela left fielder" Wilyer Abreu hit a three-run home run against Team Japan in the sixth inning during their quarterfinal game.
— [Mar 15, 04:26] Venezuela eliminates defending WBC champion Japan with stunning bullpen effort (Yardbarker)"Venezuela" eliminated "Japan", while Italy stunned Puerto Rico to advance from its respective games in the World Baseball Classic Quarterfinals.
— [Mar 15, 04:26] Venezuela eliminates defending WBC champion Japan with stunning bullpen effort (Yardbarker)"Venezuela" will "advance [to play Italy as part of their Cinderella run in the semifinal round]."
— [Mar 15, 04:26] Venezuela eliminates defining WBC champion Japan with stunning bullpen efforTeam Italy defeated Team Puerto Rico with a final score of 8-6 at LoanDepot Park in Miami on March 14 during the World Baseball Classic, while Venezuela also won their game against Japan by scoring eight runs to five innings. Both matches featured historic milestones for national baseball teams and included notable performances from former Mariners players such as Dominic Canzone (PR) and Dan Altavilla (Italy).
Italy defeated Puerto Rico 8-6 in the eighth inning after a late rally, securing their first World Baseball Classic semifinal berth despite early pitching struggles. Venezuela advanced to its second consecutive WBC quarterfinal by defeating Japan with an eight-run victory that included two lead-off home runs from Ronald Acuña Jr., marking only the third time this has occurred since 2013 and making history as both teams opened games in a row using solo homers for their first run of each night.
Venezuela advanced past Japan 8-5 on Saturday night after rallying from a five-run deficit thanks largely to six relief pitchers who combined for seven shutout innings. This marks Venezuela's second appearance in the World Baseball Classic semifinals, setting up their next match against Italy despite starting pitcher Ranger Suarez allowing early runs due to subpar performance and lineup depth issues that initially favored Japan.