Venezuela fight back to crush Italy dream, book World Baseball Classic final date with United States

Venezuela booked their place in the World Baseball Classic final after rallying past Italy 4-2 in a gripping semifinal clash in Miami on Monday. Italy, who had earlier stunned the United States en route to the semifinals, could not respond in the closing stages as Venezuela’s pitching held firm. With this comeback victory, Venezuela now advanced to the championship game, where they will face the United States in Miami for the title showdown. The championship game is set for Tuesday at LoanDepot Park, with both the United States and Venezuela heading into the final having suffered just one defeat each in this year’s tournament.


Italy, one of the tournament’s biggest surprises, looked poised to continue their dream run after racing to a 2-0 lead in the opening two innings. Their early breakthrough came when Zach Dezenzo opened the scoring, capitalizing on a bases-loaded walk issued by Venezuela starter Keider Montero. Moments later, the Italians doubled their advantage as Jac Caglianone crossed the plate following Dante Nori’s force out.



However, Venezuela slowly worked their way back into contention. In the fourth inning, Eugenio Suárez ignited the comeback with a towering 386-foot solo home run, trimming the deficit to 2-1 and shifting the momentum.


The decisive moment arrived in the seventh inning when Venezuela’s offense exploded. Ronald Acuña Jr. delivered a crucial hit to bring Andrés Giménez home and level the score at 2-2. Shortly after, Maikel García’s single allowed Jackson Chourio to score, giving Venezuela their first lead of the game. Luis Arráez then added an insurance run with a line drive to center, plating Acuña and extending the lead to 4-2.