World Baseball Classic pool play wrapped up on Wednesday night with one of the most exciting games of the tournament to date as the Dominican Republic beat Venezuela 7-3 in Miami. There were a lot of great moments like this epic Fernando Tatis Jr. blast:
Juan Soto, also playing for the Dominican Republic, described it as the perfect bat flip. I must say I agree, honestly the whole show from bat flip to the slow, exaggerated trot around
the bases was a 10/10 no notes type of performance. Don’t believe me, take a look at the reaction in Santo Domingo:
It’s going to be exceedingly difficult for anyone to top the swagger or caliber of play the Dominicans are bringing to the 2026 World Baseball Classic, but I have to believe the Contrerii playing for Venezuela, the Boricua who will be making their debut in Houston tonight and Japan, anchored by Cubs rightfielder Seiya Suzuki and the one and only Shohei Ohtani will give it a go as they make their debut against Venezuela in Miami on Saturday.
As much as my heart is shattered that Mexico missed the elimination rounds, I can’t take anything away from the incredible showing Italy and their espresso machine has put on so far this tournament. You can see the whole bracket below:
So with that, below are my hot takes on what is now a win or go home tournament. It’s gonna be lit, y’all. You can see how the crew at ESPN ranked the teams remaining in the tournament here.
David and Goliath: Korea vs. Dominican Republic
On paper this is a mismatch with a stacked Dominican team featuring a Latino murderers row of hitters that would strike fear in the hearts of the 1927 Yankees. Tatis & Soto are joined by Junior Caminero, Manny Machado, Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Oneil Cruz, Julio Rodríguez y mas. Just look at this swagger:
Oh, did I mention they can pitch? They can pitch. Former Cy Young winner Sandy Alcantara heads up a pitching roster that includes Red Sox starter Brayan Bello and at least four guys with MLB closing experience in Dennis Santana, Seranthony Domínguez, Camilo Doval, Carlos Estévez, Gregory Soto and Abner Uribe. Don’t fall behind against La República Dominicana.
But the beauty of a single elimination baseball tournament is that on any given day anyone can win, just ask Mark DeRosa and Team USA. Korea qualified for the elimination rounds for the first time in four tournaments. Former MLB pitcher Hyun Jin Ryu will toe the rubber for Korea tonight in Miami.
The Kings in the North: Canada vs. USA
Later tonight in Houston, a scrappy Canadian team will hope to repeat Italy’s performance and stun a stacked US team that ranks second in the ESPN power rankings. The Canadians are coming off a surprise win against team Puerto Rico in San Juan (admittedly, on a night where Puerto Rico’s manager Yadier Molina was resting many of his regulars after clinching a spot in the elimination rounds). The Americans are coming off a surprise loss against team Italy in Houston (admittedly on a night where USA manager Mark DeRosa maybe thought he clinched when he hadn’t but says he knew he hadn’t?).
Pete Crow-Armstrong was the star in a losing effort against Italy, but has generally been backing up Twins centerfielder Byron Buxton. Lineups are not out yet, but keep an eye out to see if PCA is in the game or on the bench.
The Canadians will have Giants ace Logan Webb on the mound while the Americans will counter with former Cub Michael Soroka.
Not gonna miss their shot: Puerto Rico vs. Italy
The middle of the bracket features two teams with MLB regulars and a few lineup flaws. Puerto Rico is without some of their heaviest hitters, but had a strong second place finish in San Juan. They’ll look for a strong outing from staring pitcher Seth Lugo, who’ll likely partner with defensive catcher extraordinaire Martín Maldonado behind the plate. Manager Yadi Molina will look from strong offensive performances from Nolan Arenado, Heliot Ramos and walkoff hero Darrel Hernaiz:
The Italians will hope their espresso powered vibes and young electric bats like Jac Caglionne, Vinnie Pasquantion, Jakob Marsee along with former Cubs Jon Berti and Miles Mastrobuoni can score enough runs to make up for their lack of deep pitching. They’ll send Sam Aldegheri or Michael Lorenzan to the mound Saturday afternoon in Houston.
A League of Their Own: Japan vs. Venezuela
Japan will send the greatest baseball player on the planet, Shohei Ohtani and Cubs slugger Seiya Suzuki to anchor their offense with pitchers Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Yusei Kikuchi into their debut in Miami hoping to start yet one more run to the World Baseball Classic Championship. There will be incredible cheers, there will be vibes. There will be Ohtani:
Ohtani may be a unicorn but these are evenly matched teams with Venezuela countering Yamamoto with the pitching prowess of Ranger Suárez, backed up by a fierce offense featuring Ronald Acuña Jr., catching legend Salvador Perez and my favorite Contreras brothers for the nightcap on Saturday in Miami.
It’s a fascinating matchup with both teams offering star-studded MLB rosters, including All Star pitching.
There will be a game thread for tonight’s two games here at 5 p.m. CT.
