This was a tiebreaker game to determine which team would advance to the second round of the WBC. Venzuela had previously beaten Italy 11-10 but lost to Mexico and Puerto Rico while Italy beat Mexico 10-9 but also fell to Puerto Rico.
Venezuela did not have much major league pitching to draw on after their staff had been used in the first three games, and so much of their on-paper advantage over Italy was neutralized. But it was their offense that failed to deliver for most of the game as they trailed 2-1 entering the ninth and had mustered just two hits and three walks. But Miguel Cabrera led off with a tying homer, Victor Martinez walked, and Rougned Odor hit a long drive to right that he pimped as a homer, only to see it hit the wall. It scored the run but Odor only reached first although he wound end up scoring on Eduardo Escobar’s squeeze bunt.
Francisco Rodriguez was available, but he gave up a leadoff homer to cut it to 4-3 before inducing three straight groundballs to push Venezuela on in the tournament. However, they would end up in a true “group of death” and were swept by the US, Dominican Republic, and Puerto Rico. As I write this (just prior to the 2023 tournament), Venezuela has likely been the most disappointing performer over four tournaments with a 12-12 record and just one semifinals appearance.
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