The semifinal field of the 2026 World Baseball Classic is set. It took the best game of the tournament for Venezuela to get there.
Facing defending champion Japan, the Venezuelans took a haymaker and hit back even harder in an 8-5 victory to close the WBC quarterfinals. Their semifinal opponent on Monday will be Italy, which survived a comeback from Puerto Rico earlier Saturday to advance.
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It will be Venezuela’s first WBC semifinal appearance since 2009 and Italy’s first. The other semifinal between Team USA and the Dominican Republic will be played on Sunday.
The win Saturday also clinches Venezuela a place in the six-team field for the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles, one of the prizes available in the WBC. The U.S. and D.R. had already clinched two of the three spots available to countries in the Americas, with Team USA assured a spot as Olympic hosts.
The loss marks Japan’s worst finish in the history of the World Baseball Classic. Samurai Japan is the only team that reached the semifinals in all five previous iterations of the event going back to 2006. It has won the tournament a world-best three times.
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Two superstars with leadoff HRs in Venezuela-Japan
Venezuela had good vibes flowing from the second pitch of the game, when superstar Ronald Acuña Jr. crushed a leadoff homer off reigning World Series MVP Yoshinobu Yamamoto.
Naturally, Shohei Ohtani had to respond.
That sequence proved to be a tone-setter. Venezuela took another lead with back-to-back doubles by Ezequiel Tovar and Gleyber Torres in the second inning, and Japan hit back in the third inning when Shota Morishita — in the game only due to a first-inning injury to Seiya Suzuki — crushed a three-run homer to take a 5-2 lead.
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With Yamamoto still on the mound and a strong bullpen behind him, it should have been advantage Japan.
Wilyer Abreu the hero for Venezuela
The Venezuela comeback began once Yamamoto, who recovered from some early shakiness, exited the game after four innings.
Maikel Garcia, Acuña’s cousin, narrowed the deficit with a two-run homer in the fifth. Wilyer Abreu then ignited the entire stadium with a three-run homer in the sixth at the expense of Hiromi Itoh, the reigning winner of the Sawamura Award, Japan’s equivalent of the Cy Young Award.
The emotions coming out of the dugout and batter’s box as soon as ball left bat were a good reminder of how much the WBC matters to these players.
And while Venezuela’s lineup of MLB All-Stars was humming, its bullpen proved to be very effective behind starting pitcher Ranger Suarez, who allowed every Japan run. The relief unit put down 13 straight Japan batters at one point and kept the game from becoming even more ridiculous.
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Italy took a big lead and then held on
Entering Saturday, the story of this tournament had been undefeated Italy, which topped Team USA for Pool B supremacy and was rewarded with a quarterfinal matchup against Puerto Rico.
Like they did against the United States, the Italians took a big lead early. They were up 8-2 after four innings but still faced a tall order against an experienced P.R. lineup.
That lineup struck in the eighth with a four-run rally, which made the rest of the game uncomfortable for the underdog. But Team Italy held on, ensuring the WBC semifinals won’t be four traditional baseball powers.
The elimination is a bitter pill for Puerto Rico, which was also hoping to clinch an Olympic spot. There is now no way for them to make it to Los Angeles, after they lost in a tournament in which some of their best players were barred from playing by insurance companies.
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Follow along with Yahoo Sports for the latest World Baseball Classic news and highlights from Saturday’s quarterfinal matchups:
Live coverage is over109 updates
Sat, March 14, 2026 at 9:25 PM PDT
It’ll be Team USA vs. the Dominican Republic on Sunday and Venezuela vs. Italy on Monday to determine who plays in the WBC championship, which will be Tuesday.
Sat, March 14, 2026 at 9:18 PM PDT
Ohtani is met with a 100.1 mph fastball from Palencia for strike one. He ends up flying out, and that’s the ball game.
Venezuela fought back against Japan, stole the momentum in the middle innings and pulls off a stunning upset to advance to the WBC semifinals. Japan’s reign as WBC champion is over.
What an incredible baseball game.
Sat, March 14, 2026 at 9:15 PM PDT
Kensuke Kondoh pinch hits for Kenya Wakatsuki and strikes out.
Japan is down to its final out of the WBC. It’s all up to Ohtani.
Sat, March 14, 2026 at 9:13 PM PDT
He will have to face Ohtani to get out of this game.
Genda strikes out on a 99.8 mph fastball, and that’s one down.
Sat, March 14, 2026 at 9:10 PM PDT
Acuña strikes out, Garcia grounds into a fielder’s choice, and Venezuela is down to its last out to try to tack on some more insurance.
Arraez grounds out, and we’re headed to the bottom of the ninth.
Up next for Japan: Genda, Wakatsuki and Ohtani.
Sat, March 14, 2026 at 9:06 PM PDT
Yusei Kikuchi would’ve been scheduled to start one of the final two games of this tournament. Instead, he’s on the mound for the ninth inning with Japan needing to hold off Venezuela’s offense.
Jackson Chourio singles, and the leadoff runner is aboard.
Sat, March 14, 2026 at 9:02 PM PDT
With two outs, Okamoto singled on a ball that Acuña almost got to. Then Murakami singled to bring the tying run to the plate.
But Machado got out of it, inducing a groundout to end the frame and preserve Venezuela’s three-run lead.
Sat, March 14, 2026 at 8:57 PM PDT
The Venezuelan bullpen has shut down Japan’s offense since taking over from Ranger Suarez.
Andrés Machado is on the mound in the eighth and gets a strikeout and a diving catch from Jackson Chourio for the first two outs.
Sat, March 14, 2026 at 8:48 PM PDT
Ezequiel Tovar got on board with a leadoff double.
Then, with Tovar on his way to third, a pickoff attempt went very wrong, with the ball caroming into center field and Tovar scampering home.
That’s an error on Japanese pitcher Atsuki Taneichi and an 8-5 lead for Venezuela.
Sat, March 14, 2026 at 8:42 PM PDT
Jack Baer
That’s 1-2-3 inning for Zerpa. If Japan doesn’t get another baserunner, Venezuela won’t have to face Ohtani again.
Sat, March 14, 2026 at 8:40 PM PDT
Jack Baer
Angel Zerpa strikes out Ohtani. Venezuela exhales.
Sat, March 14, 2026 at 8:38 PM PDT
Jack Baer
Shohei Ohtani got strike 2 on a foul tip, but insisted there was catcher’s interference, to the point of taking his elbow guard off. The call stands on review.
Sat, March 14, 2026 at 8:35 PM PDT
Jack Baer
Sat, March 14, 2026 at 8:32 PM PDT
Jack Baer
Atsuki Taneichi takes the mound for Japan and throws a 1-2-3 seventh inning. Shohei Ohtani is due up second for the bottom of the frame.
Sat, March 14, 2026 at 8:26 PM PDT
Jack Baer
Sat, March 14, 2026 at 8:25 PM PDT
Jack Baer
Buttó keeps the sixth scoreless. On to the seventh.
Sat, March 14, 2026 at 8:20 PM PDT
Jack Baer
Emmanuel De Jesus gets a flyout from Munetaka Murakami and that will end his night with 2 1/3 scoreless inning. A quiet hero for Venezuela tonight after Japan’s early breakthrough.
José Buttó enters for Venezuela.
Sat, March 14, 2026 at 8:15 PM PDT
Jack Baer
Hiromi Itoh ends the inning with a strikeout of Ronald Acuña Jr., but the damage is done. That’s the 2025 Sawamura Award winner, Japan’s equivalent of the Cy Young Award, that Venezuela just scored a haymaker on.
Sat, March 14, 2026 at 8:13 PM PDT
Jack Baer
Sat, March 14, 2026 at 8:13 PM PDT
Jack Baer