Team Israel’s journey in the World Baseball Classic came to an end on Monday, after the team lost its third match 10-1 against a Dominican Republic team with far greater starpower.
The loss meant Israel’s elimination from advancing to the next round of play in the global baseball tournament, and left the team, comprising primarily Jewish American baseball players, with a 1-2 record in the four-game first round.
It will play one final match on Tuesday against the Netherlands, which has also gone 1-2.
The Dominican Republic took a decisive 5-0 lead in the second inning on Monday when Fernando Tatis hit a grand slam off Israel’s pitcher Ryan Prager.
The team, which is filled with Major League Baseball stars, scored again in the 4th, 7th, 8th and 9th innings, and clinched a spot in the WBC quarterfinals.
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Spencer Horwitz scored Israel’s only run with a fourth-inning homer. Israel had only one other hit during the game, by Noah Mendlinger.
Dominican Republic’s Fernando Tatis Jr., center, celebrates with teammates after hitting a grand slam during the second inning of a World Baseball Classic game against Israel, March 9, 2026, in Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
The Israeli team started its run in the WBC tournament on Saturday night with an 11-3 loss to Venezuela in Miami. The following night, it won 5-0 against Nicaragua.
Sports analysts had predicted before the series that Team Israel, ranked 19th out of 20 teams in the 2026 tournament, was unlikely to win more than one game.
This was Israel’s third time in the WBC, after it first competed in 2017.
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