Zach Levenson didn’t need a reminder of where he was. The city, the ballpark, the familiar faces, it all landed before he ever stepped in the batter’s box.
“Miami’s just home. So everything here, everybody welcomes me in. The coaches are still at Miami, so it’s just good to be back home. And then, I have a bunch of friends and family here too, so it’s just great.”
Sunday’s World Baseball Classic matchup between Israel (1-1) and Nicaragua (0-3) came with Pool D stakes, but it also came with a South Florida thread running through both dugouts. Two former Hurricanes were with Israel. Two Miami-connected players with Nicaragua. Even before the game tilted, you could feel how much it meant in this building.
Israel beat Nicaragua 5-0 at loanDepot Park, taking control in the fifth inning and never letting go. The win kept Israel’s pool play alive and pushed Nicaragua to the brink, but the bigger theme was home, and what it feels like to return to it on baseball’s biggest stage.
For Levenson, the support has been constant, and loud.
“My phone’s been blowing up. Everyone’s so supportive, and our coaches told us it was going to be the best time of our lives in college, and it was. I had the best college experience a kid can ask for going to University of Miami. So it’s just great.”
The WBC element is what makes it different. Levenson said he grew up watching it. When Israel called, he did not hesitate.
“So I’ve been, I’ve been growing up watching the WBC, so it was one of those things where I knew I was fully Jewish, and if I got the call to play in this, it would be a no-brainer to come play just because of the experience,” he said.
“I mean, I don’t know if you still saw that game last night. It was unreal. You can’t do that many times. So, yeah, it’s a no-brainer.”
On the other side of the diamond, Mark Vientos, a Miami-area product returning to play in the city where he grew up, described the same atmosphere with a different comparison. The volume, the flags, the urgency, it did not feel like March.
“It’s different for sure because usually I’m in spring training, I’m going into getting games and getting at-bats and we kind of jumped into playoff mode with a lot of fans screaming and representing. And honestly, it’s awesome, man. This environment is what you work hard for, to play in every day.”
Vientos said the setting added weight because of the name he wore across his chest.
“Playing in Marlins Park, in my hometown that I grew up in, and playing in the World Baseball Classic for Nicaragua, the country that’s in my blood, is an honor. It’s a dream come true. I dreamt of this as a little kid. I’m pretty sure last WBC, I told myself that I’ll be in this one and I’ll be playing over here. So dream come true, like I said, and it’s awesome that I get to do it for Team Nicaragua.”
Freddy Zamora, another former Miami Hurricane and Miami native, said the environment has felt like something entirely new, even with his history in this park.
“In terms of the fans and stuff, it’s been a completely different ballgame, something that I’ve really never experienced. It’s been an awesome time.”
Then he reflected on the full circle.
“It means the world to me. I grew up here in Miami. I came to Marlins games my whole life growing up. I played here actually in high school a couple times for Miami Killian. I played here when I was at [the University of] Miami, we had a game here against the Marlins. So it’s been a park that’s been in my sights for a while now, I would say. But wearing this across my chest now, it makes it that much more awesome.”
Zamora said the support from home has been constant.
“I’ve had a lot of people here at the games texting me, you know, reposting my stuff on Instagram, things like that, that nature. And it’s awesome, man. It’s really cool to experience that.”
Israel starter Dean Kremer and Nicaragua starter Carlos Rodríguez traded clean early innings, and the game stayed quiet through four. Nicaragua finally created its best pressure inning in the fifth. Vientos opened it by battling to a full count and lining a one-hop single into center for his first hit of the tournament. Nicaragua loaded the bases, but Israel’s infield erased the threat with a double play and kept the scoreboard unchanged.
The game swung immediately after.
Israel opened the bottom of the fifth with a hit, pushed another runner to third, then Harrison Bader lined an RBI single to make it 2-0. With the bases loaded and one out, Levenson delivered the separator, ripping a two-run line drive into right-center to stretch the lead to 4-0. Cole Carrigg added an RBI single later in the inning to make it 5-0, and Israel’s pitching made sure it held.
Levenson finished 1 for 3 with two RBI and a walk. Carlos Lequerica, the other former Miami Hurricane on Israel’s roster, did not play Sunday, but the homecoming still mattered. He described the week as something he used to imagine from the stands.
“It’s been unbelievable. It’s almost surreal to play here in a stadium that I grew up, coming to watch Marlins teams and other big-league teams come out here and play. But it’s been an honor. It’s been amazing being around a lot of veteran guys in that clubhouse, learning from them, asking them questions. It’s just, It’s been a surreal experience.”
The Miami thread even found its way to the mound late. In the eighth, Israel brought in Max Lazar, a Coral Springs High alumnus, another South Florida name getting a WBC inning.
When the contest ended, the score was straightforward. The perspective from the Miami-connected players on both sides was consistent, too: grateful to be back, and aware this stage doesn’t come around often.
Israel will play the Dominican Republic next at noon Monday. . Nicaragua will face Venezuela in the night game Monday at 7.
John Devine has worked with the Miami Herald since 1996. He has worked as a Broward sports editor, Broward news editor, assistant sports editor and deputy sports editor before he became executive sports editor in 2021.