Star-studded Team USA upset as Venezuela wins first WBC title

MIAMI — They brought together All-Stars and MVPs and future Hall of Famers. They built a pitching staff capable of making a hitter’s blood run cold and a lineup that could make a pitcher’s cleats rattle. They built bonds that connected them beneath the surface of their understated demeanor. They were the greatest collection of American baseball players ever assembled for the World Baseball Classic.

Yet, Tuesday night, in a 3-2 defeat to Venezuela, their talent, their trophies and their team unity were not enough. Not on a night when a late lightning strike from Bryce Harper could not intimidate their opponents. Not in a tournament that showcased the ability and the enthusiasm of so many other nations. Not when facing an opponent suffused with the spirit of millions watching at home and thousands more packing the stands at loanDepot Park.

Moments after Harper tied the score with a dramatic, two-out, two-run blast in the eighth inning, Venezuelan designated hitter Eugenio Suárez answered with a ninth-inning RBI double that put his country back in front. And so for the first time in the 20-year history of the WBC, Venezuela can call itself the champions of the baseball world. As they did in 2023, the Americans were left to line up, bow their heads and accept silver medals. Some players removed the second-place souvenirs before leaving the field.

“We put on this uniform, signed up to go out there and get a gold medal,” Team USA captain Aaron Judge said. “We just fell short.”

As the Americans trudged to their clubhouse, the party for the Venezuelans was just beginning. They waved flags and danced through confetti. They donned shirts that read “The Best Baseball In The World.” They toasted Suárez and tournament MVP Maikel Garcia. They saluted their hard-throwing pitching staff and their captain, Salvador Perez. They ventured around the stadium to greet the fans who seared their lungs cheering in Miami these past few days. And they commended all of those watching back home.

“Thirty million people around the world were watching this game today,” Perez said in Spanish. “I’m very happy. The World Series, as you all know, is one of the most important championships in the Major Leagues, but when you fight for your country, that goes beyond. That feeling, the country where you were born and raised, the sacrifices made by our parents, those people that helped us.”

Perez guided a Venezuelan staff that subdued the high-powered American offense. Despite the gaudy statistics and lucrative contracts of the Team USA lineup, the group lacked cohesion and performed as less than the sum of its parts. Such is the price of playing high-leverage games in March, when pitchers are usually sharper than hitters. The Americans appeared set for a quiet conclusion to an uneven tournament when Tuesday’s eighth inning began.

For seven innings, Team USA did not advance a runner beyond first base. They could not dent Arizona Diamondbacks starter Eduardo Rodríguez and offered scant resistance when Venezuelan manager Omar López opened his bullpen in the fifth. The embers of a rally flickered when shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. took a two-out walk in the eighth. Into the breach stepped Harper, the eight-time All-Star and two-time MVP. When reliever Andrés Machado left a changeup over the plate, Harper unloaded. The ball soared beyond the center-field fence. There was no doubt about its destination.

As he rounded third base, Harper locked eyes with a television cameraman and pointed to the flag adorning his left biceps. The stars and stripes disappeared from view as Harper flexed and roared. With one swing, he had saved Team USA — and delivered the sort of moment folks had been waiting to see all tournament.

“Just trying to enjoy the moment, this atmosphere,” Harper said.

Whenever the WBC returns, Harper’s home run will feature prominently in the sizzle reel. By the time the ball landed, the blast had become a part of the tournament’s history, a clip to be shared alongside Adam Jones’ wall-scraping catch in 2017 and Shohei Ohtani’s strikeout of Mike Trout in 2023. Except, in those cases, the highlight led to a championship.

On Tuesday, Team USA could not say the same.

The reprieve wrought by Harper was short-lived. In the ninth, Venezuela capitalized on an erratic outing by Boston Red Sox reliever Garrett Whitlock. Team USA manager Mark DeRosa indicated that he used Whitlock because San Diego Padres closer Mason Miller was only available in a save situation.

“Honoring the Padres,” DeRosa explained. When Suárez touched second base with his go-ahead double, he pointed both arms toward the sky. The Americans went quietly in the bottom of the inning, unable to conjure up any magic against Venezuelan closer Daniel Palencia.

For so much of this tournament, Team USA made headlines for all the things it was not. Their celebrations were not as riveting as those of the Latin American players. Their loyalties were not as unwavering. Their catcher was not as hospitable. The criticism crested when Team USA lost in pool play to Team Italy in a game that DeRosa had suggested earlier in the day his group did not need to win.

Six days before the gold medal game, DeRosa gathered with his staff at the Houston home of Team USA pitching coach Andy Pettitte. They grilled steaks and pondered their future. Their fate relied upon the tournament’s convoluted tiebreaker rules, as Italy faced Mexico. An Azzurri blitz allowed the Americans to advance. “You’re welcome, USA,” cracked Vinnie Pasquantino, the captain of Team Italy and a native of Virginia, after his three-homer performance allowed the Americans to advance.

From there, Team USA required no outside assistance. They took care of business against Team Canada in the quarterfinal. They mollified the explosive offense of the Dominican Republic in the semifinal. After Venezuela stormed back from a two-run deficit against Italy in the other semifinal, a championship date was set.

The finale took place less than a month after the United States men’s and women’s hockey teams captured gold medals at the Olympics. Before the game, outfielder Pete Crow-Armstrong outfitted his teammates in game-worn jerseys from the men’s team.

But afterward, it was the Americans playing the role Canada occupied on the ice, standing in line and wondering how to feel about a silver medal. As they accepted the hardware, the players shook hands with commissioner Rob Manfred and MLBPA chief Bruce Meyer. Then they headed to the clubhouse, prepared to disperse to their full-time jobs in Arizona and Florida.

Before he left the field, Harper ventured toward the Venezuelans. He congratulated a collection of players who, for at least one night, had vanquished the greatest collection of American talent in this tournament’s short history.

“I’m not OK with winning silver,” Harper said. “I don’t want to win silver, I want to win gold, just like anybody else. But at the end of the night, man, they did it. They won. All the congratulations to them. They fought hard and they played a great game. I’ve got nothing but respect for them.”