Italy just announced itself as one of the teams to beat at the 2026 World Baseball Classic.
After upsetting the United States 8-6 on Tuesday night, there was no hangover for the espresso-swilling Italians. They followed up their massive win by hammering Mexico 9-1 to win Pool B and advance to the knockout stage.
Italy got an outstanding start from Aaron Nola, who tossed five shutout innings, allowing four hits and one walk while striking out five. Mexico scattered those hits, allowing Nola to mostly cruise through his outing. He was backed by a powerful offense.
Vinnie Pasquantino entered Wednesday night’s game 0-for-12 in the tournament and was apparently primed for a breakout. The Royals first baseman launched three solo home runs—and earned three trips to the team’s dugout espresso machine—in a huge performance. Italy’s captain has never had a three-homer game as a professional.
It was a big night for the Italian squad as they continue to defy expectations and look like a contender.
Here are three takeaways from Wednesday night’s game.
Italy can win this thing
We said it on Tuesday night after their win over Team USA, but the Italians are capable of winning this thing. They finished 4-0 in group play, have topped two excellent teams in the United States and Mexico, and look like a squad that is just hitting its stride. Italy scored 17 total runs against the best teams in its group.
Nola and Michael Lorenzen gave Italy back-to-back outstanding starts, while Sam Aldegheri threw 4 2/3 shutout innings against Brazil. Meanwhile, the bullpen is loaded with major leaguers who can all get outs.
The lineup is pretty stacked, with Pasquantino, Jac Caglianone, Jakob Marsee and Jon Berti leading the way. Even Sam Antonacci has come through in the clutch the team.
It would be foolish to overlook Italy at this point.
Team USA is very lucky to be advancing
The United States entered the tournament with massive hype, as this was certainly the best roster the country has ever sent to the World Baseball Classic. While loaded on paper, the team’s roster didn’t really gel in group play.
The loss to Italy on Tuesday night was enormously deflating and the team now has more questions than answers as it prepares to face Canada in the quarterfinals.
Yes, the Americans scored 35 runs in group play to lead Pool B, but the did it in bunches and didn’t have much sustained offensive success.
In beating Brazil 15-5, they relied on scoring eight runs in the final two innings to make that game a blowout. Against Great Britain they were shut out through the first four innings before scoring five runs in the fifth and three in the sixth en route to a 9-1 win. Mexico held Team USA scoreless in seven of the eight innings they batted, with only the five-run third being fruitful for the lineup. That 5-3 win exposed the team’s issues with consistency. Italy shut the U.S. out over the first five innings and built an 8-0 lead before the Americans finally got things in gear and began to mount a comeback.
Manager Mark DeRosa has to find the right lineup combination and get his bats going, or Team USA won’t get by Canada.
Mexico wasn’t up to the moment
Mexico had a chance to do something big Wednesday night, but the team fell flat. The Mexicans failed in every facet, as Italy trounced them 9-1.
The Novena Mexicana mustered only five hits while scoring a single run on a groundout. Centerfielder Alek Thomas had an ugly error that cost a run, while the lineup piled up nine strikeouts.
The team’s heavy hitters were anything but against Italy. The top four of Jarren Duran, Randy Arozarena, Jonathan Aranda, and Alejandro Kirk combined to go 2-for-16 with a double, a single, two walks and seven strikeouts. As a whole, the lineup went 0-for-8 with runners in scoring position.
Starting pitcher Javier Assad looked good early but surrendered four runs on four hits in 4 1/3 innings and allowed home runs to Pasquantino and Berti. The bullpen wasn’t much better.
Mexico entered the tournament looking like a dark horse for the title. In the end, they weren’t able to build on their third-place finish from 2023.
More MLB on Sports Illustrated
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- World Baseball Classic 2026: Updated Bracket, Advancing Teams and Full Schedule
- MLB Stress Index Tiers: Which Teams Are Under the Most Pressure?
- Team USA Advances in WBC Thanks to Italy’s Win Over Mexico; Quarterfinal Matchup Set
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Italy 9, Mexico 1: Team USA Advances As Italy Emphatically Tops Pool B.
