Venezuela wins first World Baseball Classic title, defeats U.S. 3-2 in final

Miami, Florida - Venezuela defeated the United States 3-2 on March 17, 2026, at loanDepot Park to claim its first World Baseball Classic championship.[1][3] The victory marked Venezuela's first title in the tournament, previously won only by Japan (2006, 2009, 2023), the Dominican Republic (2013) and the United States (2017).[2][4]

Venezuela advanced to the final after defeating Italy in the semifinal the previous night. Eduardo Rodriguez, a left-handed starter for the Arizona Diamondbacks, pitched 4.1 innings for Venezuela, allowing one hit to Brice Turang of the Milwaukee Brewers and recording four strikeouts, including two against U.S. captain Aaron Judge of the New York Yankees.[5] Rodriguez threw 57 pitches before being relieved by manager Omar Lopez.

Venezuela took a 1-0 lead in the top of the third inning on a sacrifice fly by Maikel Garcia of the Kansas City Royals. The score became 2-0 in the fifth when Boston Red Sox outfielder Wilyer Abreu hit a solo home run.

The U.S., managed by Scott Servais, managed just two hits through eight innings. Bryce Harper of the Philadelphia Phillies singled in the sixth but was stranded. Venezuela's relievers, including Jose Butto of the New York Mets and Andres Machado, limited U.S. baserunners to four through that point.

In the bottom of the eighth, Harper hit a two-run home run off Machado with two outs after a walk to Bobby Witt Jr. of the Royals, tying the score at 2-2.

Venezuela regained the lead in the top of the ninth against Garrett Whitlock of the Boston Red Sox. Pinch-runner Javier Sanoja walked and stole second before Eugenio Suarez of the Arizona Diamondbacks hit an RBI double.

Daniel Palencia of the Chicago Cubs pitched the bottom of the ninth for the save, striking out Kyle Schwarber of the Phillies, inducing a pop-up from Gunnar Henderson of the Baltimore Orioles and striking out Roman Anthony.

The 2026 World Baseball Classic championship round took place March 15-18 at loanDepot Park, home of the Miami Marlins.[1]

Sources

1. MLB.com
   World Baseball Classic 2026 dates announced
   May 30, 2024
   https://www.mlb.com/news/world-baseball-classic-2026-dates-announced
2. Wikipedia
   World Baseball Classic
   Accessed October 2024
   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Baseball_Classic
3. MLB.com
   loanDepot park
   Accessed October 2024
   https://www.mlb.com/marlins/ballpark
4. World Baseball Classic official site
   Schedule and Results
   Accessed October 2024
   https://www.worldbaseballclassic.com/schedule
5. MLB.com
   Eduardo Rodriguez player page
   Accessed October 2024
   https://www.mlb.com/player/eduardo-rodriguez-608566