zerpa — Italy topped Puerto Rico to reach the WBC semifinals and remain unbeaten, while Venezuela defeated Japan in another thrilling game on Saturday (ET). Italy won 8-6 after building an early lead through walks and ground-rule doubles, and Puerto Rico mounted a late rally that fell short. Venezuela won 8-5 in a back-and-forth contest highlighted by leadoff homers and an inning-opening double.
Zerpa: Italy’s path — walks, doubles and a tense finish
Italy seized momentum early as Puerto Rico produced three leadoff homers across Saturday’s games, including Willi Castro’s leadoff shot off Sam Aldegheri on the fourth pitch of the game in this matchup. Seth Lugo struggled on the mound for Puerto Rico, walking two of the first three Italian batters and allowing soft infield singles that turned the game into a 2-1 contest. A harder single by Jac Caglianone made it 3-1, and Italy added another run on a sac fly after a subsequent walk.
Aldegheri then walked the bases loaded in the second and was replaced by Alek Jacob, who hit Puerto Rico captain Martin Maldonado to extend the lead. Italy’s fourth-inning rally against Luis Quinones produced a sequence of a walk, a ground-rule double caused by a fan reaching over the railing, and another ground-rule double down the right-field line, pushing Italy in front 8-2. Puerto Rico threatened late: they wasted a chance against Dan Altavilla in the seventh, but rallied in the eighth against Matt Festa with a sequence that included a single, two walks, an RBI groundout, a hit batter and a wild pitch to cut the deficit to 8-4. Christian Vazquez’s hard infield hit pulled Puerto Rico within two runs, but Greg Weissert restored order, striking out Castro and inducing a soft groundout from Nolan Arenado. Edwin Diaz struggled briefly in the ninth but held the line long enough for Italy to escape. Carlos Cortes opened Puerto Rico’s final chance with a leadoff single; after a strikeout and a routine flyout by Heliot Ramos, Eddie Rosario flew out to left to end the game. The victory sends Italy into the semifinals, and zerpa resonates as the unexpected tag on a day of surprising swings.
Venezuela tops Japan in a barnburner
Venezuela delivered an entertaining 8-5 victory over Japan in a game marked by immediate fireworks. Ronald Acuña Jr. opened the game with an opposite-field leadoff homer off Yoshinobu Yamamoto, and Shohei Ohtani answered a few pitches later with a leadoff homer of his own off Ranger Suarez. The contest took another turn when Seiya Suzuki was thrown out trying to steal second and had to leave the game with an injury. Ezequiel Tovar led off the second with a double, and Gleyber Torres followed by doubling Tovar home to put Venezuela ahead. The inning continued with an unusual dribbler from Acuña described in coverage as a didn’t-mean-to-swing that led to additional action before the frame ended. The back-and-forth scoring produced the close final margin and kept the crowd engaged throughout.
What’s next — semifinals and continuing drama
Italy moves on to the semifinals after the 8-6 victory over Puerto Rico, and Venezuela’s 8-5 win over Japan keeps that side of the bracket alive for more high-stakes matchups. Saturday’s results leave semifinal positioning to be finalized by the remaining tournament schedule, with teams and fans awaiting the next set of games on the road to the WBC title.
