Haarlem, Netherlands · Saturday, June 27, 2026 · Matt Tallarini, Chief Correspondent
HAARLEM, Netherlands — For five innings it was the pitchers’ night. Then Italy sent a former big-leaguer to the plate off the bench, and the duel was over. Robel García’s pinch-hit, two-run double in the sixth was all Italy needed, and with the weather closing in, the umpires called it after eight: Italy 2, Netherlands 0, in a game shortened by the elements at Pim Mulier Stadion.
It dropped the host nation to 1-1 at the 2026 Honkbalweek Haarlem and moved Italy to 1-0.
A Duel, Then a Crack
Neither side could do a thing early. Italy starter Matteo Bocchi was superb — 5.1 innings, four hits, no runs, one walk — and Netherlands left-hander Koen Postelmans matched him zero for zero, piling up eight strikeouts over 5.2 innings. Into the sixth it was scoreless, a genuine grind.
Then Italy loaded the bases in the bottom of the sixth. Federico Celli singled, Lorenzo Morresi and Alberto Mineo walked, and the Netherlands went to reliever Gillian Wernet. Italy answered with its own move — pinch-hitter Robel García — and he laced a two-run double down the right-field line to score Celli and Morresi. Both runs were charged to Postelmans, who took the loss. It was the only scoring the night would allow.
Behind the plate for Bocchi’s gem was Alberto Mineo, who had the catcher’s-eye view. “Matteo had all of his pitches working for the most part, so it was a matter of following the game plan we’d talked about with our staff,” Mineo said. He did more than call it, too — his walk in the sixth helped load the bases that García would clear.
The Man Off the Bench
García was the right name for the moment. The 33-year-old switch-hitter, born in the Dominican Republic and a naturalized Italian citizen, climbed from the Italian Baseball League to the major leagues with the Chicago Cubs in 2019 — homering in his first big-league start — and went on to play for the Houston Astros and, later, the LG Twins of Korea’s KBO League. He signed with Parma of the Italian league this January, and a long career representing the Azzurri put him in the box at exactly the right time. Fittingly, his MLB debut years ago came as a pinch hitter, too.
To his teammates, García’s value runs deeper than one swing. “Having Robel in our lineup, which was already very good, adds a lot of experience and depth,” Mineo said. “And not only that — he’s also a great resource for all of us.”
The Dutch Couldn’t Cash In
The Netherlands out-everythinged itself into the loss. The host collected six hits — Marnix Ruben went 2-for-3, with Shervyen Newton, Sem Kuijper and Darryl Collins each adding one — but stranded runner after runner and never pushed a run across. Italy’s bullpen slammed the door behind Bocchi: Marco Artitzu struck out three in a perfect seventh, and the relievers protected the two-run lead the rest of the way.
Built Over the Winter
Italy’s cohesion didn’t appear overnight. Mineo — who has adapted to the twice-a-week rhythm of Italy’s Serie A1 and keeps his swing sharp with winter ball in Nicaragua, “a great league” — pointed to a preseason camp in Florida ahead of the World Baseball Classic as the foundation. “It was a great time in Florida prior to the WBC. We got to work all together with a great staff, and it was really helpful for when we got back,” he said. He credited the program’s leadership — including former big-league catcher Francisco Cervelli, now Italy’s manager: “Maestri and Cervelli and the whole staff have been really great at making us understand what working together for a common goal means. Everything we do, we do with a goal.”
Called by the Weather
The elements, which have shadowed Honkbalweek all week, had the final say. A delay in the top of the eighth proved to be the end of it, and with Italy ahead the game went final after eight innings. For a Netherlands program that opened the tournament with a 6-1 win, it was a sharp turn — out-hit by a 1-for-1 pinch-hitter and a stingy Italian staff. Italy, whose footballers are watching this summer’s World Cup from home, sent its baseball side off the host’s field a winner.
Matt Tallarini is reporting from Haarlem throughout Honkbalweek 2026. Schedule, stats and box scores via the Koninklijke Nederlandse Baseball en Softball Bond. For more international baseball, visit worldbaseball.com.
