MIAMI (AP) — Ronald Acuña Jr., Maikel Garcia and Luis Arraez hit run-scoring, two-out singles in a seventh-inning rally that led Venezuela over Italy 4-2 on Monday night and into its first World Baseball Classic championship game.
Venezuela overcame a 2-0, fourth-inning deficit after rebounding from a three-run hole to beat defending champion Japan in a quarterfinal and reached the final for the first time after losing to South Korea in its only previous semifinal appearance in 2009.
It meets the United States for the title on Tuesday night and appears likely to start Eduardo Rodríguez against the Americans’ Nolan McLean. Because both teams are 5-1, a coin toss was held earlier Monday to determine the home team, and the U.S. won.
Italy, the first European nation to reach a WBC semifinal, had been 5-0 in the tournament and sparked attention with an espresso-sipping ritual after home runs and victory celebrations featuring Italian wine.
But a team with three Italy-born players, a handful of major leaguers and many from the minors couldn’t hold a late-inning lead against a batting order that got three straight RBIs from All-Stars as a pro-Venezuelan sellout crowd at loanDepot park roared.
Italy went ahead in the second when Keider Montero forced in a run with three straight walks, the last to J.J. D’Orazio. Dante Nori hit into a run-scoring forceout against Ricardo Sánchez, the first of six relievers who combined to finish a five-hitter.
Eugenio Suárez’s fourth-inning homer off Aaron Nola started the comeback, and winner Ángel Zerpa escaped a bases-loaded jam in the sixth when he threw a sinker on the outside corner past Sam Antonacci.
Gleyber Torres walked leading off the seventh against loser Michael Lorenzen, and Jackson Chourio’s two-out single put runners at the corners.
Acuña grounded to the shortstop hole and beat Antonacci’s throw from the outfield grass as pinch-runner Andrés Giménez scored. Garcia lined a 2-0 fastball to left, driving in Chourio with the go-ahead run, and Arraez chased Lorenzen when he singled on a full-count fastball.
Daniel Palencia got three outs for the save, striking out Antonacci to end the game.
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