Cuba and the United States will meet in the World Baseball Classic semifinals at 7 p.m. EDT on Sunday at LoanDepot Park in Miami, Florida. Cuba advanced to the semifinals with a 4-3 win over Australia on Wednesday in Tokyo, Japan. The U.S. team advanced with a 9-7 victory over Venezuela in Miami on Friday.
The Americans got all they could handle from the Venezuelans. Both teams scored in the first inning, and Team USA led 3-2. The United States put runs on the board in the top of the fourth and fifth innings to take a 5-2 lead, but Venezuela answered with four runs in the bottom half of the fifth to go up by a run. The Venezuelans increased the lead to 7-5 as Luis Arraez hit his second home run of the game in the seventh, but they wouldn’t score again.
Team USA’s offense came back to life in the top of the eighth. Tim Anderson walked to lead off the inning. Pete Alonso singled and then J.T. Realmuto was hit by a pitch. Cuba brought in Silvino Bracho to face Trea Turner with the bases loaded. Bracho got ahead of the MLB superstar 0-2, but Turner homered on the next pitch to give the U.S. a 9-7 lead. Devin Williams and Ryan Pressly pitched the eight and ninth to close out the win for the Americans. David Bedner got the victory pitching a scoreless seventh inning.
Cuba survived a tight game against the Australians thanks to some timely hitting and solid pitching. Australia scored a run in the top of the second inning, and Cuba answered in the bottom of the third. The score would remain 1-1 until Alfredo Despaigne hit sacrifice fly with the bases-loaded in the fifth to make the score 2-1. Cuba loaded up the bases again before Yoelkis Guibert drove in Yoan Moncada and Luis Robert Jr. to make it 4-1. Rixon Wingrove hit a two-run homer for Australia in the top of the sixth to pull within a run.
Cuban relievers Livan Moinelo and Raidel Martinez, who both pitch for Japanese professional teams, closed out the game for Cuba with a scoreless inning each in the eighth and ninth innings, respectively. Miguel Romero got his second win of the tournament by pitching 1.2 scoreless innings in relief of Cuban starter Yariel Rodriguez. Rodriguez went 3.1 innings and allowed a run on two hits.
