In a tense, star-studded showdown at loanDepot Park in Miami, Team USA defeated the Dominican Republic 2–1 in the semifinals of the World Baseball Classic, riding dominant pitching, clutch home runs, and spectacular defense to advance to Tuesday’s championship game.
With the victory, the Americans moved into their third consecutive WBC championship game, where they will face the winner of Monday’s semifinal between Venezuela and Italy.
The game featured an elite pitching matchup between Paul Skenes and Luis Severino, and it delivered from the first pitch. Skenes, the ace of the U.S. staff, worked 4⅓ strong innings, allowing one run on six hits while keeping the Dominican lineup from generating sustained rallies.
The Dominican Republic struck first when Junior Caminero blasted a solo home run in the second inning, giving his team an early 1–0 lead. But the Americans responded quickly in the fourth.
Two swings changed the game. First, Gunnar Henderson launched a solo home run to tie the score. Moments later, rising star Roman Anthony crushed another solo shot, putting the United States ahead 2–1 — a lead that would hold the rest of the night.
The Dominican pitching staff kept the score tight from there, but the American bullpen matched them pitch for pitch. Relievers including David Bednar and Garrett Whitlock helped bridge the late innings before flamethrowing closer Mason Miller took the mound in the ninth.
While the home runs supplied the offense, it was defense that defined the game. Superstar center fielder Julio Rodríguez was hit on the hand by a 98-mph fastball earlier in the contest but later produced one of the night’s biggest moments, leaping at the wall to rob Aaron Judge of a potential home run.
Judge answered later with a highlight of his own, firing a strike from right field to throw out Fernando Tatis Jr. trying to stretch a single into first-to-third, ending the inning with Juan Soto waiting in the on-deck circle.
Another standout came from Bobby Witt Jr., who ranged deep into the hole at shortstop to field a ground ball from Manny Machado and throw him out, one of several dazzling defensive plays by the young Kansas City Royals star.
In a game between two of the tournament’s most powerful lineups, those defensive gems proved decisive.
The dramatic ending only added to the game’s intensity. With the tying run on base in the ninth inning, Miller fired a slider below the strike zone that was ruled a strike to end the game — a call that sparked visible frustration from Dominican shortstop Geraldo Perdomo.
As Miller celebrated on the mound, Dominican manager Albert Pujols attempted to redirect the focus toward his team’s effort rather than the controversial final pitch.
In front of a sold-out and emotionally divided crowd in Miami, the semifinal delivered everything expected from a matchup loaded with baseball’s biggest stars — dominant pitching, towering home runs, dazzling defense and late-inning drama.
Now, Team USA stands just one win away from another world title, awaiting the winner of the Venezuela–Italy semifinal in Tuesday’s championship game.
