MIAMI -- Five teams are hoping to advance from Pool D of the World Baseball Classic at loanDepot park, but only two will have the good fortune to play in next week’s quarterfinals.
The four-game sprint to the quarterfinals begins Friday, with the Netherlands and Venezuela opening pool play with the first of two games at the ballpark.
2026 World Baseball Classic
Pool B (Houston) & Pool D (Miami) presented by Capital One
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Here’s what you need to know about the matchup:
When and where: Friday, 12 p.m. ET, loanDepot park
How you can watch: Tubi
How you can listen: There is a free English-language audio stream available for every game.
Probable starting pitchers: RHP Antwone Kelly (Netherlands) vs. LHP Ranger Suarez (Venezuela)
What’s at stake: Venezuela’s star-studded team -- which includes Ronald Acuña Jr., Salvador Perez and Jackson Chourio, among others -- is one of the favorites to advance out of Pool D along with the Dominican Republic. The Netherlands -- which is managed by Hall of Famer Andruw Jones and features some big league names including Xander Bogaerts, Ozzie Albies and Ceddanne Rafaela -- isn’t planning on making things easy on the rest of the pool.
Matchup history: The two teams have only faced each other once in WBC history, with Venezuela beating the Netherlands, 3-1, in the second round of the 2009 event. Miguel Cabrera -- who is the hitting coach for this year’s Venezuelan team -- snapped a 1-1 tie with a home run in the fourth inning that proved to the game-winner.