MIAMI – The game met the hype. And the Americans met the moment. In a semifinals matchup rife with many of baseball’s biggest names and a game rife with the kind of tension that makes the sport great, Team USA outlasted the Dominican Republic, 2-1, on Sunday night at loanDepot

Baseball is a game of inches, and that was evident throughout Team USA’s thrilling 2-1 win over the Dominican Republic in the World Baseball Classic semifinals on Sunday night in Miami. Yes, the classic contest ended with a disputed called third strike against Dominican Republic shortstop Geraldo Perdomo -- but

MIAMI -- It was a team seemingly on course with destiny: 13 years after its lone World Baseball Classic title, the Dominican Republic had stormed through its first five games, battering any opponent that stood in its way. It was leading the tournament in home runs, runs scored and pitching

Phillies right-hander Aaron Nola will start for Team Italy in tonight's World Baseball Classic semifinal matchup against Venezuela (8 p.m. ET on FS1) instead of previously announced starter Michael Lorenzen, a source told MLB.com's Anthony Castrovince. The team has not announced the change.

MIAMI -- After Paul Skenes exited Sunday’s World Baseball Classic semifinal against the Dominican Republic, he found himself in a conversation with Clayton Kershaw and posed a question to the Dodgers legend. Skenes asked where the WBC -- an incredible event where this particular game packed 36,337 inside a raucous

MIAMI -- When the United States assembled its super team for this World Baseball Classic, the selections were skewed toward established stars not just because of their talent but because of the guaranteed contracts that make them more prone to participate.

Put on the espresso because Italy is coming! For the first time in tournament history, the azzurri are in the semifinals, its team of espresso-shot-taking, cheek-kissing home run hitters blasting its way to Miami. Italy has hit the second-most home runs in the tournament behind the Dominican Republic, with Vinnie

Team USA's surplus of elite infielders would leave any manager sick with envy -- in theory. In practice, USA manager Mark DeRosa has to leave a top-tier player on the bench every day, and more often than not, the odd man out has been Gunnar Henderson, crowded out by another

MIAMI – In the bottom of the fourth inning, Dominican Republic center fielder Julio Rodríguez was drilled in the hand by a Paul Skenes fastball. A half-inning later and any lingering pain had surely disappeared. With one out in the top of the fifth inning of the World Baseball Classic

MIAMI -- The Dominican Republic has had a lot of use for its home run jacket. The team, which has become renowned for its bat flips, celebrations and teamwide parties at home plate, has worn out a path around the bases during this year’s World Baseball Classic.

Spring Training is arguably the best time for a player to make a good impression on his team. When a hitter or pitcher turns heads in the lead-up to Opening Day, it can set the tone for his entire season, offer a preview of what's to come, and make for

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Robbie Ray said he felt like he was in a flow state on the mound on Sunday, and it showed. The veteran left-hander fired five perfect innings to help the Giants come within one out of a combined perfect game in a 7-1 win over the Brewers

In the end, it was Lawless who got robbed. Tennessee sophomore Stone Lawless thought he'd powered the Volunteers to a ninth-inning lead against Georgia on Sunday when he crushed a towering drive to left off Bulldogs righty Justin Byrd that appeared bound to clear the fence. After the ball met

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. -- At one point Sunday, Francisco Lindor dived to his left in hopes of corralling a Jesús Sánchez single. An inning later, Lindor hit a foul ball a projected 391 feet down the right-field line at Clover Park, plenty deep enough to have been a home

GOODYEAR, Ariz. -- Suffice to say, José Ramírez is indispensable to the Guardians’ success and their plans for 2026. So, alarm bells went off when the 33-year-old was removed from Sunday’s game against the A’s at Goodyear Ballpark. Carter Kieboom pinch-hit for Ramírez in the bottom of the fourth inning.

Monday’s World Baseball Classic semifinal clash between Italy and Venezuela carries a little extra meaning for Team Italy manager Francisco Cervelli. Cervelli was born and raised in Venezuela. His mother, Damelis, is Venezuelan. Cervelli’s Italian roots come from his father, Emanuele, who was born in Italy, but he immigrated to

SCOTTSDALE Ariz. -- In the professional baseball world, a Rolodex is usually for closing deals or scouting talent. For Erica Brooks, it’s a tool for saving lives. Brooks is a veteran real estate professional and former community relations specialist who has spent over 25 years helping players and staff establish

A .532 OPS in your rookie season tends to lower expectations, even for one of baseball’s top prospects. But Jac Caglianone has reset them in a hurry this spring. Blasting three balls over 115 mph -- including one at 120.2 mph -- in less than a week will do that.

TEMPE, Ariz. -- Perhaps the most consequential moment in World Baseball Classic history came at loanDepot park in Miami on March 21, 2023. That’s when the Classic championship came down to an all-time dream matchup between Shohei Ohtani and then-teammate Mike Trout, two of the greatest players in baseball history.

TAMPA, Fla. -- The Tigers took a relatively laid-back approach to the ABS Challenge System for the first half of Grapefruit League play. It wasn’t that manager A.J. Hinch and his coaches didn’t care; they wanted to see how players handled the option to challenge on their own. On Friday,

FORT MYERS, Fla. -- Perhaps the biggest moment thus far in the young career of Red Sox outfielder Wilyer Abreu took place Saturday night. Stepping to the plate with Team Venezuela trailing defending World Baseball Classic champs Japan by one in the top of the sixth inning of the quarterfinals

BRADENTON, Fla. -- When Paul Skenes takes the mound for Team USA on Sunday night in Miami, millions will watch the reigning National League Cy Young Award winner face a stacked Dominican Republic lineup in the World Baseball Classic semifinals (8 p.m. ET, FS1). The “Top Gun” theme will blare

MIAMI -- When Venezuela finished its 8-5 victory against the defending champions Japan on Saturday night, manager Omar López wasn’t thinking about himself. Nor was he thinking about his team – not Wilyer Abreu, whose three-run home run provided the crucial blow, nor Enmanuel De Jesus, the unheralded pitcher on