MIAMI -- Nicaragua may have been the first team in Pool D eliminated from the possibility of advancing, but manager Dusty Baker isn’t approaching Monday night’s game against Venezuela any differently than he would if his team was fighting for a spot in the quarterfinals.
“I've been on first-place teams and I've been on last-place teams that you had the last game of the season, and you certainly want to go home on a good note,” Baker said after Nicaragua’s 5-0 loss to Israel Sunday night. “Who knows? [Monday] everybody could be looser with nothing at stake. I'm going to play my best lineup and try to do what we can to win.”
2026 World Baseball Classic
Pool B (Houston) & Pool D (Miami) presented by Capital One
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Venezuela entered the game having clinched a spot in the quarterfinals as a result of the Dominican Republic's victory over Israel earlier in the day.
With the top seed in Pool D still up for grabs, it would be human nature for Venezuela’s players to look ahead at Wednesday’s showdown with the D.R. rather than focusing on 0-3 Nicaragua, but manager Omar López insists his club won’t take anybody for granted.
“The same job that we are doing right now is attacking the hitters, to be ahead in the count, and try to use all the pitchers; that goes for Dominican Republic and Nicaragua the same,” López said. “No matter the name, we have to respect all the teams.”
The players are also focused on the task at hand Monday, knowing there will be plenty of time to think about the game against the Dominican.
“All the games are important to us,” Eugenio Suárez said. “We have to win them all. One game is not more important than the other. We are here to compete, to give everything for our country.”
Here’s what you need to know about the matchup:
When and where: Monday, 7 p.m. ET, loanDepot park
The FOX Sports family of networks (FOX, FS1, FS2, FOX Deportes), the FOX Sports App and Tubi will combine to air all 47 games of the 2026 World Baseball Classic in the United States, and all matchups will be available to stream live and on-demand on FOX One. Additionally, 41 out of the 47 contests will air in Spanish across a combination of FOX Deportes, the FOX Sports App, Tubi and FOX One.
Netflix Japan will stream all tournament games in Japanese.
How you can watch: FS2
How you can listen: There is a free English-language audio stream available for every game.
Probable starting pitchers: RHP Yoendrys Gómez (Venezuela) vs. LHP Danilo Bermudez (Nicaragua)
What’s at stake: Venezuela needs a win to keep pace with the Dominican Republic as they jockey for the top seed in Pool D. Nicaragua has already been eliminated from contention.
Matchup history: Venezuela defeated Nicaragua in their only WBC meeting back in 2023 in this very ballpark. Suárez drove in two runs in the 4-1 win.