World Baseball Classic: Venezuela Beats Japan in Nail-biting Back-and-forth Q’final (UPDATE)

The Japan News

13:47 JST, March 15, 2026

Wilyer Abreu’s pivotal 3-run homerun off a pitch from Hiromi Itoh propelled Venezuela past Japan and toward an 8-5 victory in a closely contested World Baseball Classic quarterfinal in Miami on Saturday.

The Boston Red Sox right fielder homered off the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters pitcher in the sixth inning to give Venezuela a 7-5 lead.

An error by Japanese pitcher Atsuki Taneichi in the eighth inning allowed Ezequiel Tovar to score, putting one more on the board for Venezuela.

Los Angeles Dodgers two-way star Shohei Ohtani was Japan’s last batter of the game, which took place in front of a crowd comprised overwhelmingly of Venezuelan supporters.

Abreu’s homer followed a single home run for Venezuela by the Kansas City Royal’s Maikel Garcia in the fifth inning.

In the third inning, Hanshin Tigers outfielder Shota Morishita hit a stunning 3-run homer into the left field stands to give Japan a 5-2 lead over Venezuela.

Ohtani hit a single home run in the first inning, which also saw Japanese pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who also plays for the Dodgers, give up a single home run to Venezuela’s Ronald Acuna Jr.