Aaron Judge paced slowly back and forth in the U.S. dugout on Tuesday night in Miami while Venezuelan players wept and dropped to their knees, celebrating their country's first World Baseball Classic championship. Other members of the American roster stood motionless for several minutes before finally leaving the field.
The United States brought its most expensive roster ever to baseball's premier international event, valued at $320 million. It still lost its second consecutive final, having won the title in 2017. Three years ago, the Americans fell to Shohei Ohtani and Japan. This time they were beaten by an energetic Venezuelan team led by stars Ronald Acuña Jr., Maikel García and Luis Arráez.
Left-hander Eduardo Rodríguez shut down the powerful U.S. lineup with calm efficiency. He struck out four and allowed just one hit over five and a third innings, then walked off the mound in the fifth to applause from teammates. Judge, the American captain, went 0 for 4 and struck out twice against him.
Venezuela's bullpen gave up only two hits. One was a two-run homer by Harper over the center field fence against Andrés Machado in the eighth inning. The decisive moment came in the ninth, when Arráez drew a walk from Garrett Whitlock to open the inning. Pinch runner Javier Sanoja stole second just ahead of the throw from catcher Will Smith, then scored on a double by Eugenio Suárez. Suárez spread his arms and pointed to the sky at second base as his teammates poured out of the dugout to greet Sanoja at the plate.
The offensive struggles were stark for a group that combined for 382 home runs and 1,111 RBIs in the majors last season. The Americans managed three hits on Tuesday and scored four runs across the last two games of the tournament. Over seven games they hit .250 with 44 runs, 10 homers and 40 RBIs. The roster's players have more than 2,300 career homers and 419 saves between them, and nine have played in a World Series.
"Obviously, disappointed," Judge said. "We all put this uniform on to go out there and win a gold medal. We fell short."
Harper said he was happy for the Venezuelans even though he wanted to win. "In those moments, it's like the Olympics or anywhere else," he said. "I'm very happy for them. Obviously, I want to win no matter what. That's why I play: to win a championship and a gold medal. But in that moment it's not about me, it's about us and our game."
U.S. manager Mark DeRosa offered no excuses. He pointed out that the tournament falls early in spring training, when players are still preparing for the season, and suggested a different date might leave pitchers in better shape. "Ultimately, it's about who gets hot at the right time, who gets a big hit," he said.
The Americans have won only one title in six editions of the tournament. DeRosa said that while commitment from position players has grown over the years, the same level has not yet come from top pitchers. Tarik Skubal, the American League Cy Young winner in each of the last two seasons, took part but made only one group-stage start to stay on schedule for the regular season with the Detroit Tigers. DeRosa said approval is needed from the team, the player and the agent, and that pitchers are at different stages of their careers.
After a 2-1 semifinal win over the Dominican Republic, DeRosa said he was still waiting for his team's bats to break out. That wait now stretches another three years.
