Italy continues its unlikely run at the World Baseball Classic and will next take on Venezuela in Monday’s semifinal game. The Venezuelans are having their own storybook run after eliminating Shohei Ohtani and defending WBC champions Japan in the quarterfinals.
Next up is a spot in the final.
The game will be Monday, March 16 at 8 p.m. ET on FS1.
How to Watch the 2026 World Baseball Classic
FOX is your exclusive home to the WBC with games spread across the FOX family of networks.
The Italy vs. Venezuela semifinal is on FS1 on Monday (8 p.m. ET). The Championship Game will be on FOX on Tuesday, March 17 (8 p.m. ET).
All games will be available for streaming on the FOX Sports app and FOX One. Catch the action on the following streaming options:
- FOXSports.com and FOX Sports app
- FOX One
Italy Lineups, Pitchers
Aaron Nola will begin Monday night time’s World Baseball Basic semifinal for Italy in opposition to Venezuela quite than Michael Lorenzen.
Italy supervisor Francisco Cervelli mentioned he made the choice Sunday however waited till Monday to make the announcement.
“My cause was my intestine,” he mentioned. “Everybody is out there, however I believe Nola is the suitable particular person. That’s my opinion, and I’m taking accountability for my choices.”
A 32-year-old right-hander, Nola obtained the win within the group stage finale in opposition to Mexico on March 11. He allowed 4 hits over 5 scoreless innings with 5 strikeouts and one stroll, throwing 69 pitches.
Italy has the second most house runs (12) on the match behind the Dominican Republic’s match report of 15 dingers. Main the way in which is the guts and soul of this Italian squad, Vinnie Pasquatino. The Royals first baseman has three homers (all in opposition to Mexico within the pool play win). A trio of Italian gamers (Dominic Canzone, Andrew Fischer, and Dante Nori) have 5 RBI every. Nori leads the group with .438 batting common.
Venezuela Lineups, Pitchers
Keider Montero, a 25-year-old right-hander, pitched three scoreless innings of aid on Monday in a 4-0 first-round win over Nicaragua.
He made his huge league debut on Could 29, 2024, and was 5-3 with a 4.37 ERA in 12 begins and eight aid appearances final 12 months for Detroit throughout a season through which he was optioned to Triple-A Toledo six instances. Monero was 4-4 with a 5.91 ERA in eight begins and two aid appearances for the Mud Hens.
Luis Arráez has been a hitting machine for Venezuela. The Padres star has two house runs and 9 RBI with a strong .368 batting common. Maikel Garcia and Ronald Acuña Jr. had homers within the win in opposition to Japan, as did Wilyer Abreu who hit the definitive three-run homer that sealed the win over Japan.
WBC Schedule
Semifinals
Monday, March 16
- Italy vs. Venezuela (8 p.m., LoanDepot Park in Miami on FS1)
Ultimate
Tuesday, March 17
- USA vs. SF2 winner (8 p.m., LoanDepot Park in Miami on FOX)
