Havana, March 11 (RHC) – Italy will face Mexico today, who are forced to win in the last game of the first phase corresponding to group B of the VI World Baseball Classic.
After a surprising victory by the Italian national team over the United States (8-6), the Europeans occupy first place in the standings and are the only undefeated team.
If they win against Mexico, they will secure their place in the quarterfinals, eliminate the Mexican team, and also give Mark DeRosa’s Team USA a ticket to the next round.
If, on the other hand, the Mexicans win—with Chicago Cubs pitcher Javier Assad starting—all three teams will be tied for first place with an identical record of three wins and one loss, and the tiebreaker will be based on statistics.
The tiebreaker would be the defensive ERA, which is calculated by dividing the total runs allowed by the number of outs.
The day before, Italy surprised everyone by handing the United States their first loss, despite the fact that the US, with a constellation of Major League Baseball stars, had threatened to sweep the tournament.
Thus, the Europeans achieved a feat that will forever be remembered by the more than 40,000 fans who witnessed the Azzurri’s triumph.
Only the top two teams from each group advance to the next round, the quarterfinals, on March 13 and 14.
A US victory was expected in the qualifying round, but now they must wait to see what happens today between Mexico and Italy at Daikin Park in Houston.
