Opinion: Italy’s win over USA was monumental

Italy Baseball (Wikimedia Commons)

On the same night that Bam Adebayo put up a gigantic single game performance in the National Basketball Association, we saw a dramatic upset at the 2026 World Baseball Classic, and one that will be forever remembered as a monumental night for European baseball.

Heading into Tuesday, the question wasn’t if the United States was going to beat Italy. The question was going to be by how much. There was a belief by some that the Americans could win by 20 runs or more.

However, that is why you play the game. Even though Italy entered the game as a betting underdog at +850, it was the Italians that came away with a remarkable 8-6 win.

How did it happen? First, it appears that the Americans were overconfident heading into the game. They decided to start New York Mets starting pitcher Nolan McLean of Willow Spring, North Carolina, who only had eight MLB starts under his belt. McLean gave up three earned runs in three innings of work, including two home runs. Reliever Ryan Yarbrough or the defense was not any better as Yarbrough surrendered three more runs, and the United States had two costly errors.

Heading into the bottom of the sixth inning, the score was 8-0 Italy! What was equally stunning is that the Americans could not score for the longest time. Italian starting pitcher Michael Lorenzen threw four and two third shutout innings. When the Americans finally figured out Italian pitching, it was too little, too late.

As a result, the United States could be in a position that they do not advance to the quarterfinals. If Mexico beats Italy on Tuesday and scores less than five runs, then the United States are eliminated.