Venezuela erupts in celebrations after reaching into the World Baseball Classic finals for the first time.
According to Associated Press, Venezuelan players danced in the dugout before the first pitch, then pranced past Italy and into their nation’s first World Baseball Classic final.
Ronald Acuña Jr., Maikel Garcia and Luis Arraez hit run-scoring, two-out singles in a rapid seventh-inning rally that sparked a 4-2 victory Monday night and vaulted Venezuela into a title matchup against the United States.
Players celebrated in the clubhouse before quickly turning focus to the final.
Garcia said, “A lot of dancing. We have to show the world who Venezuela is.”
Before each WBC game, Venezuelan players gather around a drum in the dugout for the tambor, coastal Afro-Venezuelan music and dance. They circle and shake, chant and enchant as they prepare to take the field in their nation’s yellow, red and blue.
Manager Omar López expressed, “That’s us. That’s our country. That’s winter ball. That’s how we enjoy our baseball.”
Venezuela overcame a 2-0, fourth-inning deficit after climbing out of a three-run hole to beat defending champion Japan in a quarterfinal.
The Venezuelans reached the championship round for the first time after losing to South Korea in their only previous semifinal appearance in 2009.
In 2023, Venezuela wasted a two-run, eighth-inning lead in a 9-7 quarterfinal loss to the U.S. in Miami as Trea Turner hit an eighth-inning grand slam.
