HOUSTON — The United States is heading to the semifinals of the World Baseball Classic after a “different level of focus” helped a team stacked with MLB All-Stars and award winners rebound from a shocking loss earlier in the week.
The U.S. beat Canada 5-3 in a quarterfinal Friday night at Daikin Park and moves on to face the Dominican Republic at 8 p.m. Sunday at Miami’s Loan Depot Park, which will also host the second semifinal Monday and the title game Tuesday. The big win for the Americans came after an 8-6 loss to Italy in the group stage left them needing help to advance to the knockout phase as one of the final eight in the 20-team tournament.
“Guys really locked in,” U.S. team captain Aaron Judge said. “We saw a different level of focus at our workout the other day and then even pregame today. It felt like the boys were locked and ready to go.”
The loss to Italy elicited criticism of the team — and particularly manager Mark DeRosa after he prematurely said on a television interview the morning of that game: “Our ticket’s punched to the quarterfinals.”
Judge said he knows a lot of people had negative things to say about the Americans after Tuesday’s game, but they didn’t pay it any mind.