Team Italy has advanced to the next round of the WBC after defeating the Netherlands 7-1. They will be joined by Cuba, as the two teams will head to Tokyo after advancing from Pool A in Taichung.

Former Mets ace Matt Harvey took the ball in a win-and-in game for Italy. Harvey looked sharp on the mound, tallying 3 strikeouts in 4 innings to earn himself the win over the Netherlands. Harvey started in both games that Team Italy won in Pool A play. His lone earned run came from a solo shot off the bat of Chadwick Tromp in the top of the 3rd inning.

After falling behind due to Tromp’s home run, Italy bounced back in a big way in the bottom of the fourth inning. Dominic Fletcher led things off with a ground-rule double to right field, followed by a Brett Sullivan single to bring Fletcher in to score. Kansas City Royals first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino, nicknamed the “Italian Nightmare” then ripped a base hit to keep the line moving.

After a mound visit, Netherlands reliever Mike Bolsenbroek would go on to hit Vito Friscia in the triceps with an up-and-in fastball to load the bases, proceeding to throw a wild pitch the next at-bat which allowed Sullivan to cross the plate, giving Italy a 2-1 lead. Ben DeLuzio and Sal Frelick both picked up RBI singles, and with two outs Nicky Lopez lined a two-RBI triple into the left-center field gap. It was a huge inning for Italy, scoring six runs in total. A pair of Royals teammates had quite the inning for this young Italian squad.

 

Xander Bogaerts and Didi Gregorius both picked up a single and went 1-4 at the plate for the Netherlands. The Dutch were only able to pick up that one run in the third inning, being shut down for the remainder of the game. They left 22 runners on base while striking out 12 times for the day. Needless to say, the Netherlands has been eliminated from the WBC.

Italy’s bullpen was stellar in this one. In five shutout innings, they allowed five hits, one walk and struck out nine. Andre Pallante, Joe LaSorsa, Vinny Nittoli, Matt Festa and Mitchell Stumpo each threw one scoreless inning for Italy.

Player of the Game

Harvey deserves the player of the game for this contest. He was able to get through four innings after pitching three innings in Thursday’s game against Cuba. His control of the strike zone and ability to maintain a sharp slider have been the keys to Harvey’s success this week. One more adequate performance has the potential to earn him an opportunity with a major league team after he did not make an appearance in the bigs in 2022.

While his fastball has been sitting in the upper 80s to lower 90s, he has had to redefine himself as a pitcher since receiving thoracic outlet surgery in 2016. Harvey, who will turn 34 years old on March 27 has helped Italy to their 2-2 record and advancement into the next round.

Italy will face a very tough opponent in their next WBC game. They will be playing Japan at the Tokyo Dome on Thursday, March 16 at 6 a.m. Starters have yet to be officially announced. It will be an uphill battle for Italy, as Japan is the only team to go 4-0 so far in the tournament.