March 18, 2023; Miami, Florida, USA; U.S. coach Mark DeRosa (4) is returning to the dugout after changing pitches during the 5th inning of the game against Venezuela held at Rondepo Park. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images Team USA suffered a crushing defeat at the World Baseball Classic, losing 8-6 to Italy. The United States fought back in the bottom of the 9th inning with Gunner Henderson and Aaron Judge coming to the plate to tie the game, but in the end, what would become one of the biggest upsets in WBC history did not occur.
The United States entered the matchup at -1100 and it looked like a night where they could give some players a break. Well, it would have been if Team USA didn’t need a win to advance to the quarterfinals. Coach Mark DeRosa completely mismanaged the team, benching several key starters only for Paul Goldschmidt and Ernie Clement to secure AB.
After all, no one told DeRosa that a U.S. loss could result in elimination, and now they have to wait for the results of Mexico and Italy to find out their fate. Mistakes happen. At this level it shouldn’t be, but it is. But the biggest problem with this whole situation is DeRosa’s unwillingness to take any responsibility for this disaster.
DeRosa appeared on MLB Network’s ‘Hot Stove’ the morning before the Italy game, where he publicly said the players were resting because they had punched their ticket to the quarterfinals. That mistake alone will get you fired. But he didn’t say that by accident. He had no idea they could be eliminated with a loss!
DeRosa warmed up Clayton Kershaw in the eighth and then mysteriously sat him back in the ninth to put Mason Miller in the game. Someone should have told him that this was still a must-win game and that he wasn’t going to waste a few innings with a nearly retired Kershaw.
After the game he has to take a lot more responsibility for the situation. He was a mess; He didn’t just speak his words poorly. DeRosa had to take the stand after the game and honestly said he didn’t know the pool counting rules and that the mistake was his own.
I’m not sure how we can take DeRosa seriously at this point. Every time he criticizes a management decision on MLB TV, all you can think about is how he made one of the dumbest management decisions I’ve ever seen in sports. Also, if he actually ever thought about managing an MLB team, you can kiss him goodbye.
Frankly, it’s kind of crazy that the National Baseball League hasn’t fired him yet. None of this should be happening to DeRosa. Even if you play for Team C, you shouldn’t have any problems getting past Italy. Well, if you look at Italy’s roster, it’s essentially America’s C team. Because it’s full of people who don’t even have dual citizenship.
Well, now it’s a waiting game to see if Team USA advances. If Italy wins, Team USA will advance, and if Mexico wins and scores 5 or more points, Team USA will also advance. Whatever happens, I don’t think we’ll see DeRosa in the dugout after this WBC.
