Team USA Manager Admits to Overconfidence Before Italy Upset in World Baseball Classic

Team USA manager Mark DeRosa acknowledged making an "overly confident statement" about advancing in the World Baseball Classic before his team's shocking 8-6 loss to Italy. Despite the upset, the Americans still made it to the quarterfinals and will face Canada on Friday.

HOUSTON (AP) — Team USA skipper Mark DeRosa acknowledged Thursday that his early declaration about the United States securing a World Baseball Classic quarterfinal spot before playing Italy was simply an “overly confident statement,” emphasizing he understood nothing was certain at that moment.

DeRosa had made those comments on MLB Network’s “Hot Stove” program prior to Tuesday’s shocking 8-6 defeat to Italy that put America’s WBC destiny in jeopardy. The Americans ultimately secured their spot in Friday’s quarterfinal against Canada after Italy defeated Mexico 9-1 on Wednesday.

“It’s just an overly confident statement on ‘Hot Stove,’ period, the end,” DeRosa acknowledged. “And it’s my fault. I felt good about where we were after Mexico.”

The manager also discussed how the star-laden American squad gets a clean slate now that the Italian defeat didn’t end their championship aspirations.

“New lease on life for the boys, certainly,” he stated. “I put ourselves in a tough spot. Tip our hat to Vinnie Pasquantino and Italy, truly. Went into that game a little overly confident and got a huge wake-up call.”

DeRosa’s pre-game comments drew significant criticism following the loss, especially considering he benched regular starters Bryce Harper, Cal Raleigh, Alex Bregman, Brice Turang and Byron Buxton. The Americans needed a victory over Italy to secure their quarterfinal berth automatically. The defeat left them dependent on various tiebreaker scenarios while awaiting Wednesday’s Italy-Mexico outcome.

On Thursday, he defended those lineup choices. DeRosa explained he wanted to give opportunities to Ernie Clement and Paul Goldschmidt since they might play crucial bench roles later. He also noted restrictions on pitcher usage due to “guardrails” established by MLB organizations, who typically limit their players’ workload at the WBC because of injury risks.

“When I looked at the lineup, I felt confident going in – bottom line,” DeRosa stated. “I mean, I also look at it from a player’s perspective. Like, Bryce Harper was struggling a little bit. I know it’s three games, but from the dugout – I played with him for a long time – so it’s like, ‘OK, maybe we get him off his feet a day. We get Goldy in there. We allow (Harper) to work with Sean Casey, Matt Holliday, maybe something clicks. And we get him right back in there and going.'”

DeRosa had also noted before Tuesday’s contests that some American players were “dragging.” Team transportation departed later than scheduled following Monday’s victory over Mexico as players remained in the clubhouse celebrating their triumph.

“Listen, us hanging out in a clubhouse is everything I ever dreamed of creating,” DeRosa said. “You’ve got to buy into this thing super quick and try and create a team. For those players to invite the coaches in and for us to spend time together and enjoy a huge win that we hadn’t had in 20 years was something that, I looked around the room and it was super special to me.

“We did not lose sight of the fact that we had to go out and play well against Italy. They played a hell of a game. They smacked us in the mouth early. They got up big. We went into that game prepared to win it. I think there’s a couple false narratives out there. But, no, I was well aware that we had to win that game based on all the scenarios that could take place.”

The United States is implementing roster adjustments to its pitching rotation as they transition from pool competition into the quarterfinal round.

Left-handed pitcher Tim Hill along with right-handers Will Vest and Tyler Rogers are replacing two-time Cy Young Award recipient Tarik Skubal, Michael Wacha and Ryan Yarbrough. DeRosa confirmed that southpaw Matthew Boyd has also departed the American team to rejoin the Chicago Cubs’ spring training facility.

“And I completely understand that,” DeRosa commented. “There’s a lot of pressure from the parent clubs to get these guys ramped up for the start of the season.

“If he’s going to be the opening day starter for the Cubs, we had to guarantee him innings — the game’s got to dictate now. Pool play is a different animal. Trying to weave our way through it from a pitching standpoint, all bets are off now.”