Story by
Vinnie Pasquantino says quiet part out loud after Italy reaches WBC semis
- Story by
- Vinnie Pasquantino says quiet part out loud after Italy reaches WBC semis
Vinnie Pasquantino says quiet part out loud after Italy reaches WBC semis appeared first on ClutchPoints . Add ClutchPoints as a Preferred Source by clicking here .
Vinnie Pasquantino might have just inadvertently made an enemy in South America. The Team Italy captain and Kansas City Royals first baseman got ahead of himself during an interview following Saturday's big 8-6 win versus Puerto Rico in the World Baseball Classic quarterfinals.
Advertisement
"I don't know how many people would've picked the Dominican Republic, Japan, the United States and Italy in the final four, but we're here now… this is incredible, man," he told MLB Network's Jon Morosi after going 1-for-3 with one RBI, two walks and two steals.
No, you are not mistaken. Japan and Venezuela have yet to play their quarterfinals matchup.
Perhaps subconsciously, Pasquantino already penciled in the Land of the Rising Sun for the semifinals. Shohei Ohtani and the defending World Baseball Classic champions are favored to pull out the victory, but Team Venezuela has an abundance of high-quality MLB talent and should not be easily dismissed. The Miami, Florida venue (LoanDepot Park) should work in its favor as well.
Advertisement
About a half hour after the slip-up, Pasquantino took to social media to apologize for his omission . He also made sure to shout out current and former Royals teammates who are representing the country during the tournament.
"Tried to get this fixed after the fact but I'm sorry I excluded Venezuela," the 28-year-old posted on X. "Didn't mean to that. Looking forward to watching that game we all know it should be fireworks. My bad Team Venezuela. I still love you { Maikel Garcia , Salvador Perez , Luinder Avila and Angel Zerpa}."
Hopefully, the ballclub and country let Vinnie Pasquantino off the hook for his blunder (or subconscious presumption). However, if Venezuela manages to overpower Japan on Saturday night, then that soundbite will inevitably be used against the man they call Pasquatch.
Related: Shohei Ohtani confesses 'failure' after making last out in Japan's loss to Venezuela
Related: Seiya Suzuki exits World Baseball Classic with leg injury
