Aaron Judge, USA Criticized By Fans After Loss to Italy in 2026 World Baseball Classic

Aaron Judge and Team USA suffered their first loss of the 2026 World Baseball Classic, falling to Italy by the final score of 8-6.

Italy jumped out to an 8-0 lead after the top of the sixth inning and the United States ultimately couldn't recover. Team USA eventually cut the deficit to 8-6 and had the tying run at the plate in the bottom of the ninth inning, but U.S. captain Aaron Judge struck out.

Judge went 0-for-4 with one walk in the defeat.

Fans and pundits called out Judge and Team USA for the performance.

After a scoreless first inning, Italy took a 3-0 lead through the second following a solo home run from Kyle Teel as well as a two-run blast from Sam Antonacci.

Another two-run homer by Jac Caglianone gave the Italian squad a 5-0 advantage in the fifth inning before scoring three more runs on a fielder's choice, sacrifice fly and a wild pitch.

Team USA finally got on the board with a solo home run from Gunnar Henderson in the sixth before Pete Crow-Armstrong cut the deficit to 8-4 with a three-run home run in the next frame.

Roman Anthony continued the U.S. momentum with his RBI single in the bottom of the eighth inning. Bryce Harper then stepped up to the plate with runners at the corners and two outs, but ended up flying out to end the inning.

Another home run from Crow-Armstrong brought Team USA to within two runs, but an improbable comeback ultimately wasn't completed.

Team USA finished pool play with a 3-1 record, but a spot in the knockout round isn't a certainty.

The United States would advance if Italy were to defeat Mexico on Wednesday night. If Mexico wins, the two teams that allowed the fewest runs per defensive out recorded would advance.

A potential elimination in pool play would be an immensely disappointing result for a U.S. team that won the WBC in 2017 and advanced to the championship game in 2023.