Shohei Ohtani, Japan Eliminated From WBC with Loss to Ronald Acuna Jr., Venezuela as Fans Stunned

Ronald Acuna Jr. and Venezuela advanced to the World Baseball Classic semifinals with an upset win over Shohei Ohtani and defending 2023 champions Japan 8-5 on Saturday.

Japan has won three of the five World Baseball Classic championships and had never fallen short of the semifinals entering this year's tournament.

With Venezuela advancing to the semifinals for just the second time and eliminating the defending champions, fans were left stunned after Japan's shocking exit on Saturday.

Ronald Acuña Jr. kicked things off with a leadoff home run for Venezuela to grab a quick 1-0 lead over Japan, but with Ohtani waiting on the other side of the dugout, the advantage didn't last long. Ohtani answered with a 427-foot blast to center field, evening the score at 1-1 after one inning. 

Venezuela briefly regained the lead in the second when Gleyber Torres ripped a RBI double to make it 2-1. 

The edge held until the bottom of the third, when Japan erupted for four runs behind a Sato double and a Morishita home run to take its first lead of the game, 5-2.

Maikel García homered to left in the top of the fifth to cut the deficit to 5-4. Venezuela then seized the momentum in the sixth when Wilyer Abreu launched a 3-run homer, turning the game on its head and giving his team a 7-5 lead as the bench and crowd erupted.

Ezequiel Tovar doubled in the eighth and later scored on a pitching error, extending the lead to 8-5. Andrés Machado then worked out of a jam in the bottom half with two runners on and the tying run at the plate, setting the stage for a tense ninth inning.

Japan trailed by three with MLB's four-time MVP batting third in the order, but by the time Ohtani stepped to the plate he was staring at two outs and elite closer Daniel Palencia on the mound, and he could not lift Japan past the upset.

With the victory, Venezuela will face Italy on Monday in Miami.