Team USA Manager Had No Clue About Team’s Situation Before Loss to Italy

Knowing your situation is key to prevailing in life, whether in sports or anything else. And Team USA Manager Mark DeRosa clearly did not know his situation.

Team USA now finds itself in the precarious position of possibly missing out on the World Baseball Classic quarterfinals after a shocking 8-6 loss to Italy on Tuesday night. However, as became clear during an interview on MLB Network before the game against Italy, DeRosa seemed to think that his team had already clinched a quarterfinal spot.

“I’m going to get some guys off their feet, no question about it,” DeRosa told Matt Vasgersian and Harold Reynolds on Hot Stove. “I’d like to get [Paul Goldschmidt] a start. He has been awesome; just a leader of men behind the scenes with Aaron Judge. I’d like to get him in there. I’d like to get Gunnar (Henderson) in there again.

“Ton of respect for Italy,” DeRosa continued. “It’s weird. We want to win this game, even though our ticket’s punched to the quarterfinals. Because Mexico plays Italy, actually, tomorrow. The way the schedule lines up, this is an important game for us.”

The only problem with this is that Team USA did not have their “tickets punched.” They actually needed the win against Italy, and there is evidence that DeRosa planned the game in a way that suggests he didn’t think he had to win.

“Cal Raleigh, Bryce Harper, Alex Bregman, and Brice Turang were among the USA players to not start,” Awful Announcing reports. “And Ryan Yarbrough, who had a 4.36 ERA with the New York Yankees last season, followed starting pitcher Nolan McLean (3 innings) to throw 2 1/3 innings out of the bullpen. There didn’t seem to be a sense of urgency in what was a very important game.”