It has been a long week for Mark DeRosa. The Team USA manager mistakenly said the team had already clinched a spot in the World Baseball classic quarterfinals on Tuesday before the game against Team Italy, a comment that wasn’t true. Italy then defeated Team USA in the contest, leaving the door open for Team USA to potentially be eliminated in the first round. However, Italy’s win over Team Mexico on Wednesday kept the USA in the WBC.
DeRosa has since said that he misspoke, and has claimed that he understood the USA had not clinched a quarterfinals appearance when he made his initial comments. Regardless, DeRosa has received no shortage of backlash from fans on social media as well as analysts.
During an in-game interview during the USA-Canada quarterfinals game on Friday night, reporter Ken Rosenthal asked DeRosa about the criticism and if there is anything he wants the fans to know about the way he approaches his managing job, via FOX Sports: MLB.
“I have an undying passion for it and an undying belief in every guy on this roster,” DeRosa said. “I don’t think there’s an A and a B, I think they’re all A’s.”
It was a brief message from DeRosa, but he made his true feelings on the job clear. DeRosa has a passion for his team.
How Mark DeRosa Can Salvage 2026 World Baseball Classic
Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images
As of this story’s publication, Team USA is leading Team Canada. Regardless of what happens, DeRosa’s managing reputation has taken a negative blow during the 2026 World Baseball Classic. Losing on Friday night obviously would not help matters.
In all reality, the only way DeRosa can salvage the 2026 World Baseball Classic as far as his managing reputation is concerned is by leading Team USA to a tournament victory. If the USA falls short of winning the championship, many will blame DeRosa — whether the blame is fair or not.
The harsh reality is that even if Team USA wins it all, there will be critics of DeRosa. However, winning the championship would likely lead to many forgiving DeRosa for his first round blunder.
At the moment, Mark DeRosa and his Team USA squad are focused on defeating Team Canada in the quarterfinals. Even if they win Friday’s game, there is still a long road ahead for this ball club.
Related: Team USA’s Gunnar Henderson Decision Makes No Sense
This story was originally published by Athlon Sports on Mar 14, 2026, where it first appeared in the MLB section. Add Athlon Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
