MIAMI (AP) — Wilyer Abreu watched the ball leave the park and tossed his bat high in the air. His Venezuela teammates streamed out of the dugout in celebration. The comeback was on, and the win over the reigning World Baseball Classic champion Japan was within reach.
Japan, its 11-game WBC winning streak on the line, held a 5-4 lead in the sixth inning of Saturday's thrilling quarterfinal matchup in Miami when Abreu put his team ahead with the biggest swing of the game: a three-run shot off Hiromi Itoh that sent the loanDepot Park crowd into a passionate roar and helped clinch Venezuela's 8-5 win and first WBC semifinal appearance in 17 years.
“That was an exciting moment," Abreu said in a postgame television interview. "I tried to at least tie the game with a sac fly. He gave me a really good pitch to hit. I made good contact. I'm very excited for this win. Now in the semifinals I hope I can do the same thing I did today.”
Venezuela fell behind 5-2 when Maikel Garcia sparked a comeback with a two-run homer in the fifth. Abreu followed with his first homer of the tournament, a 409-foot drive to right that put his team ahead for good.
Abreu, a two-time Gold Glove-winning right fielder for the Boston Red Sox, is hitting .294 with six RBIs in five WBC games. He described Saturday's moment as one of the best in his career — but he's no stranger to epic performances.
Abreu hit a grand slam and inside-the-park home run in the same game against the Cincinnati Reds last year, becoming the sixth player in major league history and the second Red Sox player since 1939 to accomplish that. The inside-the-park home run was the first by a Boston player in Fenway Park since Jacoby Ellsbury on Sept. 19, 2011.
On Saturday, in a game with much higher stakes, Abreu said the team fed off the energy of the Venezuelan fans. They stood on their feet most of the game, cheering and banging drums after each play.
“I think that the crowd today and every game that we have played in this WBC, the fans have been great, incredible," Abreu said. "You can feel the vibes. You can feel the support from the stands and from all the Venezuelans at home watching the game on TV.”
Abreu and his teammates know they're not done. Venezuela will face Italy in the semifinals but also clinched a spot in the six-nation field for the 2028 Olympic baseball tournament, along with the United States and the Dominican Republic.
“I believe that this means a lot to us Venezuelans for the country,” Abreu said. “Venezuela has participated in the Olympics in other categories and other sports, but we are trying to write our own history. Our team is well-prepared. ... The job is not completed. We have more to do.”
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Venezuela's Wilyer Abreu hits home run during the six inning of a World Baseball Classic quarterfinal game against Japan, Saturday, March 14, 2026, in Miami. (AP Photo/Marta Lavandier)
Venezuela's Wilyer Abreu, center, celebrates with his teammates after he hit a home run during the six inning of a World Baseball Classic quarterfinal game against Japan, Saturday, March 14, 2026, in Miami. (AP Photo/Marta Lavandier)
Venezuela's Wilyer Abreu runs the bases after he hit a home run during the six inning of a World Baseball Classic quarterfinal game against Japan, Saturday, March 14, 2026, in Miami. (AP Photo/Marta Lavandier)
The United Arab Emirates reported a new missile attack Sunday morning, a day after Iran called for the evacuation of three major UAE ports, threatening for the first time a neighboring country’s non-U.S. assets.
Tehran accused the United States of using “ports, docks and hideouts” in the UAE to launch strikes on Kharg Island, home to the main terminal handling Iran’s oil exports, without providing evidence, as the war showed no signs of ending.
U.S. President Donald Trump said he hoped allies would send warships to secure the vital Strait of Hormuz.
Meanwhile, Israeli strikes have deepened Lebanon's humanitarian crisis, with about 800 people killed and more than 850,000 displaced.
Here is the latest:
“This reflects a confused policy that missed the point, lost its direction, and lacked wisdom,” Anwar Gargash, adviser to the president of the United Arab Emirates, wrote on social media late Saturday.
Gargash was referring to Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi’s comments in which he accused the U.S. of using the UAE as a base for its attacks on Iran's Kharg Island.
Iran’s joint military command accused in a statement Sunday "the enemy” of using copycat Iranian drones to attack neighboring countries and pin the blame on Tehran, state media reported.
Tehran usually uses “the enemy” as a reference to the United States and Israel.
The statement said copies of Iran's Shahed-136 drone, known as LUCAS, were used to hit “irrelevant targets in the regional states," including attacks on Turkey, Iraq and Kuwait. No evidence was provided.
The military command also said Iran openly shares its targets, which it describes as U.S. and Israeli interests, and urged trust and cooperation from regional countries.
The United Arab Emirates reported a missile attack Sunday morning.
Authorities urged residents to remain in safe locations.
The U.S. Department of Defense on Saturday identified six service members who died when the military refueling aircraft they were aboard crashed Thursday while supporting operations against Iran.
The service members were Maj. John A. Klinner, 33; Capt. Ariana G. Savino, 31; Tech. Sgt. Ashley B. Pruitt, 34; Capt. Seth R. Koval, 38; Capt. Curtis J. Angst, 30; and Tech. Sgt. Tyler H. Simmons, 28, according to U.S. officials.
The crash in western Iraq followed an unspecified incident involving two aircraft in “friendly airspace,” according to U.S. Central Command. The other plane landed safely.
Israel’s military said early Sunday that Iran launched another round of missiles toward Israel.
Sirens sounded in Tel Aviv and loud booms were heard.
Israeli security forces inspect damage at the site of an Iranian missile strike in Holon, central Israel, Sunday, March 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)
Two men ride their motorbike past a billboard of the Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei in downtown Tehran, Iran, Saturday, March 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
A man chants slogan while the body of Gen. Ali Shamkhani, secretary of Iran's Defense Council and a senior adviser to the Supreme Leader who was killed in a strike, is being buried at the courtyard of the Imamzadeh Saleh shrine in Tehran, Iran, Saturday, March 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
Rescue workers inspect an apartment damaged in an Israeli airstrike as thick smoke fills the building in the southern port city of Sidon, Lebanon, Saturday, March 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Mohammad Zaatari)
Fire and plumes of smoke rise from an oil facility in Fujairah, United Arab Emirates, Saturday, March 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)
