MIAMI (AP) — Ten days later, the United States and the Dominican Republic would have kept on playing.
Geraldo Perdomo watched Mason Miller's full-count slider appear to drop just under the strike zone and took a step toward his team's dugout on the third-base side, thinking he walked to put runners at the corners.
Then plate umpire Cory Blaser emphatically signaled strike three, stranding the potential tying run at third base and giving the United States a 2-1 win Sunday night that advanced the Americans to the World Baseball Classic championship game against Venezuela or Italy.
“He knew he was wrong," Perdomo said. "I knew it was 100% wrong.”
Major League Baseball's Automated Ball-Strike Challenge System will launch when the season starts March 25, and it likely will be adopted for future editions of the WBC. The Dominicans would have been able to appeal to the so-called robot umpire if they had a challenge remaining.
“It looked a little down. Yes, I’m glad we had no ABS,” U.S. outfielder Pete Crow-Armstrong said. “I’m happy that the human element was in full effect.”
Perdomo heard the call, found it hard to believe and while still holding his bat lurched it overhead in an arc, nearly tapping the wood against his butt.
“We didn’t lose the game there," the Arizona star said.
MLB announced in September that ABS will be used during the regular season and postseason in 2026 following testing that started in the minor leagues in 2019.
“I don’t want to focus on the last pitch,” Dominican manager Albert Pujols said. “I’m disappointed about the way that the game ends, but I don’t want to criticize any of that. It just wasn’t meant to be for us.”
Miller threw 13 of 22 pitches at 100 mph or higher. He gave up a one-out walk to Julio Rodríguez, who advanced to third on a wild pitch and Oneil Cruz's groundout.
Perdomo fell behind 1-2, worked the count full, then fouled out a pair of triple-digit heaters. Miller followed with his second slider of the at-bat.
“He called strike three. That's all I care,” American first baseman Bryce Harper said.
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB
Dominican Republic Geraldo Perdomo reacts after striking out at the end of the ninth inning of a World Baseball Classic semifinal game against the United States, Sunday, March 15, 2026, in Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
Dominican Republic Geraldo Perdomo reacts after striking out at the end of the ninth inning of a World Baseball Classic semifinal game against the United States, Sunday, March 15, 2026, in Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
Dominican Republic Geraldo Perdomo reacts after striking out at the end of the ninth inning of a World Baseball Classic semifinal game against the United States, Sunday, March 15, 2026, in Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
U.S. President Donald Trump said that he has demanded about seven countries send warships to keep the Strait of Hormuz open, as Iranian strikes continued to rain down on Gulf countries early Monday.
Dubai International Airport — the world's busiest — suspended operations after a drone struck a fuel tank, starting a fire. Authorities said it was quickly contained and no injuries were reported.
Tehran has accused the United States of using “ports, docks and hideouts” in the United Arab Emirates to launch strikes on Kharg Island, home to the main terminal handling Iran’s oil exports, without providing evidence, as oil prices soared.
Trump said the U.S. is negotiating with countries heavily reliant on Middle East crude to join a coalition to police the waterway where about one-fifth the world’s traded oil normally flows, but declined to name them.
Meanwhile, Israeli strikes have deepened Lebanon's humanitarian crisis, with more than 850 people killed and over 850,000 displaced.
Here is the latest:
Brent crude oil is trading near the $105 per barrel level on Monday.
A barrel of Brent, the international standard, was up 1.6% at $104.73, dipping slightly after opening above $106 per barrel. It’s up more than 40% since the war began.
Share prices in Asia were mixed and U.S. futures advanced.
Hours after a drone strike sparked a fire at Dubai’s main airport, Emirates says in its latest update that all of its flights there “remain suspended until further notice.”
The airline says it is working with authorities to restart operations when possible. It urged passengers not to travel to the airport.
Dubai International Airport is the world’s busiest airport for international travel and a key hub for many routes linking the East and West.
The United Arab Emirates’ Defense Ministry said forces were intercepting Iranian missiles and drones Monday morning.
Earlier, a drone hit a fuel tank at the Dubai International Airport.
Trump is suggesting he may delay his much-anticipated visit to China at the end of the month as he seeks to ramp up the pressure on Beijing to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz and calm oil prices.
In an interview Sunday with the Financial Times, Trump said China’s reliance on oil from the Middle East means it ought to help with a new coalition he is trying to put together to get oil tanker traffic moving through the strait after Iran’s threats have throttled global flows of oil.
Trump said “we’d like to know” before the trip whether Beijing will help.
“We may delay,” Trump said in the interview.
Trump’s new comments came as U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent was meeting with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng on Monday in Paris for a new round of trade talks that were meant to pave the way for Trump’s Beijing trip.
Mohammed bin Salman and Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan discussed the latest regional developments in a phone call, Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement early Monday.
The two leaders said the continued “Iranian attacks against Gulf Cooperation Council countries represent a dangerous escalation that threatens regional security and stability,” adding that GCC states will continue efforts to defend their countries
Emirati authorities have closed the main road and tunnel leading to Dubai International Airport.
Dubai Police urged drivers to use alternative roads.
Authorities said earlier a drone hit a fuel tank at the airport, causing fire with no casualties.
Saudi Arabia’s Defense Ministry said early Monday it downed an additional large barrage of 35 drones in the country’s eastern region, one of the kingdom’s least dense, close to Iran and home to major oil installations.
This brings the total number of drones intercepted to at least 60 in the last few hours.
The ministry did not immediately report casualties or damage.
The Australian government says a warship won’t be sent to the Middle East to keep the Strait of Hormuz open to international shipping.
U.S. President Donald Trump said that he has demanded about seven countries send warships to keep the Strait of Hormuz open, as Iranian strikes continued to rain down on Gulf countries.
Australia’s Transport Minister Catherine King told Australian Broadcasting Corp. on Monday she was not aware of Australia receiving such a request.
“We won’t be sending a ship to the Strait of Hormuz. We know how incredibly important that is, but that’s not something that we’ve been asked or that we’re contributing to,” King said.
Australia said last week it was providing the UAE with an air force surveillance jet and air-to-air missiles to defend against Iranian attacks.
But a government statement said Australia was “not taking offensive action against Iran.”
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)
A bulldozer clears debris from the rubble of buildings destroyed in an Israeli airstrike in Dahiyeh, Beirut's southern suburbs, Lebanon, Sunday, March 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)
Debris litters the street as smoke rises from buildings damaged in an Israeli airstrike in Dahiyeh, Beirut's southern suburbs, Lebanon, Sunday, March 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)
A woman displays a poster of the Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei as she waves her country's flag during a campaign in support of the government at the Enqelab-e-Eslami, or Islamic Revolution, square in downtown Tehran, Iran, Saturday, March 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
A cargo ship sails in the Arabian Gulf towards Strait of Hormuz in United Arab Emirates, Sunday, March 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)
