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Mark DeRosa publicly stated a few days ago that his team had qualified for the quarterfinals before it was official. He then rested his veterans, lost to Italy, and put his team's fate in the hands of two other teams.
In the end, the Americans qualified for the quarterfinals despite everything. And the chances of them beating Canada are good.
But the fact remains that his failure to understand the qualification scenarios has made DeRo the talk of the town right now—for all the wrong reasons.
Her reputation has taken a hit. And rightly so.
But now, the Americans' manager has appeared before the media. He defended himself by saying that it is wrong to think that he was unaware that the Americans were not qualified. He said he knew, but that he had expressed himself poorly. He added that at that point, the Italians and Americans had a 2-0 record.
“There's a couple false narratives out there. I was well aware that we had to win that game based on all the scenarios. They went in 2-0. We went in 2-0.”
USA was 3-0 pic.twitter.com/tjwDKfZplK
— Talkin' Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) March 12, 2026
We agree that if he knew they had to win, he wouldn't have played his B team and would have sent a few more “regulars” onto the field. This shows us that he didn't know what he was talking about when he first spoke.
But what is indefensible is that by saying today that the Americans had a 2-0 record before the game, he was still wrong. The Americans had a 3-0 record.
Did he just slip up in his choice of words today, or is he still confused? In my opinion, he's confused.
In any case, he couldn't afford to make a mistake today with the heat on him and him being there to defend himself. The more time passes, the more he looks like a guy who has no idea what he's talking about.
A good manager knows how to take the pressure off his players. But with his nonsense, he's putting pressure on his club.
Are some of the guys in the locker room saying that another manager would be better for the club? Does the path to victory for the Canadiens go through DeRosa? Will he still be credible on TV after the tournament? Nothing is going right for him.
- Tomorrow night, Canada will want nothing more than to participate.
“We're not here for a participation ribbon. We're here to compete.”
— Team Canada starter Cal Quantrill
— Hazel Mae (@thehazelmae) March 11, 2026
- Clayton Kershaw will be available tomorrow, but not for the rest of the series.
Joe Ryan will replace Clayton Kershaw on Team USA's WBC roster after the quarterfinal, per @BNightengale
Ryan would be lined up to pitch in the championship game pic.twitter.com/7bTXPO1rVj
— Talkin' Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) March 12, 2026
- Shohei Ohtani continues to keep his arm active even though he is not pitching in the World Baseball Classic.
Shohei Ohtani pitched the equivalent of four innings in a live BP session during today's WBC workout. He threw 59 pitches against 18 batters, struck out seven and broke a couple of bats.
He said “everything is going well” in his pitching prep for the regular season.
— Alden González (@Alden_Gonzalez) March 12, 2026
- Marcelo Mayer has not been approached for a long-term offer in Boston.
More on an earlier point from the spring: Red Sox have never approached Marcelo Mayer on a long-term deal and that remains the case, FWIW.
— Chris Cotillo (@ChrisCotillo) March 12, 2026
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