The Italians’ run comes to an end: Venezuela advances to the final

Last night, Italy and Venezuela faced off in the semifinals of the World Baseball Classic. At stake: a spot in tonight's final (8 p.m.) against the United States, which defeated the Dominican Republic on Sunday night in Miami.

The Italians were expected to start Michael Lorenzen, but Aaron Nola ended up taking the mound. It was a good decision, as the Phillies pitcher went four innings, allowing just one run.

Meanwhile, the Italians took a 2-1 lead in the game.The Italians used significantly fewer pitchers than their opponents, but Lorenzen (who came in as a reliever, forcing the Italians to use a bullpen day in the final if they won) gave up three runs in 2.2 innings of work afterward.

Eugenio Suarez (home run off Nola), Ronald Acuna Jr. (single), Maikel Garcia (single), and Luis Arraez (single) were the players who drove in runs for the Venezuelans.

And in the end, that was enough. The Italians' fairy-tale run thus comes to an end, as they had not lost a single game up to that point.