The Azzurri beat the Caribbean 6-3 and decide with a perfect tenth inning a balanced game that was unlocked only in the sixth and arrived at the end of the regular restarts at 2-2. For Cuba, the starter is Roenis Elias, an expert pitcher with MLB stops.
Elias works quickly, conceding only one base to Pasquantino. The counterpart, Matt Harvey, making his absolute debut in the Italian uniform, dark blue to recall the nickname of the former Mets pitcher “The Dark Knight”, gets three consecutive outs with 9 pitches and sails with the support of the defense also in the second inning.
David Fletcher’s double unlocks the Azzurri score, but the shortstop stops in third, with DeLuzio who doesn’t take advantage of the lead score and hits a harmless fly ball to left. In the third inning, Mastrobuoni opens with a double to opposite field, but the next three batters don’t move him.
Back to knock Italy to sixth with the entry of the first relief Jose Rodriguez, with two singles from Frelick and Pasquantino, interspersed with the harmless sprint from Valente. Dominic Fletcher hits a third single to fill the bases and forces Cuba to call Naykel Cruz to challenge lefty Brett Sullivan who hits a sacrifice fly high enough to break the run.
Change also for Italy, which sends Vinny Nittoli to the platform, who seats Robert and Despaigne and ends the inning unscathed. The seventh round brings Italy to base with Nicky Lopez, author of a single, and Cuba takes cover with the flamethrower Livan Moinello, who is one of the best relievers in Japan, on the platform in place of Cruz, but after an out on DeLuzio, Mastrobuoni strikes again in the outside left area, overtaking Cespedes and pushing Lopez home for the 2-0.
Moinello limits further damage, leaving Mastrobuoni in third. Cuba comes to life in the seventh inning when Arruebarruena hits a torpedo to center that DeLuzio misses and the Cuban shortstop reaches third on a controversial umpiring call.
In the eighth inning, the Blues responded with a solid line by Pasquantino to right that opens the eighth, then four straight balls, including a wild pitch, put Dominic Fletcher on base. On Cuban catcher’s passed ball, the Blues had three opportunities to strike, but Sullivan and David Fletcher hit two pops, then third baseman Yoan Moncada’s champion flash denied Nicky Lopez a hit. This time nothing can stop Nicky Lopez’s serve, who sends his teammates home for the 6-2. Cuba’s latest assault is against Mitchell Stumpo.
After the out on Moncada, Luis Robert takes home the point of the flag, but Italy defends 6-3 and starts the Classic 2023 with a heart-pounding victory. For Italy, this is the third victory ever against Cuba out of 54 matches in official events. On Friday, Italy will challenge the hosts of China Taipei.
Francis Ferrara
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