In a World Baseball Classic already filled with cinematic moments, with epic home run celebrations and moments capturing the magnitude of these games on the international stage, Wilyer Abreu just added another one to the list.
Abreu, a Red Sox outfielder playing for Venezuela, took a 2-1 pitch from Japan pitcher Hiromi Itoh and crushed it 409 feet over the right-field fence in the sixth inning, giving Venezuela the lead for good with a three-run blast during its eventual 8-5 upset in the quarterfinals.
After Abreu swung, he watched his ball’s flight trajectory for a moment.
Then, another moment.
He turned toward the Venezuela dugout, already erupting with cheers, and pumped his bat once before launching it high in the air and beginning to shuffle down the first base line.
It was a stunning moment, one that put Japan — and Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani — in danger of not being able to defend their WBC title after winning it in 2023.
And it left them with just three sets of outs to manufacture the tying runs after any ounce of momentum had shifted to Venezuela and its fans at loanDepot park.
Abreu, 26, was hitting seventh in a batting order that already includes Braves star Ronald Acuña Jr. — who homered in the first inning off Yoshinobu Yamamoto — and Royals star Maikel Garcia, whose two-run homer in the fifth inning trimmed Japan’s lead to one.
Then, Abreu uncorked the swing for the ages.
Ezequiel Tovar added another homer in the eighth inning that extended Venezuela’s lead, while Gleyber Torres also flew out to the wall in that same frame.
Venezuela will now face Italy in the semifinals.