Who is Team Venezuela?

Team Venezuela has become one of the best teams in international baseball. The country ranks third all-time in producing Major League Baseball players, trailing only the United States and the Dominican Republic, and is currently ranked No. 5 (Israel is #21) in the world by the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC). Every single player in the starting lineup is an active MLB player (Israel had four). Collectively, they have 1 MVP award, 23 All-Star selections, 10 Silver Sluggers, 3 batting titles, 1 Rookie of the Year, and 10 Gold Gloves (Israel has 1 gold glove). The star power also shows financially—the starting lineup alone represents $297,821,500 in combined MLB contracts (Israel’s major leaguers are making $23,530,500, which is almost all going to Harrison Bader, who has proudly worn his Jewish faith on his uniform for years).

The matchup between Israel and Venezuela quickly turned into a showcase for Venezuela’s offense, as they rolled to an 11–3 victory behind a dominant performance from Luis Arraez and an explosive first inning. Venezuela set the tone immediately against Israel starter Ben Simon (High-A). After Ronald Acuña Jr. walked to start the rally, Arraez drove him in with a double just out of the reach of Harrison Bader. He then took third on a throwing error to the plate by Cole Carrigg (AA) in an attempt to throw out Acuña. Salvador Pérez followed with a sharp line drive RBI single that dropped right in front of Zach Levenson (AA) to extend the lead, and Eugenio Suárez delivered the biggest blow of the inning when he launched a two-run home run to left field. By the time Charlie Beilenson (AA) came in and escaped the inning, Venezuela already held a 4–0 lead, forcing Israel into an early hole.

While Israel struggled early at the plate, Venezuelan starter Enmanuel De Jesus dominated the first four innings of the game. He retired the first 14 Israeli batters he faced, preventing Israel from building any early momentum. Beilenson threw a scoreless inning, and then Jordan Geber (AAA) came in to replace him. Geber then came in and threw two scoreless innings, preventing Perez from scoring after Bader dropped a routine fly ball. The bullpen had managed to stabilize the game after the disastrous first inning, keeping Venezuela from adding to the score for several frames and giving Israel a chance to climb back into the game. That opportunity finally arrived in the fifth inning, when Garrett Stubbs broke up the perfect game with a stand-up triple, then came around to score after Matt Mervis beat out an infield single. However, any momentum Israel gained was quickly erased in the bottom half of the inning when Luis Arraez responded with a solo home run, restoring Venezuela’s four-run lead.

Israel briefly showed signs of life in the sixth inning when RJ Schreck (AAA) launched a solo home run to the upper decks in right field, cutting their lead to three and giving Israel hope that a comeback might still be possible. That optimism lasted only moments. In the bottom of the sixth, Venezuela delivered the decisive blow of the game with a massive offensive surge. Daniel Federman (High-A) came in and walked Gleyber Torres, Ezequiel Tovar, and Acuña before Maikel Garcia delivered a two-run single. Following a stolen base by Garcia on his first pitch, Rob Kaminsky (5 MLB games; currently in indy ball) surrendered a three-run shot to Arraez, putting the game well out of reach. In the bottom of the eighth, Arraez came around to score following a double and then singles by Perez and Wilyer Abreu. Israel didn’t go out with a whimper, though, as Bader hit a solo shot followed by singles from Spencer Horwitz and Levenson.

Final: Venezuela 11, Israel 3 Date: March 7, 2026 Venue: loanDepot park

Israel          — 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 1 — 3 runs, 7 hits, 2 errors Venezuela — 4 0 0 0 1 5 0 1 X — 11 runs, 14 hits, 0 errors

Carrigg (SS): 4 AB, 0 R, 0 H, 0 RBI, 0 BB, 1 K Schreck (RF): 4 AB, 1 R, 1 H, 1 RBI, 0 BB, 1 K Bader (CF): 4 AB, 1 R, 1 H, 1 RBI, 0 BB, 1 K Horwitz (1B): 4 AB, 0 R, 1 H, 0 RBI, 0 BB, 0 K Levenson (LF): 4 AB, 0 R, 2 H, 0 RBI, 0 BB, 2 K Stubbs, G (C): 4 AB, 1 R, 1 H, 0 RBI, 0 BB, 2 K Mervis (DH): 4 AB, 0 R, 1 H, 1 RBI, 0 BB, 1 K Gelof (3B): 3 AB, 0 R, 0 H, 0 RBI, 0 BB, 1 K Mendlinger (2B): 3 AB, 0 R, 0 H, 0 RBI, 0 BB, 0 K

Totals — 34 AB, 3 R, 7 H, 3 RBI, 0 BB, 9 K

Acuña Jr. (RF): 3 AB, 2 R, 0 H, 0 RBI, 2 BB, 0 K Garcia, M (3B): 5 AB, 1 R, 1 H, 2 RBI, 0 BB, 3 K Arraez (1B): 5 AB, 4 R, 4 H, 5 RBI, 0 BB, 0 K Perez, S (C): 5 AB, 1 R, 2 H, 1 RBI, 0 BB, 0 K Suárez, E (DH): 4 AB, 1 R, 2 H, 2 RBI, 1 BB, 0 K Abreu, W (LF): 5 AB, 0 R, 1 H, 1 RBI, 0 BB, 1 K Torres (2B): 4 AB, 1 R, 0 H, 0 RBI, 1 BB, 2 K Sanoja (CF): 4 AB, 0 R, 1 H, 0 RBI, 0 BB, 0 K Tovar (SS): 3 AB, 1 R, 3 H, 0 RBI, 1 BB, 0 K

Totals — 38 AB, 11 R, 14 H, 11 RBI, 5 BB, 6 K

Simon (L, 0-1): 0.1 IP, 3 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 1 BB, 1 K, 1 HR Beilenson: 1.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 K Geber: 3.0 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 2 K, 1 HR Federman: 0.1 IP, 1 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 3 BB, 0 K Kaminsky: 1.2 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 1 K, 1 HR Leban: 1.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 0 K

Totals — 8.0 IP, 14 H, 11 R, 11 ER, 5 BB, 6 K, 3 HR

De Jesus (W, 1-0): 5.0 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 8 K Sánchez: 2.0 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 0 K, 1 HR Zerpa: 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K Molina: 1.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 1 K, 1 HR

Totals — 9.0 IP, 7 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 0 BB, 9 K, 2 HR

Batting Triple — Stubbs, G (1, De Jesus) Home Runs — Schreck (1, 6th inning off Sánchez); Bader (1, 9th inning off Molina) Total Bases — Bader 4; Horwitz 1; Levenson 2; Mervis 1; Schreck 4; Stubbs, G 3 RBIs — Bader (1); Mervis (1); Schreck (1) Two-out RBIs — Schreck; Mervis Runners left in scoring position with two outs — Mervis Team RISP — 1-for-3 Team LOB — 4

Fielding Errors — Carrigg (throw); Bader (fielding)

Batting Doubles — Arraez 2 (off Simon, Leban)

Home Runs — Suárez, E (1st inning off Simon) Arraez (5th inning off Geber; 6th inning off Kaminsky) Total Bases — Abreu 1; Arraez 12; Garcia 1; Perez 2; Sanoja 1; Suárez 5; Tovar 3 RBIs — Abreu (2); Arraez (5); Garcia (2); Perez (1); Suárez (2) Two-out RBI — Abreu Runners left in scoring position with two outs — Abreu (2); Acuña Jr. (2); Torres; Garcia Team RISP — 5-for-13 Team LOB — 8

Baserunning Stolen Bases — Tovar (1); Torres (1); Garcia (1) Caught Stealing — Suárez (1)

Umpires HP — Gabe Morales 1B — Marek Vicar 2B — Paul Clemons 3B — Michael Ulloa

Weather — 72°F, roof closed Wind — None First Pitch — 7:08 PM Game Time — 2:37 Attendance — 22,573

© The Times of Israel (Blogs)