Vinnie Pasquantino’s message to Team USA after Italy’s Pool B win

Vinnie Pasquantino did more than power Italy into the World Baseball Classic quarterfinals on Wednesday night. He helped save Team USA’s tournament hopes—and made sure the Americans heard about it.

Pasquantino, a first baseman for the Kansas City Royals, launched three home runs as Italy routed Mexico 9–1 in Pool B play at Daikin Park. The performance, the first three-homer game in World Baseball Classic history, capped a dominant showing for the Italian lineup.

The result completed a perfect 4–0 pool run for Italy and locked in the final standings. Italy finished atop Pool B, while the United States advanced as the second-place team at 3–1. Mexico ended group play at 2–2 and was eliminated from the tournament.

That outcome carried major stakes for the Americans. Entering Wednesday, published tiebreaker scenarios showed a Mexico victory could have created a three-way tie among Italy, the United States and Mexico, with some run-differential outcomes knocking Team USA out of the quarterfinals. Instead, Italy’s lopsided win simplified the math and pushed the U.S. safely into the knockout round.

Talkin’ Baseball shared a post to X, formerly Twitter, featuring the Royals slugger’s brief postgame message for Team USA after Italy’s dominant win over Mexico.

“You’re welcome, USA”

Vinnie Pasquantino: "You're welcome, USA" pic.twitter.com/3UoQVGuITc

— Talkin' Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) March 12, 2026

The clip quickly circulated among World Baseball Classic fans and baseball fans alike as a coda to a wild 24 hours in Pool B that saw Italy upset Team USA before turning around to deliver the result the Americans needed, all after questions emerged about whether the U.S. side—and manager Mark DeRosa in particular—fully grasped the tiebreaker scenarios that could have knocked them out. For now, both Italy and the United States move on, with Pasquantino at the center of one of the tournament’s biggest early storylines.

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