Team USA Manager Mark DeRosa Digs Himself Deeper Trying To Explain Previous Comments

Team USA manager Mark DeRosa needs to own the fact that he didn't know the team needed to beat Italy to clinch a spot in the quarterfinals prior to the team's World Baseball Classic pool-play finale.

DeRosa basically admitted as much when he said he "completely misread the calculations." Plus, his management of the team against Italy – namely, sitting several stars and making puzzling decisions with the pitching staff – made it very apparent that DeRosa thought the team's 3-0 start guaranteed a spot in the next stage of the tournament. 

Team USA manager Mark DeRosa talks to the media during the 2026 World Baseball Classic.

(Houston Astros/Getty Images)

It didn't end up mattering much because Italy defeated Mexico on Wednesday, which punched Team USA's ticket to a matchup in the quarterfinals with Canada on Friday. 

But DeRosa now swears that's not true and claims there are "false narratives" out there about his grasp of the World Baseball Classic situation. 

"[Italy] played a hell of a game; they smacked us in the mouth early," DeRosa said on Thursday. "We went into that game prepared to win it. I think there are a couple of false narratives out there, but no, I was well aware that we had to win that game based on all the scenarios that could take place. I mean, they went in 2-0 [and] we went in 2-0." 

OK, so DeRosa is sticking to his guns and saying he was absolutely aware that his team wasn't yet guaranteed to make the quarters with a 3-0 start (which only makes his roster decisions against Italy look worse, by the way). 

Here's the problem: during DeRosa's defense of himself, he said that Italy was 2-0 and Team USA was 2-0. Well, that's incorrect. Italy was 2-0, yes. But the U.S. squad was 3-0 before the loss to Italy. So did DeRosa not know the team's record? That seems unlikely since he managed the three games. 

In all likelihood, he just misspoke when he said 2-0. But the problem is that DeRosa has to know that he's under a microscope after his previous comments. So to come out and make another mistake during a meeting with the media is inexcusable. He's the manager of Team USA, the team that expects to win the World Baseball Classic (and was the odds-on pre-tournament favorite to do so). 

DeRosa isn't doing himself any favors, and he didn't help his cause trying to explain his way out of his prior blunder by screwing up again. Fortunately for DeRosa, none of this really matters. If the United States wins the World Baseball Classic, no one will care about his management during pool play or dumb comments while speaking to the media. 

However, if Team USA loses, these blunders are going to be a dark stain on DeRosa's legacy. So, the ball is in his team's court. Win it all, and it all goes away. Lose again and American sports fans are going to be calling for consequences.