Puerto Rico Crushes Colombia in the 2026 World Baseball Classic
SAN JUAN – The Puerto Rico national team demonstrated its power on the diamond by defeating Colombia with a score of 5-0 in its debut at the 2026 World Baseball Classic, held at the Hiram Bithorn Stadium in San Juan.
Although the Puerto Rican team took a while to fine-tune their offense, once they did, they unleashed a relentless attack that secured the victory.
After remaining hitless for the first four innings, Puerto Rico roared in the fifth inning with an explosive offense, accumulating five hits and five runs that ignited the passion of the local fans and defined the course of the match.
The rally began with unstoppable hits from Carlos Cortés and Darell Hernaiz. An error by Colombian third baseman Gio Urshela allowed the first run of the game. Eddie Rosario hit an RBI single to right field, extending the lead. The offense continued with an RBI single by Martín Maldonado and an RBI double by Willi Castro. Heliot Ramos closed the inning with a sacrifice fly that added another run.
In the mound, opener Seth Lugo led the solid pitching work of Puerto Rico, throwing four scoreless innings. The Puerto Rican defense limited Colombia to only six hits, all singles. Harold Ramírez stood out for Colombia, connecting three of those hits.
Colombia tried to react in the eighth inning, loading the bases with two outs, but manager Yadier Molina called on reliever Fernando Cruz, who managed to control the situation with a fly ball to quell the threat.
The stellar closer Edwin Díaz was called in the ninth inning to close the game. Despite allowing an initial single, he managed to strike out the next three batters, securing the shutout.
The next challenge for Colombia will be against Canada, while Puerto Rico will face Panama in their second group match.
