How Paul Skenes, USA bullpen shut down hot Dominican Republic bats to punch WBC championship ticket

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How Paul Skenes, USA bullpen shut down hot Dominican Republic bats to punch WBC championship ticket originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

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Going into the 2026 World Baseball Classic semifinals, the baseball world knew that the Dominican Republic had arguably the best offense the tournament has ever seen. With Fernando Tatis Jr., Juan Soto and Vladimir Guerrero Jr., to name a few, the Dominicans' "Platano Power" was on full display entering the matchup against Team USA, hitting 14 home runs — which ties a WBC record.

But the U.S. had the great equalizer: Paul Skenes.

The 2025 NL Cy Young winner took the bump for Team USA's 2-1 win over the Dominican Republic, and behind superb pitching from the starter and the American bullpen, the U.S. advanced to its third straight World Baseball Classic final. While Skenes gave up a solo home run to Junior Caminero in the second inning, that was the only time the Dominicans scored.

Though the U.S. offense did not produce at a high level, one of the best pitchers in the world delivered a spectacular effort. Here's how Skenes and the rest of the Team USA pitching staff extinguished the Dominican party in Miami.

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Paul Skenes stats today

Skenes allowed only one hit and struck out seven in Team USA's win against Mexico, and against the Dominican we saw more of the same. While it was not as dominant of a performance, he held arguably the best batting lineup ever assembled to one run, coming on a Caminero solo shot.

  • Innings pitched: 4.1
  • Hits: 6
  • Earned Runs: 1
  • Walks: 0
  • Strikeouts: 2

Skenes gave up more hits and struck out less, but what was more impressive was how he kept the Dominicans off the bases or got out of jams. In the bottom of the fourth inning, Skenes got Austin Wells to fly out with the bases loaded; then, in the fifth, with runners on first and second, he got one of the best players in the game in Juan Soto to ground into a double play.

Going into the 2026 World Baseball Classic, what separated the U.S. from teams of the past was the presence of elite pitchers, in specific Skenes and Tarik Skubal. The two combined to give up two total runs in three starts.

Skenes, who pitched at Air Force before going to LSU, posted a letter in "The Player's Tribune" before his first start and knows how much it means to pitch for the United States. Now, he just threw a game that will be forever etched in baseball lore.

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Team USA pitching stats

After Skenes' day was over in the fifth, the Team USA bullpen put on a heroic effort against a loaded Dominican Republic lineup.

PitcherIPHERBBKPC-STERATyler Rogers0.200002-10.00Griffin Jax1.000007-50.00David Bednar1.0200218-140.00Gavin Whitlock1.0000216-100.00Mason Miller1.0001119-10

The U.S. rolled out five different pitchers, one per inning, to take out the most prolific lineup in the tournament. The Dominicans had only two hits after Skenes came out of the game.

Mason Miller entered in the ninth and provided the exclamation point, touching 103 mph on the radar gun to neutralize the heart of the Dominican order.

While David Bednar danced around a pair of singles in the seventh, the collective precision of the American arms prevented any momentum from building for the D.R. stars. With this shutdown performance, Team USA solidifies its path toward the knockout stage, relying on a bullpen depth that looks increasingly unbeatable as the tournament progresses.

MORE: USA beats Dominican Republic in World Baseball Classic

Dominican Republic hitting stats

The Dominican Republic's historic offensive run came to an end as the U.S. pitching staff held their prolific lineup to just one run. Despite the loss, Junior Caminero provided the highlight of the night, launching a solo shot in the second inning to set a new tournament record for total team home runs.

Player (POS)ABRHHRRBIBBKAVGF. Tatis Jr. (RF)4010001.342K. Marte (2B)4010001.318J. Soto (LF)3000010.364V. Guerrero Jr. (1B)4010001.500M. Machado (3B)4000001.286J. Caminero (DH)4121101.412J. Rodríguez (CF)3010010.294A. Wells (C)3010000.308O. Cruz (PH)1000000.333G. Perdomo (SS)3010000.290TOTALS33181125—

Caminero’s solo blast in the second inning was the Dominican Republic’s 15th home run of the tournament, officially breaking the previous all-time WBC record of 14.

The heart of the order (Soto, Guerrero Jr., and Machado) went a combined 1-for-11, as the U.S. bullpen successfully limited the Dominican Republic to just two hits over the final four innings.

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