Skipper Mark DeRosa Misreads WBC Math, Team USA Now Sweating Elimination

Team USA manager Mark DeRosa is walking back a costly comment after mistakenly saying the Americans had already clinched a spot in the next round -- hours before a stunning 8-6 loss to Italy put the squad’s World Baseball Classic hopes in serious jeopardy.

DeRosa made the remark during an appearance Tuesday morning on MLB Network's "Hot Stove," where he suggested the U.S. had already punched its ticket to the quarterfinals. He even hinted the game against Italy would be used to give some regulars a breather.

But the math wasn’t right.

When the Americans fell behind early and ultimately dropped the game, the interview clip started circulating online -- and suddenly the comment looked a lot worse.

After the loss, DeRosa said he “completely misread the calculations” when discussing the complicated tiebreaker scenarios earlier in the day.

“I was on Hot Stove with a couple of buddies today and completely misread the calculations,” DeRosa said. “Running all the numbers with runs allowed, runs scored and outs ... I just misspoke.”

Despite the earlier remark, DeRosa insisted the team entered the game knowing it needed to win.

Still, his lineup choices drew scrutiny. Several of Team USA’s biggest bats -- Bryce Harper, Alex Bregman, Byron Buxton, Cal Raleigh and Brice Turang -- all started the game on the bench. Italy took advantage, jumping out to an early lead while the U.S. was shut out through five innings. A late comeback wasn’t enough.

Now, Team USA’s fate is out of its hands.

If Italy beats Mexico in Wednesday’s Pool B finale, the Americans will still advance as the runner-up.

If Mexico wins and scores four or fewer runs, Team USA would be eliminated via the runs-allowed tiebreaker. But if Mexico wins while scoring five or more runs, the U.S. would survive the tiebreaker and move on to the quarterfinals.

Needless to say, the clubhouse wasn’t thrilled.