Miguel Rojas Emotional Over Venezuela Winning World Baseball Classic

Team Venezuela capped off an impressive run in the World Baseball Classic with a 3-2 win over Team USA in the final game. In doing so Venezuela captured the first WBC championship in the country's history.

They went into the 2026 tournament with the fourth-best odds to win the gold medal. Prior to this year Venezuela had not so much as reached the finals.

Venezuela had the overwhelming support from fans in attendance at loanDepot Park, and another in Miguel Rojas who had to remain with the Los Angeles Dodgers because of insurance coverage issues.

Miguel Rojas celebrating Venezuela winning the WBC. pic.twitter.com/L5KY0imOal
— Matthew Moreno (@Matthew__Moreno) March 18, 2026

Following Venzuela's thrilling victory, Rojas posted on Instagram to celebrate their first international competition win since 1945 in any capacity.

"How beautiful to see this flag so high. Oh my God," Rojas wrote on the post to his Instagram story.

Venezuela took a 1-0 lead in the third inning and added onto it in the fifth. Bryce Harper's dramatic two-run home run tied the game in the eighth inning, but Eugenio Suárez gave Venezuela their decided lead with an RBI double in the ninth.

The late swings were reminiscent of the 2023 World Baseball Classic, when Trea Turner's home run in the eighth inning helped Team USA eliminate Venezuela in the quarterfinals.

Why Miguel Rojas couldn't play in World Baseball Classic

Rojas verbally committed to be part of the Team Venezuela roster but wasn't able to make his WBC debut because players age-37 and older were deemed uninsurable.

It was an outcome that understandably did not sit well with Rojas, who believed Latin American countries were disproportionately affected by the policy.

"Definitely disappointed. I'm not happy with the way things are. I didn't know that my chance to go represent my country for the first and only time, probably as a player, was going to get cut because of an insurance problem," Rojas said at DodgerFest.

"Even though we know we have to be ready for the season and we have to play and be ready for our contract. At the end of the day, we didn't know all those stipulations were going to be in place the way that they are right now. My only question is, why is it just with our countries?

"Like, Venezuela, Puerto Rico, we've seen a couple Dominican players. I don’t see that happening with the United States or happening with Japan. I’m not trying to attack anybody, or attack what’s going on, or seeing what’s happening behind the scenes. But at the end of the day, it feels like it’s just happening with the players that want to represent their country from Latin America.

"So there’s a lot of things I would like to talk about with someone in control, with someone from MLB. It's really hard to not have the opportunity to put my country on my chest and having the opportunity to represent them and help win a World Baseball Classic. Not having the opportunity to do it because I'm 37 years old, that's not right. I don't feel that's right.

"If I can still play in the big leagues for the Dodgers, why not go to play for my team in Venezuela and represent my country?”