One of Phillies' Top Prospects Steals the Show from Veterans on WBC Saturday

In a lineup packed with established major-leaguers, the hitter who stood out most for Team Italy in its first game of World Baseball Classic pool play was 5-foot-9 Phillies prospect Dante Nori, the only one in the batting order with no MLB experience.

Heck, Nori might've had the most impressive day of any player in the tournament. He certainly had the biggest Saturday of anyone in Houston, where Bryce Harper, Kyle Schwarber, Aaron Judge and Team USA played the night game against Great Britain.

Batting ninth and playing left field, the 21-year-old Nori homered to right-center in back-to-back innings in the seventh and eighth as Italy extended its lead over Brazil from two runs to eight. Both were no-doubters, traveling 420 and 395 feet over the fence at Daikin Park. One came on a 75 mph curveball, the other on an 85 mph slider.

Nori reached base all four times up.

"It's hard to put into words," he told reporters. "Before the game, the nerves are going crazy. You know, the home run, blackout, I don't remember either one, to be honest, kind of just blacked out right around the bases. No, it's something special. And just the feeling is unbelievable."

It's a 2-homer game for Team Italy's Dante Nori! 🇮🇹 pic.twitter.com/DNBEZsQoAF
— World Baseball Classic (@WBCBaseball) March 7, 2026

Nori was the Phillies' first-round pick in 2024 out of Northville HS in Michigan. He had a strong first full season as a pro in 2025, hitting .261 with a .361 on-base percentage, walking (75) nearly as much he struck out (85) and rising two levels from Single A Clearwater to Double A Reading. He also stole 52 bases.

He followed it up by hitting .308/.386/.436 in 12 games in the competitive Arizona Fall League, then earned an invite to big-league camp this spring.

Nori was ranked this week by MLB Pipeline as the No. 7 prospect in the Phillies' system. He is likely to begin the year at Double A and his performance could take him to Triple A if he continues to develop.

The Phillies could sure use a homegrown outfielder like Nori. So many outfielders have come and gone here during the current era of contention without becoming mainstays. Nori started 102 games last season, 98 of them in center field. The Phillies are graduating one centerfielder to the majors in 2026 in Justin Crawford and are hoping Nori is only a year or two behind.

Saturday's game was against a Brazil team that does not have much MLB-level talent but it was an example of Nori's power upside. He celebrated both home runs by taking a shot of espresso in the dugout. The idea came from first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino, one of many major-leaguers on the Italy roster. The eight hitters on front of Nori on Saturday — Jakob Marsee, Jon Berti, Pasquantino, Dominic Canzone, Zach Dezenzo, Kyle Teel, Jac Caglianone and Thomas Saggese — all have varying degrees of big-league experience.

"Yeah, Vinnie is the one that came up with it. I do not like coffee, so it did not taste great," Nori said. "The first one, especially, I was like, ugh, but the second one, kind of liked that one a little bit more."

Dante Nori homers for Team Italy and takes an espresso shot to celebrate ☕️#WorldBaseballClassic pic.twitter.com/46rv7u43vZ
— Milb Central (@milb_central) March 7, 2026

The starting pitcher for Italy was left-hander Sam Aldegheri, a one-time Phillies prospect who was traded at the 2024 deadline to Kansas City for closer Carlos Estevez. Aldegheri pitched 4⅔ scoreless innings with eight strikeouts.

"I think it's sweet. You get to get the best group of guys from each area. You get to put it on the world stage," Nori said. "I think it does a lot for baseball, brings fans really close, brings them from all over. And I think it just brings a lot out of the game."

It's going to bring Nori even more confidence, which can only be a good thing as he continues to climb the Phillies' minor-league ladder.