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Vinnie Pasquantino's Three Home Runs Sounded Magnificent on the Italian Broadcast

Italy punctuated its pool play dominance with a fourth straight victory.
Vinnie Pasquantino is part of Italy's surprising WBC run, contributing three home runs Wednesday night in a victory over Mexico.
Vinnie Pasquantino is part of Italy's surprising WBC run, contributing three home runs Wednesday night in a victory over Mexico. | Thomas Shea-Imagn Images

Italy continued to be the biggest surprise of the World Baseball Classic on Wednesday night as they easily dispatched Mexico, 9-1, to post a perfect 4-0 record in pool play and provide a lifeline to Team USA.

First baseman Vinnie Pasquantino had a night to remember as the first baseman, who plies his trade for the Kansas City Royals, blasted three solo home runs into the Houston skies.

The power surge was well worth waiting for as Pasquantino entered Wednesday's game 0-for-12 in the WBC, where he serves as Italy's cleanup hitter.

The international stage provided the opportunity for a unique soundtrack with the Italian broadcasters taking center stage.

Below are the three home run calls that delighted fans of team Italy—or Pasquantino—from the Midwest to Florence.

Special kudos to the analyst for getting right in there and providing the foley artist work as these things flew out of the ballpark. On two of the three the voices teamed up to create a unique sound. The third is definitely the best as someone is clearly auditioning to become an honorary member of the boom Costco boom guys.

Up next for Italy is a matinee affair against Puerto Rico on Saturday with a spot in the semifinals on the line. If Pasquantino's bat stays hot there will be more chances to hear joyous calls like this and a good chance Italy will enjoy its deepest run in their team's tournament history.


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Kyle Koster
KYLE KOSTER

Kyle Koster is an assistant managing editor at Sports Illustrated covering the intersection of sports and media. He was formerly the editor in chief of The Big Lead, where he worked from 2011 to '24. Koster also did turns at the Chicago Sun-Times, where he created the Sports Pros(e) blog, and at Woven Digital.

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