Spain walked off the Barcelona qualifier with a first-place finish, a little home-field history and its first trip to the Premier12. On the old training grounds used for the 1992 Olympic Games—the first Olympics to award baseball medals—the Spanish club survived Germany on Friday, beat Italy on Saturday and turned the final day into a celebration rather than a must-win afternoon.
The Premier12 field will include Spain and Italy from the Barcelona group, alongside the 12 nations already admitted through the WBSC rankings. Two remaining berths will be decided in Zhongshan, China, next month.
Spain’s opening game carried the tension of a tournament opener. Germany had them backed up until Omar Hernández, the Royals organization catcher, lined a two-out, two-run single in the eighth inning to pull Spain even. The game went to the 10th, where former Mets infielder Luis Guillorme crossed the plate on a wild pitch to end it. Guillorme was the veteran center of a Spanish roster that had waited a long time for a moment like this.
“Games like these can make a person who has never followed baseball become a fan,” manager Marvin Benard said after the win.
The clincher came against Italy, the reigning European Championship runner-up. José Gómez worked five scoreless innings, and Félix Stevens drove in three runs as Spain secured its Premier12 place before Sunday’s scheduled matchup with Colombia. Stevens, a former Cubs prospect, had produced a 20-homer, 20-steal season in only 84 Frontier League games over the summer.
Stevens said he knew the game was swinging Spain’s way when his ball got past the Italian first baseman. “I was really happy,” he said. “I believed that was the moment. Representing Spain is one of the greatest experiences I’ve had in baseball. Now we want to do something historic.”
Italy answers in the win-or-go-home game
Spain’s Saturday victory removed Colombia from the race, leaving Italy and Germany to settle the second qualifying place on Sunday. Francisco Cervelli’s Italy team made it a short and convincing argument, blanking Germany 5-0.
Blue Jays prospect Giacomo Taschin set the tone with four scoreless innings and seven strikeouts. Five Italian relievers preserved the shutout, while every starter in the lineup collected at least one hit. Italy is headed back to the Premier12 for the first time since 2015.
Colombia had entered as a favored side but could not break through, while the result offered another marker for two European programs that have been steadily gathering momentum. Spain won the 2023 European Baseball Championship, its first continental crown since 1955. It also came within one win of the past two World Baseball Classic tournaments, falling in the deciding qualifier against Czechia in 2022 and Chinese Taipei last year.
Italy, meanwhile, has found fresh energy under Cervelli, who spends much of the year living and coaching in the country. The Azzurri claimed European silver last year and reached the World Baseball Classic semifinals in the spring, creating a surge of attention at home that extended to recognition from Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.
The Premier12 sits below the World Baseball Classic as a global showcase, but it has become a measuring stick for national programs looking to establish themselves among baseball’s serious international contenders. Next year’s tournament also carries a direct road to the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics: the best-finishing Asian team and the top European or Oceanic team will qualify. Spain and Italy will be chasing that European/Oceanic berth against Australia and the Netherlands. The United States is already in the Olympic field as host, while the Dominican Republic and Venezuela qualified through their results at this spring’s Classic.
China, Czechia, Great Britain and Nicaragua will contest the final two Premier12 openings from Nov. 26-28. Spain and Italy, though, have already taken care of their business in Barcelona.
