Aaron Judge and Roman Anthony homer to lift USA past Mexico for first time since 2006

Great offense and defense led to a close victory over Mexico

HOUSTON, Tex. (KYMA) - The United States remained unbeaten in the 2026 World Baseball Classic after defeating Mexico 5-3 for the first time in 20 years.

USA's baseball team used strong pitching and timely hitting to hand Mexico national baseball team its first loss of the tournament in front of a lively crowd in Houston.

Right-hander Paul Skenes set the tone early for Team USA, delivering four scoreless innings while striking out seven. The dominant outing helped keep Mexico off the scoreboard during the early stages of the game.

Team USA’s defense also played a key role behind Skenes. In the third inning, Aaron Judge tracked down a ball in right field and fired it to third base, where Alex Bregman applied the tag to prevent Mexico from advancing into scoring position.

The Americans quickly turned defense into offense.

In the bottom half of the inning, Judge delivered at the plate, launching a 364-foot home run — his second of the tournament — to give the United States a 2-0 lead.

The momentum continued moments later when 21-year-old Roman Anthony crushed a towering 417-foot home run into the second deck. The blast not only extended the lead but also made Anthony the youngest American player to hit a home run in the history of the World Baseball Classic.

Team USA also flashed the leather in the field. In the fourth inning, Bobby Witt Jr. made a diving stop at shortstop before throwing from his knees to first baseman Bryce Harper for the out, drawing cheers from the crowd.

Mexico mounted a comeback attempt in the sixth inning when Jarren Duran delivered a solo home run to get his team on the board. Duran later added another solo shot in the eighth inning as Mexico pushed across three runs in the game, however, the rally fell short as the United States held on for the 5-3 victory.

The win marked the first time the United States has defeated Mexico in the World Baseball Classic since 2006, keeping Team USA unbeaten in the tournament while handing Mexico its first loss.