TORONTO (AP) Chris Denorfia went 4-for-4 with three doubles and Alex Liddi drove in two runs as Italy eliminated Canada from the World Baseball Classic by beating the Group C hosts 6-2 on Monday.
“It’s good for Italian baseball,” Liddi said. “We showed everybody that we can play at the same level.”
Denorfia, a member of major league’s Oakland Athletics, reached base five times and scored twice. He also knocked in two runs and made a diving catch on Joey Votto’s sinking liner to center field in the seventh.
Mike Piazza, who hit 427 homers in a 16-year major league career, is coaching Italy at this tournament after playing for the country in 2006. Denorfia said Piazza “really kind of nailed home some points” during an afternoon session in the batting cage.
“I’d watch out, guys, because (Piazza) is a heck of a hitting coach,” Denorfia said. “Just having him in there as a future Hall of Famer in your ear, you can’t help but absorb his presence and his knowledge. He’s been really great. I’m going to take the stuff I’m learning this week and take it back to the regular season.”
Justin Morneau had four hits but it wasn’t enough as Canada was stifled before a sparse crowd of 12,411, the smallest so far in four Group C games.
It was a quick and disappointing tournament exit for the Canadians, who featured a lineup that included major league stars Jason Bay, Russell Martin and Morneau.
Canada looked tough in its first game, a 6-5 loss to a powerful United States squad in front of a lively home crowd at Rogers Centre.
Italy will play Venezuela on Tuesday in an elimination game. Venezuela beat the Italians 7-0 in their opener Saturday night.
Denorfia singled home a run in the first, doubled and scored in the third and hit an RBI double in the fourth. He also doubled and scored in the seventh, and walked in the eighth.
His four hits and three doubles matched WBC records for a game.
The winner was left-hander Dan Serafini, who allowed two runs and four hits in three-plus innings. He walked three and struck out two.
Colorado right-hander Jason Grilli worked 3 1-3 scoreless innings for the save.
Canadian right-hander Vince Perkins, who took the loss, was his own worst enemy, walking four batters in two-plus innings. Perkins allowed three runs and three hits.
Perkins’ wildness helped Italy build a 4-0 lead with single runs in each of the first four innings.
“It was tough,” he said. “Obviously, some nerves played into it. That’s not the way I’ve been throwing lately. I was fighting myself a little bit to throw strikes, kind of pulling off the ball. I should have been able to do a little better than that.”
Denorfia’s bases-loaded infield single opened the scoring in the first, Davide Dallospedale hit an RBI single in the second, Liddi had a sacrifice fly in the third against T.J. Burton, and Denorfia doubled home Frank Catalanotto against lefty Scott Diamond in the fourth.
Italy might have led by even more, but it left the bases loaded in the first and stranded six more runners over the next four innings.
Canada broke through with two in the fourth against Serafini when Votto, Morneau and Bay hit consecutive doubles.
Left-hander Chris Cooper replaced Serafini and loaded the bases with walks to Matt Stairs and Nick Weglarz on either side of a strikeout of Mark Teahen. But Cooper got out of it by fanning Pete Orr and getting Chris Barnwell on a fly to center.
Morneau hit a two-out single in the fifth and Bay reached when his infield popup hit a truss hanging from the roof, but Stairs popped out to end the threat.
Italy tacked on two more in the seventh against right-hander Steve Green. Denorfia led off with a double and scored one out later on Liddi’s single to right. Liddi stole second, went to third on a grounder and scored on Nick Punto’s fielder’s choice when Canadian shortstop Barnwell failed to force out pinch-runner Andrea DeSantis at second.
Cooper worked 2 2-3 shutout innings, allowing just two hits, both singles. He walked three and struck out four.
Sadly, the thing I’m looking forward to most is more of the Don West heel turn….
-Jerichos Pit… Nice bait and switch, I like it.
-WWE has started work on a Jimmy Snuka DVD, which as of now will be titled Superfly: The Jimmy Snuka Story. 
-Madisons heel turn was poorly done.