After six years and one global pandemic, the World Baseball Classic is coming back to diamonds across the globe this spring. With a record number of teams – including three first-time participants – the stage is set for the best players to showcase their skills for the world to see.
On Thursday night, each country’s roster was revealed live on MLB Network, and it is the star-studded affair we all hoped for. MLB superstars Shohei Ohtani, Mike Trout, Juan Soto and Mookie Betts are just a few of the phenoms that will take the field.
You’ve seen the rosters. What players are you excited to see rep their team’s colors? pic.twitter.com/8UUcr05JjE
— MLB (@MLB) February 10, 2023
The powerhouses are expected to be the United States and the Dominican Republic. Led by the three-time AL MVP Trout, the U.S. squad is looking to repeat as champions after capturing gold the last time this tournament was played back in 2017. With All-Stars across the board such as Paul Goldschmidt, Nolan Arenado, J.T. Realmuto and the aforementioned Betts, this team is perhaps the deepest in the field.
They also feature a strong rotation that consists of Clayton Kershaw, Adam Wainwright, Lance Lynn and Miles Mikolas to go with an equally impressive bullpen. With some of the stars on this squad not even playing in 2017, it’s safe to say that the U.S. will be a tough out no matter who their competition is.
There's only one goal in sight for Team USA. 🏆 pic.twitter.com/VYR3bF6LWR
— World Baseball Classic (@WBCBaseball) February 11, 2023
However, the road to repeating will not be a cakewalk. Team DR are considered by many to be the tournament favorites, with names like Soto, Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Manny Machado and Julio Rodríguez looking to capture the country’s first WBC title since 2013. The youth is definitely prevalent on this team, and that’s not even mentioning reigning NL Cy Young winner Sandy Alcántara heading the rotation. Top to bottom, the DR might have the most impressive collection of big leaguers among the participating teams.
Not to be overlooked, Team Puerto Rico is looking to avenge runner-up finishes in the last two World Baseball Classics. Headlined by a middle infield of Francisco Lindor and Javier Báez, this squad has a new manager in Yadier Molina and strong pitching in the form of José Berríos, Jorge López and Marcus Stroman, who won WBC MVP for the the U.S. in their 2017 championship run.
It will also be exciting to see Team Japan, particularly for their rotation of Ohtani, Yu Darvish and Rōki Sasaki, the latter of which threw 17 consecutive perfect innings last season across two Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) games. The lineup also features the likes of Seiya Suzuki (Cubs), Masataka Yoshida (Red Sox) and Lars Nootbaar (Cardinals). If you were ever curious to see how the NPB fares against MLB talent, this is the team to watch.
These four teams, along with sleepers such as Venezuela and Mexico, show that this year’s WBC will certainly be one for the ages. You can see every country’s roster here.
