The World Baseball Classic is back for a fifth edition and occurring two years before the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles that will feature the ultimate sport of a pitcher facing off against batters. The three-time champions in Samurai Japan seek to add a fourth title to their mantle, while the United States and Dominican Republic are looking for a second WBC championship. Besides those three countries, there are other dark horse nations who could make a run to the title game from the mighty hombres of Mexico to the cunning Korea Republic squad. There are a load of discrepancies between all four groups of 20 teams and it could be a very competitive World Baseball Classic overall. With the first games in Tokyo for Group C occurring very soon, let’s get to a breakdown of each group, significant players on each national team’s roster and what surprises might occur over the first week of Group stage play that will lead into a thrilling Knockout Round.
Pool A Breakdown: Cuba, Puerto Rico and Panama Are Grouped Into Caribbean-Centric Showdown, While Canada and Columbia Look to Be Dark Horses In San Juan
Let’s start with Pool A, which is occurring at Biram Hithorn Stadium in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The host country’s squad is in this group, along with the national teams of Cuba, Columbia, Canada and Panama. This group is looking to be a three-horse race between the three Caribbean/Central American nations who are baseball hubs in Cuba, Panama and Puerto Rico. For Cuba, the island nation located nearly 100 miles from American shores made a surprise run to the WBC Semifinals in 2023, where they lost to the United States squad in a very emotional matchup in Miami, Fla. The best run that Cuba ever had in the World Baseball Classic came 20 years ago in its first edition, when they went all the way to the championship game in San Diego and were defeated by Japan. This Cuba squad has some familiar faces in outfielder Alfredo Despaigne(a modern Cuban baseball legend), Alexei Ramirez(a former major leaguer who is playing for his home country’s squad) and Yoán Moncada(who was on Cuba’s WBC team three years ago as one of three active Major League Baseball players who defected from the island nation). The pitching staff for Cuba is led by starter Livan Moinelo, who has a good resumé as a pitcher in the Nippon Professional League in Japan. Along with a couple of pitchers in minor league systems of MLB teams, Cuba has a solid staff and under manager German Mesa will look to make it out of another tight group like they did three years ago in Taichung City, Taiwan.
Panama has a solid team that can make a potential run to the Knockout round as they have major league players such as second baseman Edmundo Sosa, catcher Miguel Amaya, and utility star José Caballero. The pitching staff for the Panamanian side features major leaguers such as Logan Allen, Jaime Barria, and Javy Guerra. The big star on the Panama team is veteran shortstop Rúben Tejada, who last played in the majors in 2019. Tejada will look to have a strong finish to his playing career in baseball by playing for his birth nation’s team. With a coaching staff featuring manager Jose Mayorga, hitting coach Carlos Lee and pitching coach Julio Rangel, Panama will look to crack the top two in group play after barely missing out three years ago. Never having made it out of Group Play, Panama will look to show its true potential on the ballfield in San Juan.
The host nation of Pool A in Puerto Rico has a squad missing a couple of key players. Carlos Correa and Francisco Lindor were among a few MLB players who were unable to acquire insurance clearance to play in the WBC this year and thus will not be playing for their home country’s squad. Instead, this Puerto Rican club, managed by the legendary catcher Yadier Molina, will have to settle for a solid roster featuring star players such as Nolan Arenado, Christian Vázquez, Eddie Rosario, MJ Melendez and others on the offensive side. Three years ago, an unfortunate event doomed the chances of the PR to make a deep run as Edwin Diaz was injured celebrating with his teammates on the mound at loanDepot Park in Miami after an amazing upset win over the Dominican Republic in Group Play. Now Diaz is back as the closer and will hopefully be more careful not to injure himself and is on a pitching staff featuring major league arms such as Fernando Cruz, Seth Lugo(he isn’t the only Lugo on this squad, Los Angeles Angels outfield prospect Matthew Lugo is as well), and Jorge López. Yadi Molina has a lot of good assistant coaches on his staff including Edgar Martinez and Juan Gonzalez as hitting coaches, Sandy Alomar Jr as the first base coach and Joey Cora as the third base coach. Puerto Rico will seek to go on a good run to the Knockout Stage and potentially win the whole thing in Miami.
The other two squads in Pool A are Canada and Columbia, who were in the same group as the United States and Mexico three years ago. The Canadians have key players such as Josh Naylor(and his brother Bo), Tyler O’Neill, James Paxton, and Jameson Taillon. With key assistant head coaches in Justin Morneau(hitting coach), Paul Quantrill(pitching coach, his son Cal is on the pitching staff), and Russell Martin(first base coach), Canada looks to break through in this WBC. Columbia had to fight its way back into this tournament after finishing in last place in their group three years ago, but they have key major leaguers such as Gio Urshela, Donovan Solano, Harold Ramirez and Jose Quintana. Pool A is set to be competitive and whichever two teams come out of it will surely be dangerous in the Knockout Stage, where they will face the Winner and Runner-Up of Pool B.
Pool B Has Team USA and Mexico In It While Dark Horse Italy Seeks To Go On Another Surprise Run Along With Baseball Cinderellas Great Britain And Brazil Down In Houston, Texas
Now onto this “group of death” in the World Baseball Classic of 2026, where Team USA is seeking redemption following their defeat against Japan in the championship game three years ago. Having won it all in 2017, the United States will once again feature some of the biggest names in the sport while having to contend with Mexico, who won the group that both neighborly nations were in three years ago and were beaten by Japan in the semifinals in 2023. There is also the dangerous dark horse of Italy, whose fate of elimination in 2023 was also at the hands of Samurai Japan in the Quarterfinals.
First with the Americans, who will have Aaron Judge as the team captain after Mike Trout served in that role in 2023. Judge is one of many USA players making a first-time appearance in the WBC, a notion that includes stars such as Bryce Harper, Byron Buxton, Cal Raleigh, Paul Skenes and plenty of others. The pitching staff for the US features Skenes and Tarik Skubal(who both won Cy Young Awards last year), along with veterans such as Matthew Boyd, Clay Holmes, Michael Wacha, Logan Webb, and Ryan Yarborough. The surprise addition to the pitching staff for the Americans is Clayton Kershaw, who looks to go out on top with a WBC title in addition to being part of consecutive World Series titles with the Los Angeles Dodgers. Other key hitters on Mark DeRosa’s squad include Alex Bregman, Ernie Clement, Paul Goldschmidt, Gunnar Henderson, Bobby Witt Jr, and Pete Crow-Armstrong. With a great coaching staff featuring DeRosa back for his second straight tournament managing the team, there are some former major league stars like Michael Young(bench coach), Brian McCann(assistant coach), Sean Casey and Matt Holiday(hitting coaches), Andy Pettitte(pitching coach), George Lombard(first base coach) and David Ross(bullpen coach). Dino Ebel serves as the third base coach after being in that role three years ago and as a three-time World Series champion with the Dodgers, Ebel looks to add a gold medal to his collection of success. The U.S.A Baseball squad looks to win the group this time around and to run the Knockout Round gauntlet in Miami in winning the title this time around in the year of the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
But Mexico could be a roadblock to the US like they were three years ago when they won Pool C by beating the American side. With Benji Gil back in charge, Team Mexico has almost the same star-studded roster that they had in 2023. Randy Arozarena is the star player for his adopted home country, as he had himself an amazing tournament three years ago with clutch hits and amazing plays in left field. Other key players on Mexico include Jarren Duran, Rowdy Tellez, Luis Urías, Joey Ortiz, and Alejandro Kirk. The pitching staff for the Mexicans includes solid pitchers such as Taijuan Walker, Andrés Muñoz, Brennan Bernardino and Javier Assad. Mexico will have a load of its fans in Houston and a rivalry between two countries with soccer is forming another sports rivalry with baseball. A matchup on Mon, Mar 9 at Daikin Park could very well determine who wins the group between Mexico and the US. But some other team might have something to say about that.
That team would be the Italians, who have star players such as Vinnie Pasquantino, Jac Caglianone, Dominic Canzone and Jon Berti. Italy’s pitching staff features key names such as Aaron Nola, Adam Ottavino, Michael Lorenzen, Matt Festa and Sam Aldegheri. With Francisco Cervelli leading this Italy squad in 2026, they look to repeat the run that they had in the WBC three years ago when they made it out of a tight Pool A in Taichung with Cuba under the managerial leadership of Mike Piazza. Key assistant coaches on Cervelli’s staff include Jorge Posada as the assistant hitting coach, Dave Righetti as the pitching coach and Sal Fasano as the bullpen coach. Italy will look to shock the baseball world after they hosted the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics.
The two other teams in Pool B are Great Britain and Brazil. The Brits got an automatic bid into this tournament after they won one game and finished in fourth place in Pool C in 2023. With a team filled with mostly American-born players, Great Britain’s key player this time around is Jazz Chisholm Jr, who with his Bahamian roots looks to led the British baseball club on a Cinderella run. Other key players on Team GB include Trayce Thompson, Nate Eaton and Harry Ford. Under manager Brad Marcelino, Great Britain has assistant coaches such as Barry Enright(pitching coach) and Jeff Salazar(third base coach). Now onto Brazil, which is making its second ever appearance in the World Baseball Classic after being in the third edition of the tournament in 2013. With plenty of good ball players with Japanese heritage or citizenship, notable players on Brazil’s WBC team feature starting pitcher Bo Takahashi, infielder Dante Bichette Jr(Bo Bichette’s brother), and outfielder Lucas Ramirez(Manny Ramirez’s son). Under manager Yuichi Matsumoto, the key assistant coach on Team Brazil is Yan Gomes, who had himself a good career as a backstop for plenty of years in the major leagues. Brazil will open up against the United States on Fri, Mar 6 in Houston and will look to win at least one game in group play to make significant progress in its baseball growth. Pool B will certainly be a good one and another three-horse race. Perhaps there’s a more accurate group of death coming for us. But it certainly won’t be the next group.
Pool C Features Samurai Japan On Its Quest For A Fourth WBC Title And Korea Republic Team Looking To Be A Likely Second-Banana, But A Trio Of Underdog Teams Look To Shock And Gain That Second-Place Spot In Tokyo
Now onto Pool C, featuring the defending champion Samurai Japan squad getting another chance at hosting Group Stage play at the Tokyo Dome. Japan’s fans will be going wild once again for Shohei Ohtani, who had himself an amazing tournament three years ago and recorded the final out of the tournament against Mike Trout in the championship game in Miami three years ago. Ohtani is not expected to pitch this time around, so he will only be a slugging hitter and that’s good enough for this squad. Other key hitters on Samurai Japan include Seiya Suzuki, Masataka Yoshida, and Munetaka Murakami. The main pitchers for the Japanese include Yusei Kikuchi, Tomoyuki Sugano, and World Series MVP from last season Yoshinobu Yamamoto. Under manager Hirokazu Ibata, Samurai Japan looks to take home the gold once again, just like they did in the postponed Summer Olympics and the WBC three years ago.
The challengers to Japan aren’t that worthy, but one of them that is the most worthy seems to be the team from South Korea, or more specifically the Korean Republic. With a few American-born players(Dane Dunning, Shay Whitcomb, and Jahmai Jones), the Koreans look to get into the Knockout Round as the likely second-place team in this pool. Key pitchers include Woo-Suk Go and Hyun Jin Ryu and notable batters include Hyeseong Kim and Jung Hoo Lee. Under the management of Ji-Hyun Ryu, the Korean team will look to make a good run to the Knockout Round and win the entire tournament.
The other three teams in this top-heavy group are Australia, “Chinese Taipei” and Czechia. The Aussies made it out of Pool B in 2023 after defeating the Koreans and finishing second behind Samurai Japan. Looking to accomplish the same goal, Australia has key hitters such as Curtis Mead and Travis Bazzana, and key pitchers with MLB experience such as Jack O’Loughlin and Warwick Saupold. Under manager Dave Nilsson, the Aussies look to shock the Pacific Rim once again and make it out of Pool C. Meanwhile, Chinese Taipei(aka Taiwan) competed in a tight Pool A that they hosted and were not able to get out of. With MLB players Yu Chang and Stuart Fairchild, the Taiwanese look to make a surprising run to the Knockout Stage. But the most significant underdog team in the entire tournament hails from the Eastern European country of Czechia, which successfully qualified for the 2026 tournament. With the inspirational story of firefighter/pitcher Martin Schneider, the Czech team looks to shock the world by competing against national teams with far more baseball experience than them. Manager Pavel Chadim has already accomplished the best goal of them all in leading this team to the tournament. Now he’ll look to lead the Czechia squad to one or even more wins in Group Stage play. Pool C might have a shock team make a run, or they will go all chalk. But the final group is definitely going to be a thriller.
Pool D Features The Dominican Republic and Venezuela Duking It Out For Group Winner Spot In Miami, But Also Features Netherlands Team That Is A Threat To Them Both Along With Blue And White Shaded Underdogs Israel and Nicaragua
Finally, we finish our World Baseball Classic preview note with Pool D, occurring at loanDepot Park in Miami, where the semifinal and championship matchups will take place along with a couple of quarterfinal matchups as well. The main headliners in this group are baseball savants in the Dominican Republic and Venezuela, who both have rich histories in having plenty of great ballplayers who have gone on to have great major league careers. But the Dominicans didn’t even make it out of Pool D three years ago, so they are looking for redemption under a new manager with a checkered playing career in Albert Pujols, who managed a Caribbean Winter League squad to a championship in 2025. Pujols will manage arguably the most star-studded roster in the entire tournament, featuring slugging hitters such as Fernando Tatis Jr, Vladimir Guerrero Jr, Juan Soto, Julio Rodríguez, Jeremy Peña, Manny Machado, Ketel Marte and Oneil Cruz. The pitching staff for the Dominicans is super-loaded as well, with star pitchers like Sandy Alcantara, Bryan Bello, Luis Severino, Cristopher Sánchez, and plenty of bullpen options such as Carlos Estévez, Camilo Doval, Gregory Soto and Abner Uribe. Assistants to Pujols include Placido Polanco(bench coach), Carlos Febles(third base coach), and Wellington Cepeda(pitching coach). The Dominicans look to stay in Miami and be champions for a second time in the World Baseball Classic.
The winners of Pool D from three years ago were Venezuela, who look to repeat history but have to do so without Jose Altuve, who was injured in a quarterfinal game against USA in 2023 and he could not acquire insurance that would allow him to play in this World Baseball Classic. The Venezuelan team still features some stud players such as Ronald Acuña Jr, Eugenio Suárez, Salvador Perez, Luis Arraez, the Contreras brothers(William and Willson), Gleyber Torres, and Jackson Chourio. The pitchers for Venezuela are pretty good as well, with Ranger Suarez and Eduardo Rodriguez headlining a staff that features José Buttó, Daniel Palencia and Antonio Senzatela as other good pitchers. Managed under Omar López, key assistants for Venezuela include Miguel Cabrera(who played on the 2023 team before retiring later that season and he is the hitting coach for this Venezuelan squad), Robinson Chirinos(bench coach), Gerardo Parra(first base coach), and Victor Martinez(assistant manager). Venezuela looks to go on another special run in the WBC and to go deeper into it than three years ago.
One of the teams in Pool D that poses a real threat to both the DR and Venezuela is the Kingdom of the Netherlands baseball team, mostly featuring players from Aruba and Curaçao that are big leaguers. Key players include Ozzie Albies, Xander Bogaerts, Didi Gregorious, Ceddanne Rafaela and Druw Jones(Hall of Famer Andruw Jones’ son). The main pitcher for Netherlands is Kenley Jansen, who was a former catcher in the 2009 World Baseball Classic for the Dutch before becoming one of the best closers of his generation. The aforementioned Hall of Famer to be inducted into Cooperstown this summer in Andruw Jones is the manager of the Netherlands and will look to manage them out of group play, unlike three years ago. One player who isn’t available for the Dutch is Jurickson Profar, who tested positive for PEDs for a second time in as many years. Being suspended for the entire MLB season, Profar is ineligible to play in the tournament but there is at least one Profar on the Netherlands team. That would be Jurickson’s brother Juremi Profar, who is an infielder alongside Albies, Bogaerts and Gregorious.
Besides the Netherlands, there are the underdogs in Israel and Nicaragua in Pool D. Israel is mostly made up of Jewish American ballplayers such as Dean Kremer, Tommy Kahnle, Garrett Stubbs, Spencer Horwitz and Harrison Bader. Brad Ausmus is the manager of this Israeli ball club this time around, with key assistants such as Kevin Youkilis(bench coach), Jason Bell(first base coach), and Jerry Narron(outfield coach). Finally, Nicaragua is a qualifier from Central America and they feature key players such as Mark Vientos, Jeter Downs, and JC Ramírez. Under the managerial leadership of future Hall of Fame manager Dusty Baker, Nicaragua will seek to be on par with the baseball giants in its hemisphere.
This World Baseball Classic will certainly be one to remember and whoever goes all the way to win it will have gone through a massive gauntlet in the next couple of weeks. With predictable contenders such as the USA, Samurai Japan, the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, Mexico, Puerto Rico and Korea, there are other dark horses such as Cuba, Panama, Netherlands, Italy and Australia who look to at least get into the Knockout Round. Right before the MLB season gets started, some of the best players in the world shall have a good time playing for their respective countries of origin or heritage and nothing is better than playing a kids game on a global stage. Let’s see who goes all the way to win the Gold in Miami.
Kent Bewley's News Story Collection 