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By Jason Fray
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Starting Mar. 5, 20 teams will be competing against one another in the 2026 World Baseball Classic.
Four five-team pots will enter pool play until the top two teams from each grouping advance. Team USA is headlining Pool B alongside Mexico, Italy, Great Britain, and Brazil.
The United States will be looking to avenge its loss in the title game to Team Japan during the 2023 competition. As one recalls, Mike Trout struck out to end the thrilling 3-2 contest courtesy of a nasty sweeper from then-teammate Shohei Ohtani.
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Things will look a little different this time around. Trout is not a member of Team USA. While Ohtani will assume the role as the tournament’s biggest offensive threat, he’s reportedly not going to be pitching for his host nation.
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Led by a younger roster featuring established stars (Aaron Judge, Cal Raleigh, Tarik Skubal) and emerging ones (Bobby Witt Jr., Paul Skenes, Roman Anthony), the United States will look to win their first WBC title since 2017.
The prospect of achieving this goal will not be easy by any stretch. In fact, three teams in particular stand to offer the biggest challenge to the boys wearing stars and stripes.
Japan
This one is a no-brainer considering Japan is the reigning champ. It won this iteration of the competition three of the five times it’s been played since 2006 (finishing third the other two times).
Ohtani may be the headliner, though this is a group rich with pedigree, positional depth, and chemistry. 2025 World Series hero Yoshinobu Yamamoto will lead the rotation for Team Japan.
A host of MLB vets (Yusei Kikichi, Yuki Matsui, Seiya Suzuki, Tomoyuki Sugano, Masataka Yoshida) join two recent additions (Munetaka Murakami, Kazuma Okamoto) to the league. Additionally, infielder Teruaki Sato could be the next Japanese player to emerge on the international stage before eventually moving to Major League Baseball sometime soon. Pitcher Hiromi Itoh is another that could follow a similar path.
While the team is hugely complete, the pitching depth is somewhat of a question mark. Along with Ohtani not pitching, the team is also missing Shota Imanaga (Chicago Cubs), Roki Sasaki (Los Angeles Dodgers), and Tatsuya Imai (Houston Astros). Outfielder Lars Nootbaar is also out as he recovers from heel surgery this past offseason.
Venezuela
Venezuela is one of two teams from Pool D that figure to pose a major threat to the United States.
With Puerto Rico noticeably down this year, it opens the door for another squad to emerge as a possible dark horse. Canada, Mexico, and Cuba have all been billed as possible answers to this question. Having said that, Venezuela’s roster is easily the best among this quartet of contenders beneath the prohibitive ‘big three’ of Japan, Team USA, and the third team upcoming within this piece.
Venezuela’s pitching staff is littered with experienced arms. Many of them have been battle-tested at the highest level in MLB play. Ranger Suarez is the face of the group. The bullpen is one of the strongest in the field possessing some high-octane velocity.
Offensively, the dynamic duo of Ronald Acuna and Jackson Chourio will set the tone. Both players have the ability to single-handedly take over any given contest.
Adding further support within the lineup will be MLB veterans Luis Arraez, Salvador Perez, William Contreras, Willson Contreras, Andres Gimenez, Geno Suarez, Ezequiel Tovar, Wilyer Abreu, and Gleyber Torres. It’s without a doubt one of the deeper lineups in the competition.
Dominican Republic
The D.R. is the other perceived heavyweight in Pool D. One can make a case this is the most gifted team in the field in terms of pure talent.
However, there’s a level of volatility existing with this group that it must overcome. The Dominican Republic has won the competition only once in five tries. In three of the five previous competitions, the team didn’t finish in the top-four — an utter disappointment considering the talent throughout the player pool.
This year’s group is yet again loaded. The projected infield could include the quartet of Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Ketel Marte, Geraldo Perdomo, and Manny Machado. Junior Caminero likely will function as the team’s DH.
In the outfield, manager Albert Pujols will pick from a group featuring Juan Soto, Fernando Tatis Jr., Oneil Cruz, and Julio Rodriguez.
For good measure, the pitching staff features two elite arms at the top in Cristopher Sanchez and Sandy Alcantara — along with a bullpen possessing wipeout arm after wipeout arm.
The star power within this group may only be approached collectively by the United States. Even then, there’s enough thump in this D.R. lineup to hurt any pitching staff within the field.
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