Baseball is back in full swing with the 5th World Baseball Classic
Springtime is here and with it comes the smell of freshly cut grass, kids returning back to school and most important…baseball is back! Before the start of the MLB season is an event that happens only every four years that brings just a select chosen few to represent their country on a global scale at the World Baseball Classic. The tournament is the first of its kind to have National teams facing off against players from both the Major and Minor leagues in America and around the world. In addition to supplying a format for the best baseball players in the world to compete against one another while representing their home countries, the World Baseball Classic was created in order to further promote the game around the globe.
The last WBC “World Champion” was in 2017 with Team USA winning their 1st title in an 8-run win over a scoreless Puerto Rico team. The World Baseball Classic is only in its fifth iteration returning after being postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. After the 2021–22 Major League Baseball lockout it was announced the WBC would return in 2023. In 2021 Major League Baseball announced the WBC would expand the field to 20 teams and begins March 8 through the 21st. Team USA’s first game March 11, with the first pitch at 8 pm central time against team Great Britain.
Team USA will be in pool C and is filled with current Hall of Famers and future hopefuls with a stacked coaching lineup of Mark DeRosa as Manager, former 2017 Houston Astros World Series Champion Brian McCann as Bench Coach, 2016 Hall of Famer Ken “The Kid” Griffey Jr. serving as Hitting Coach, and lastly former Houston Astro Andy Pettitte as this year’s Pitching Coach. Needless to say, veteran leadership will be handled and the team looks to return back to the championship round this year with an elite 30-man roster filled with some of America’s best.
This year also marks a huge achievement for the defending 2022 World Series Champion Houston Astros as the organization has 14 players from all over the globe chosen to represent their home countries in this year’s 2023 World Baseball Classic. The two Astros representing team USA are pitcher Ryan Pressly and outfielder Kyle Tucker. Pressly said of competing in this year’s WBC “I’m looking forward to getting out there and putting the country across my chest, man. That’s something that I always wanted to do.”
Houston also has six Astros players representing team Dominican Republic’s roster; pitchers Bryan Abreu, Ronel Blanco, Cristian Javier, Rafael Montero, Hector Neris and this past year’s ALCS and World Series MVP shortstop Jeremy Peña. The other Astros Major Leaguers scheduled to play in the WBC are: For team Venezuela pitcher Luis Garcia and the two-time World Series Champion second baseman Jose Altuve. Representing team Mexico pitcher José Urquidy and representing team Puerto Rico catcher Martín Maldonado. Last but not least Houston’s minor league system will also contribute with pitchers Colton Gordon on team Israel and Derek West on team Netherlands.
The bracket this year looks to bring some huge showdowns between some of the world’s best teams and even team Japan looks to win their third championship in WBC history with a roster now including the MLB’s two-way superstar player Shohei Ohtani. The 2023 World Baseball Classic looks to be a nail-biting good time with baseball back in full swing and every player looking to show their abilities and the pride they get in representing their homeland on a global scale.
