World Baseball Classic preview: Everything you need to know
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The World Baseball Classic is back, and this time it feels very different. What was once merely an experiment, perhaps even an afterthought, has become a highly anticipated event on baseball's calendar, thanks to an iconic 2023 tournament that featured a memorable, heart-stopping final. Defending champion Samurai Japan is back to try and win a record fourth WBC title. But Team USA is hungry to avenge that gut-wrenching loss, and the Dominican Republic also wants to shake off a disappointing 2023 result - or maybe a Cinderella team will emerge. Here's everything you need to know about the 2026 World Baseball Classic.
Dates ๐: March 5-17
Where ๐: San Juan, Puerto Rico; Houston, Texas; Tokyo, Japan; Miami, Florida
Venues ๐: Hiram Bithorn Stadium, Daikin Park, Tokyo Dome, LoanDepot Park
How to watch ๐บ: Fox Sports ๐บ๐ธ, Sportsnet ๐จ๐ฆ
Rosters
Jump to:
Pool A: ๐ต๐ท๐จ๐บ๐จ๐ฆ๐ต๐ฆ๐จ๐ด
Pool B: ๐บ๐ธ๐ฒ๐ฝ๐ฎ๐น๐ฌ๐ง๐ง๐ท
Pool C: ๐ฏ๐ต๐ฆ๐บ๐ฐ๐ท๐จ๐ฟ๐น๐ผ
Pool D: ๐ฉ๐ด๐ป๐ช๐ณ๐ฑ๐ฎ๐ฑ๐ณ๐ฎ
Rules of note
As in past years, the WBC employs some special rules to protect players - and specifically pitchers - during the tournament.
- Pitchers can't throw more than 65 pitches in pool play, 80 during the quarterfinals, and 95 in the semifinals and final. Pitchers can only exceed those limits if they're finishing an at-bat.
- A pitcher who throws at least 30 pitches in a game must rest for one day, while those who cross the 50-pitch mark will be shut down for the next four days.
- Mercy rule will be in effect. Games will end after the seventh inning if a team leads by 10 or more runs and after five if a team is up by at least 15. Mercy rule won't be used during the semifinals and championship game.
- Extra-inning games will use the ghost runner.
This edition of the WBC will feature a pitch clock for the first time, with the same rules as in MLB. However, the Automatic Ball-Strike System, which is debuting in the majors this season, won't be used.
How the tournament works
The 20 nations are divided into four pools and will face each team in their pool once during round-robin play. The top two teams in each pool advance to the knockout round, played in a single-elimination bracket format.
If the standings are tied after round-robin play, a series of tiebreakers will be used to determine who advances, beginning with head-to-head performance. Tiebreakers were a big storyline in 2013, when a misunderstanding of the rules led to an ugly brawl between Canada and Mexico, and in 2023 after all five Pool A teams finished at 2-2.
Olympics tie-in
The 2026 WBC will serve as a partial qualifier for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic baseball tournament. The two highest-placed teams from the Americas in the WBC's overall standings - not including Team USA, which automatically qualifies as the host nation - will clinch spots in L.A.
Pool-by-pool breakdown
Pool A
Location: Hiram Bithorn Stadium (San Juan, Puerto Rico)
This may be the most balanced of the four pools. Puerto Rico is missing many of its biggest stars due to insurance issues and other concerns, but it will have the cushion of home-field advantage for the first time since 2013. Cuba is always a threat on the international stage. The team arguably boasts Pool A's best starter in Lรญvan Moinelo, the 2025 Pacific League MVP in Japan, and closer in Raidel Martรญnez, who's allowed just 22 earned runs over the last four NPB seasons. The Canadians, who may have the pool's top lineup even without Freddie Freeman, should have a better chance to finally advance now that they're not placed with the U.S. and Mexico. Colombia and Panama are the minnows here, but don't let your guard down; the burgeoning baseball nations are capable of pulling off an upset.
Pool B
Location: Daikin Park (Houston, Texas)
The odds - and schedule-makers - certainly favor both North American teams here. Team USA, eager to finish the job after falling to Japan in the 2023 final, is stacked with superstars at the plate and - finally - on the mound. The Americans be very tough to beat, but Mexico, which knocked off the U.S. decisively in pool play in 2023 en route to a breakthrough semifinal appearance, is hungry for more. This Mexican squad is improved and has little fear of its natural rivals. If there's an upset to be had among this pool, it will likely come from Italy, which is hoping to repeat its miracle quarterfinal run but has a much tougher slate of opponents this time around. Brazil, making its first WBC appearance since 2013, is a very young team and may be the tournament weakling. The Brazilians must beat Great Britain just to have a chance at avoiding relegation.
Pool C
Location: Tokyo Dome (Tokyo, Japan)
All roads in Tokyo run through the home team, defending WBC champion Samurai Japan. Anything can happen in a short tournament, but Japan's mix of NPB and MLB superstars - not to mention the best player on earth in Shohei Ohtani - make it hard to see how this team can be toppled in round-robin play. South Korea and Chinese Taipei seem to be the biggest threats as experienced teams with plenty of high-caliber talent. However, both nations stumbled in 2023 and failed to advance. Australia will be looking to upset South Korea again and reach the quarters for a second straight tournament. Czechia's the clear weak link, and though it may struggle to win a game, we already know from last time that this lovable team of semipros won't back down from a fight with the big boys.
Pool D
Location: LoanDepot Park (Miami, Florida)
A vastly improved Dominican Republic squad is the heavy favorite to bounce back from 2023's disaster and make it to the knockout round. Venezuela's the other powerhouse in this pool and is widely expected to advance, although there were legitimate concerns about its pitching staff even before Pablo Lรณpez's injury. As always, the true dark horse is the Netherlands, the king of European baseball (or Honkbal, as it's called there) and a two-time WBC semifinalist with a long history of pulling off upsets in this tournament. Israel and Nicaragua will most likely again be locked in a battle to avoid relegation.