World Baseball Classic
Upcoming season or competition: 2026 World Baseball Classic | |
Sport | Baseball |
---|---|
Founded | 2005; 20 years ago[1] |
First season | 2006 |
Administrator |
|
No. of teams | 24 in Tournament 16 in Qualification |
Country | WBSC member |
Region | Worldwide |
Most recent champion(s) | Japan (2023) |
Most titles | Japan (3 titles) |
Official website | WBCI.com |
WBSC Championship |
---|
Amateur World Series |
Baseball World Cup |
World Baseball Classic |
The World Baseball Classic (WBC), also referred to as the Classic,[2] is an international baseball tournament sanctioned by the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC),[a] the sport's global governing body, and organized in partnership with Major League Baseball (MLB). The winning team is awarded the World Baseball Classic Championship Trophy.[3][4] It is one of the two main senior baseball tournaments sanctioned by the WBSC, alongside the WBSC Premier12, but is the only one to grant the winner the title of "world champion".[5][6]
The tournament, proposed in 2005 by MLB and its Players Association, was first held in 2006 as an invitational event. It previously coexisted with Olympic baseball (until 2008) and the Baseball World Cup (until 2011) as tournaments sanctioned by the International Baseball Federation, the predecessor to the WBSC.[7] The Baseball World Cup was discontinued after the 2011 edition, when the WBSC accepted an MLB suggestion to make the WBC the officially-sanctioned world championship, on the condition that the Classic should have direct qualifications and follow international anti-doping rules.[8]
After a three-year gap between the first two installments of the tournament, plans were made for the World Baseball Classic to be repeated every four years following the 2009 event. The third installment of the Classic was held in 2013, and the fourth was held in 2017. The World Baseball Classic was held five times from
The tournament is the first of its kind to have national teams featuring professional players from the top-level major leagues around the world, including Major League Baseball and Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). In addition to providing 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. After the 2023 World Baseball Classic, the tournament has become one of the world's most viewed baseball events.[9]
Background
Prior to the advent of the World Baseball Classic, there was no international baseball championship that saw universal participation from players across the globe. Outside the United States, the formally-recognized "world championship" was the Baseball World Cup, sanctioned by the International Baseball Federation and held 38 times from 1938 to 2011; it was known as the Amateur World Series until 1988. The 1938 Amateur World Series was the inaugural Amateur World Series tournament. It was contested by Great Britain and the United States over a series of five games from August 13 to 20 in England, and was won by Great Britain. Baseball was also intermittently played at the Summer Olympic Games as early as 1912, although it was not recognized a medal sport until 1992.
Although the Baseball World Cup formally rescinded its amateur-only status in the 1990s, allowing
The IBAF merged with the International Softball Federation in 2013 to form the World Baseball Softball Confederation. That same year, the WBSC discontinued the Baseball World Cup, last held in 2011, making the World Baseball Classic one of the two main senior baseball tournaments sanctioned by the WBSC, alongside the Premier 12; however, the WBC is the only one which grants to the winner the title of "World Champion".[5][6]
History
The first World Baseball Classic tournament was announced in May
Similarly, Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) and its players' association had a disagreement over participation in the tournament. While the owners initially agreed to the invitation, the players' union was concerned about the time of year the tournament was scheduled to take place, as well as their right to be better represented for the 2009 tournament. On September 16, 2005, after four months of negotiations, NPB officially notified the IBAF and MLB they had accepted the invitation.
2006–09: Samurai Japan's back-to-back championships
The 16-team field for the inaugural
The match began progressing when Japan's starting pitcher–Daisuke Matsuzaka–gave up four hits, five strikeouts and one run by the end of the 4th inning through a gyroball pitching style. Offensively, Japan was able to record 6 runs with the help of Ichiro Suzuki's batting style of contact hitting. Once the Japanese bullpen took the mound in the 6th inning, Cuba aggressively responded for the rest of the baseball game through power hitting. By the end of the eighth, the disparity would come down to one run in favor of Japan from Frederich Cepeda's home run, who would record three runs batted in by the end of the game. In the ninth, Japan would counter by pushing their offensive limit over Cuba's, which would result in a final score of ten to six. The aftermath of the final most notably included notice from Major League Baseball, from Cuba's increase in defection to Matsuzaka's impact for the World Series champion Boston Red Sox in the next year.
featured the same 16 teams as 2006, but the
Japan drew first blood, scoring on an
Japan brought out their
Pitcher
After the match the team was congratulated immediately for their victory by Japanese prime minister
2013: Direct qualification and "Plátano Power"
In 2013, The World Baseball Classic is one of the two main senior baseball tournaments sanctioned by the WBSC, alongside the Premier 12 but the Classic is the only one which grants to the winner the title of "World Champion".[5][6]
The buildup to the 2013 tournament included a qualifying round for the first time, with the four lowest finishers from 2009 having to re-qualify against 12 additional teams. This resulted in two new nations making their first appearances in the WBC, as Brazil and Spain respectively replaced Panama and South Africa. The round-robin format was revived for the tournament's first-round, while the second-round remained double-elimination. in Pool B, South Korea went into the final game needing not only to win (which would cause a three-way tie for the two second-round berths) but to win by at least five runs in order to have a chance of advancing on tiebreakers. Although Taiwan lost its 2−0 lead in Korea's three-run eighth-inning rally, and then lost the game, they emerged as winners of the pool and of the second-round berth since Korea's margin of victory was only one run. and then Italy was the biggest surprise in the early stages of the tournament, making it to the second round with wins over Canada and Mexico.
The tournament ended in an all-Caribbean championship game, with the
This was the third time in the tournament that the Dominican Republic defeated Puerto Rico.
2017: American redemption
The
In the semi-final Japan reached the semifinals with wins in all six games played in the previous rounds.[31] Tanner Roark started for the United States in the semifinal game,[32] while Tomoyuki Sugano started for Japan.[33] Roark pitched four scoreless innings,[34] while Sugano allowed one run in six innings. The United States scored a run on an RBI single by Andrew McCutchen in the fourth inning, and Ryosuke Kikuchi hit a home run for Japan in the sixth inning to tie the game. The United States scored another run in the eighth inning to take the lead, and Luke Gregerson earned the save. Though the Japanese team was considered the strongest defensive team in the WBC, mistakes by Kikuchi at second base and Nobuhiro Matsuda at third base led to each of the United States's runs.[35]
In the championship game,
2023: Baseball's already won
In January 2020, MLB announced that the 2021 WBC would be expanded to 20 teams. The additional four participants would be determined through qualifying tournaments, which were originally planned to take place in March 2020.[39] However, on March 12, 2020, Major League Baseball announced that the 2021 tournament would be postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[40]
The collective bargaining agreement (CBA) from the 2021–22 Major League Baseball lockout planned for the next World Baseball Classic to be held in 2023.[41][42] Qualification for the tournament concluded on October 5, 2022, with Nicaragua claiming the final berth in a victory against Brazil.[43] The competition took place from March 8, 2023, to March 21, 2023.[44][45]
For the 2023 classic, the
, to form what many consider to be the most powerful Japanese team in history.The
After defeating Cuba in the semifinals by a wide margin, the United States faced another great rival, Japan, in the final. The final was incredibly popular in Japan, drawing over 54 million Japanese viewers. Shota Imanaga started for Japan, while Merrill Kelly started for USA. With a 3 - 2 lead, two outs, and no runners on base in the bottom of the ninth inning, Japan's Shohei Ohtani - one of the best pitchers in recent memory - stood on the mound as his Angels teammate Mike Trout, widely considered the greatest player of his generation, stepped up to the plate. After the first pitch of this iconic matchup, Fox Sports commentator Joe Davis reflected on the spectacle, saying, "As Benji Gil said last night, 'Baseball's already won.'" The two battled to a full count. Ohtani would lure Trout to swing and miss with a gutsy slider down and away, sealing the victory for Japan.
After the match, the team was congratulated for their victory by Japanese prime minister Fumio Kishida. With Japan's win over USA in the championship game, they became the second team to win the World Baseball classic without losing a single game the entire tournament, after the aforementioned Dominican Republic in 2013.[46]
For the 2026 tournament, 16 teams qualified by making the top four of their four respective pools during the 2023 tournament. The other four remaining participants were determined through the qualifying tournament.[47]
Format
The World Baseball Classic is held during the month of March, coinciding with the spring training pre-season for most top-level professional baseball leagues such as Major League Baseball (MLB), Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) and the KBO League.[48] Venues are located in either indoor baseball domes or at outdoor baseball stadiums which have mild or moderately warm temperatures during early spring.
Rank | Country (or possession) | # | % |
---|---|---|---|
1 | United States | 1,057 | 70.7% |
2 | Dominican Republic | 171 | 11.4% |
3 | Venezuela | 106 | 7.1% |
4 | Cuba | 33 | 2.2% |
5 | Puerto Rico | 28 | 1.9% |
6 | Mexico | 24 | 1.6% |
7 | Canada | 15 | 1% |
8 | Colombia | 13 | 0.9% |
9 | Panama | 9 | 0.6% |
10 | Japan | 7 | 0.5% |
11 | South Korea | 6 | 0.4% |
12 | Curaçao[b] |
5 | 0.3% |
13 | Australia Germany |
3 | 0.2% |
15 | Multiple[c][d][e] | 2 | 0.1% |
18 | Multiple[f][g][h] | 1 | 0.1% |
Despite the absence of many elite MLB pitchers due to exposure or conditioning limits set by their club employers and insurance underwriting issues and non-standardization,[51][52] the tournament continues to attract a star-studded field of elite baseball players, particularly among position players who are potent batters.[53]
In 2006, many high caliber players from both
For the 2013 tournament, Japanese players threatened to boycott the event despite its domestic popularity,
In 2017, former All-Stars such as
In 2023, former All-Stars on the U.S. team included Mike Trout, Nolan Arenado, Pete Alonso, Mookie Betts, Tim Anderson, Jeff McNeil, J. T. Realmuto, Kyle Schwarber, Trea Turner, Kyle Tucker, Ryan Pressly, Lance Lynn, Miles Mikolas, and Paul Goldschmidt.[56] St Louis Cardinals teammates Lars Nootbaar and Tommy Edman both participated as part of Japan and South Korea respectively, in honor of both their mothers' heritages.[57][58] Similarly, Los Angeles Dodgers player Freddie Freeman decided to play for Canada instead, in honor of his late mother.[59] Randy Arozarena, despite being Cuban, opted to play for Mexico instead after the WBC rules allowed players who legally were residents in a country to play for that country, having asked Mexican president Andrés Manuel López Obrador to help him in his case for approval of his application as a legal citizen of Mexico.[60]
Participation
The first two iterations of the Classic featured the same 16 teams, chosen by invitation. A qualifying round was added leading into the 2013 tournament and takes place in the year before the WBC proper. Brazil and Spain were the first new countries to earn berths in the WBC via qualification, and so far the addition of qualifying has allowed seven nations to play in the tournament who were not part of the original 16.
The qualification setup for the 2013 and 2017 WBCs featured the top 12 finishing teams from the previous WBC being automatically entered in the following edition, while the four lowest finishers (the teams that finished in last place in their first-round pools) were relegated to the qualifying round. Qualifying consisted of four four-team modified double-elimination tournaments, with the winners earning the last four slots in the main tournament.
With the 2023 WBC expanding to 20 teams, the qualifying format changed as well. All 16 participants from the 2017 WBC received automatic bids. The restructured qualifying round consisted of a pair of six-team double-elimination tournaments, from which the winners and runners-up advanced to play in the 2023 WBC.
Tournament
Table updated February 22, 2024 based on the 2026 world baseball classic
Team | WBSC Rank (as of February 2024) |
Member of WBSC since |
Membership | IOC member |
Note |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Japan | 1 | 1949 | Full | Yes | |
United States | 3 | 1978 | Full | Yes | |
Mexico | 2 | 1987 | Full | Yes | |
Cuba | 8 | 1938 | Full | Yes | |
Venezuela | 6 | 1952 | Full | Yes | |
Puerto Rico | 12 | 1970 | Full | Yes | |
Australia | 11 | 1913 | Full | Yes | |
Italy | 14 | 1969 | Full | Yes | |
Dominican Republic | 9 | 1966 | Full | Yes | |
Netherlands | 7 | 1969 | Full | Yes | |
Canada | 16 | 1964 | Full | Yes | |
South Korea | 4 | 1946 | Full | Yes | |
Israel | 19 | 1995 | Full | Yes | |
Panama | 10 | 1944 | Full | Yes | |
Great Britain | 18 | 1960 | Full | Yes | |
Czech Republic | 15 | 1992 | Full | Yes | |
TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | |
TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | |
TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | |
TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | |
TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | |
TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | |
TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | |
TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD |
Qualification
Table updated February 22, 2024 based on the 2026 World Baseball Classic.
Team | WBSC Rank (as of February 2024) |
Member of WBSC since |
Membership | IOC member |
Note |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Colombia | 13 | 1938 | Full | Yes | |
Chinese Taipei | 5 | 1973 | Full | Yes | |
Nicaragua | 20 | 1950 | Full | Yes | |
China | 24 | 1979 | Full | Yes | |
Brazil | 23 | Full | Yes | ||
Spain | 22 | 1953 | Full | Yes | |
Germany | 17 | 1953 | Full | Yes | |
France | 21 | 1953 | Full | Yes | |
Argentina | 31 | 1960 | Full | Yes | |
New Zealand | 41 | 1989 | Full | Yes | |
South Africa | 34 | 1935 | Full | Yes | |
Philippines | 28 | 1954 | Full | Yes | |
Thailand | 41 | 1992 | Full | Yes | |
Pakistan | 38 | 1990 | Full | Yes | |
TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | |
TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD |
Trophy
Broadcasting and promotion
The tournament is being one of the world's most viewed baseball events.[9][61][62] The 2023 tournament was broadcast in 163 territories through 63 media partners, and it was broadcast in 13 languages around the globe.[63] and received US$100 million in benefits,[64] In the Japanese archipelago, nearly 100 million people watched the WBC in 2023,[65] and 55+ million people watched the end of the tournament, as Shohei Ohtani struck out Mike Trout. and the tournament is one of the most popular event in the Caribbean, Central and South America, particularly in Venezuela, part of Northern Colombia and is called the "Clásico Mundial".[66][67][68] The match between the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico is considered a strong rivalry, called "El Clásico". In 2023, the Pool D game between Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic was viewed by 62% of households in Puerto Rico.[69]
Attendance
World Baseball Classic attendance:
Year | Total attendance | # games | Avg attendance |
---|---|---|---|
2006 | 737,112 | 39 | 18,900 |
2009 | 801,408 | 39 | 20,549 |
2013 | 781,438 | 39 | 20,037 |
2017 | 973,699 | 40 | 24,342 |
2023 | 1,165,857 | 47 | 24,805 |
World Baseball Classic qualifier attendance:
Year | Total attendance | # Games | Avg attendance |
---|---|---|---|
2013 | 103,774 | 24 | 4,324 |
2017 | 111,795 | 24 | 4,658 |
2023 | 26,080 | 18 | 1,449 |
Venues
While comparable tournaments traditionally have had one host country, each WBC has used multiple hosts spread around different parts of the world. Thus far, seven different countries have hosted at least one WBC pool, with each edition of the tournament featuring games played in Asia, Latin America, and the United States. However, the championship round has always been held at
Round | 2006 | 2009 | 2013 | 2017 | 2023 | 2026 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Qualification | Regensburg Panama City New Taipei City Jupiter |
Sydney Panama City Mexicali New York City |
Regensburg Panama City |
|||
Pool stage | Tokyo San Juan Orlando Phoenix Scottsdale |
Toronto Tokyo Mexico City San Juan |
Fukuoka San Juan Taichung Phoenix Scottsdale |
Tokyo Zapopan Seoul Miami |
Tokyo Taichung Miami Phoenix | |
Knockout stage | Anaheim |
San Diego Miami |
Tokyo Miami |
Tokyo San Diego |
Tokyo Miami | |
Championship | San Diego | Los Angeles | San Francisco | Los Angeles | Miami |
Results
- Keys
- F/N: result/match won after extra innings or mercy rule, where N is the total number of innings in the match
- TBD: to be determined
Ed. | Year | Hosts | First place game | Semi-finalists | Num. teams | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Champion | Score | Runner-up | Third | Fourth | ||||
1 | 2006 | Japan Puerto Rico United States |
Japan |
10–6 Petco Park, San Diego |
Cuba |
South Korea |
Dominican Republic |
16 |
2 | 2009 | Canada Japan Mexico Puerto Rico United States |
Japan |
5–3 (F/10) Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles |
South Korea |
United States |
Venezuela |
16 |
3 | 2013 | Japan Puerto Rico Taiwan United States |
Dominican Republic |
3–0 AT&T Park, San Francisco |
Puerto Rico |
Japan |
Netherlands |
16 |
4 | 2017 | Japan Mexico South Korea United States |
United States |
8–0 Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles |
Puerto Rico |
Japan |
Netherlands |
16 |
5 | 2023 | Japan Taiwan United States |
Japan |
3–2 LoanDepot Park, Miami |
United States |
Mexico |
Cuba |
20 |
6 | 2026 | TBD | Future event | TBD |
Performance of nations
Team | 2006 (16) |
2009 (16) |
2013 (16) |
2017 (16) |
2023 (20) |
Total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Australia | R1 13th |
R1 12th |
R1 16th |
R1 9th |
QF 7th |
5 |
Brazil | × | × | R1 14th |
• | • | 1 |
Canada | R1 9th |
R1 13th |
R1 12th |
R1 15th |
R1 12th |
5 |
China | R1 15th |
R1 11th |
R1 13th |
R1 16th |
R1 20th |
5 |
Chinese Taipei | R1 12th |
R1 14th |
R2 8th |
R1 14th |
R1 17th |
5 |
Colombia | × | × | • | R1 11th |
R1 18th |
2 |
Cuba | 2nd | R2 6th |
R2 5th |
R2 7th |
4th | 5 |
Czech Republic | × | × | • | • | R1 14th |
1 |
Dominican Republic | 4th | R1 9th |
1st | R2 5th |
R1 10th |
5 |
Great Britain | × | × | • | • | R1 15th |
1 |
Israel | × | × | • | R2 6th |
R1 16th |
2 |
Italy | R1 10th |
R1 10th |
R2 7th |
R1 12th |
QF 8th |
5 |
Japan | 1st | 1st | 3rd | 3rd | 1st | 5 |
Mexico | R2 6th |
R2 8th |
R1 11th |
R1 13th |
3rd | 5 |
Netherlands | R1 11th |
R2 7th |
4th | 4th | R1 11th |
5 |
Nicaragua | × | × | • | • | R1 19th |
1 |
Panama | R1 14th |
R1 15th |
• | • | R1 13th |
3 |
Puerto Rico | R2 5th |
R2 5th |
2nd | 2nd | QF 6th |
5 |
South Africa | R1 16th |
R1 16th |
• | • | • | 2 |
South Korea | 3rd | 2nd | R1 9th |
R1 10th |
R1 9th |
5 |
Spain | × | × | R1 15th |
• | • | 1 |
United States | R2 8th |
4th | R2 6th |
1st | 2nd | 5 |
Venezuela | R2 7th |
3rd | R1 10th |
R2 8th |
QF 5th |
5 |
Team | 2006 (16) |
2009 (16) |
2013 (16) |
2017 (16) |
2023 (20) |
Total |
- Legend
- 1st – Champions
- 2nd – Runners-up
- 3rd – Third place
- 4th – Fourth place
- QF – Quarterfinals (2023–present)
- R2 – Round 2 (2006–2017: second round)
- R1 – Round 1 (2006–2017: first round, 2023–present: pool stage)
- – Relegated to qualification tournament
- Q – Qualified
- • – Did not qualify
- × – Did not enter
Debut of national teams
Year | Debutants | Total | CT |
---|---|---|---|
2006 | Australia, Canada, China, Chinese Taipei, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, Panama, Puerto Rico, South Korea, South Africa, United States, Venezuela | 16 | 16 |
2009 | None | 0 | 16 |
2013 | Brazil, Spain | 2 | 18 |
2017 | Colombia, Israel | 2 | 20 |
2023 | Great Britain, Czech Republic, Nicaragua | 3 | 23 |
2026 | TBD | – | – |
Overview
Team | Apps | Record streak |
Active streak |
Debut | Most recent |
Best result |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Australia | 5 | 5 | 5 | 2006 | 2023 | Quarterfinals (2023) |
Canada | 5 | 5 | 5 | 2006 | 2023 | Pool stage |
China | 5 | 5 | 5 | 2006 | 2023 | Pool stage |
Chinese Taipei | 5 | 5 | 5 | 2006 | 2023 | Quarterfinals (2013) |
Cuba | 5 | 5 | 5 | 2006 | 2023 | Runners-up (2006) |
Dominican Republic | 5 | 5 | 5 | 2006 | 2023 | Champions (2013) |
Italy | 5 | 5 | 5 | 2006 | 2023 | Quarterfinals (2013, 2023) |
Japan | 5 | 5 | 5 | 2006 | 2023 | Champions (2006, 2009, 2023) |
Mexico | 5 | 5 | 5 | 2006 | 2023 | Third place (2023) |
Netherlands | 5 | 5 | 5 | 2006 | 2023 | Fourth place (2013, 2017) |
Puerto Rico | 5 | 5 | 5 | 2006 | 2023 | Runners-up (2013, 2017) |
South Korea | 5 | 5 | 5 | 2006 | 2023 | Runners-up (2009) |
United States | 5 | 5 | 5 | 2006 | 2023 | Champions (2017) |
Venezuela | 5 | 5 | 5 | 2006 | 2023 | Third place (2009) |
Panama | 3 | 2 | 1 | 2006 | 2023 | Pool stage |
South Africa | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2006 | 2009 | Pool stage |
Colombia | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2017 | 2023 | Pool stage |
Israel | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2017 | 2023 | Quarterfinals (2017) |
Brazil | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2013 | 2013 | Pool stage |
Spain | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2013 | 2013 | Pool stage |
Great Britain | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2023 | 2023 | Pool stage |
Czech Republic | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2023 | 2023 | Pool stage |
Nicaragua | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2023 | 2023 | Pool stage |
Honors
Most Valuable Player
The inaugural winner of the award in 2006 was Japan's Daisuke Matsuzaka, who pitched 13 innings and finished with a 3–0 record. Soon after this performance, Matsuzaka received a multimillion-dollar contract to join the Boston Red Sox of America's Major League Baseball.[70] Again in the 2009 World Baseball Classic, Matsuzaka received the world classic MVP, finishing with a record of 3–0 and an ERA of 2.54. In 2013, Robinson Canó won MVP after hitting .469 with two home runs and six RBI over the course of the tournament.[71] Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Marcus Stroman took home the award in 2017 for the United States. Stroman posted a 2.35 ERA over three starts and no-hit Puerto Rico through six innings in an 8–0 win in the Finals.[72] In 2023, Los Angeles Angels two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani claimed MVP honors after slashing .435/.606/.739 as a hitter and posting a 1.86 ERA and 11 strikeouts in 92⁄3 innings as a pitcher, also pitching the final inning of Japan's win over the US in the final.[46]
All-WBC teams
At the end of each edition of the World Baseball Classic, an all-star team is selected based on their play in the tournament. Three pitchers, eight other position players (one each at each position, including three outfielders), and a designated hitter are named to the team. Japanese pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka, Puerto Rican catcher Yadier Molina and Puerto Rican shortstop Javier Báez are the only players to be named to the All–WBC team twice. Japanese two-way player Shohei Ohtani is the only player to be named to the All-WBC team at two separate positions, having been named to the 2023 team as both a designated hitter and a pitcher.
Overall, players representing 12 countries have been named to an All-WBC team, with Japan leading the way with 12 representatives.
Rank | 2006 | 2009 | 2013 | 2017 | 2023 | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Japan | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 12 |
Puerto Rico | 0 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 1 | 10 |
United States | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 9 |
Dominican Republic | 1 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 7 |
South Korea | 3 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
Cuba | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 7 |
Mexico | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
Venezuela | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
Canada | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Israel | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Netherlands | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Chinese Taipei | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
Statistical leaders
All-time WBC individual leaders in various statistical categories through the end of the 2023 tournament, excluding qualifier games.[73]
Batting
|
Pitching
|
See also
- World Baseball Classic Inc.
- World Baseball Classic Trophy
- Major League Baseball
- Major League Baseball Players Association
- World Baseball Softball Confederation
- WBSC Americas
- WBSC Asia
- WBSC Europe
- WBSC Oceania
- WBSC Africa
- Bud Selig
- Rob Manfred
- Riccardo Fraccari
- Fox Deportes
- MLB International
- MLB on Fox
- MLB on FS1
- Kodak World Baseball Classic, a 1972 minor league tournament with the same name
- Baseball awards § World
Notes
- ^ From 2013 onward
- ^ Curaçao is represented by the Netherlands in certain international competitions.
- ^ Aruba, Bahamas & Nicaragua all had two players compete in MLB games.
- ^ Aruba is represented by the Netherlands in certain international competitions.
- ^ Bahamas is represented by Great Britain in certain international competitions.
- ^ Brazil, Guam, Honduras, Hong Kong, Netherlands, Peru, South Africa, Taiwan & United States Virgin Islands all had one player compete in MLB games.
- ^ Guam is represented by the United States in certain international competitions.
- ^ The US Virgin Islands is represented by the United States in certain international competitions.
References
- ^ as of 2026 Tournament
- ^ Baseball Zen: The Classic! See the World Baseball Classic through a Baseball Zen lens
- ^ "Japan 2023 World Baseball Classic Championship Trophy Pano Framed LE #1". auctions.mlb.com. Retrieved April 18, 2023.
- ^ Suvanto, Lyndon. "World Baseball Classic Trophy unveiled, how does it compare to past designs?". www.sportskeeda.com. Retrieved April 18, 2023.
- ^ a b c "IBAF introduces new Format of International Tournaments". IBAF.org. International Baseball Federation. Archived from the original on July 25, 2015. Retrieved October 4, 2014.
- ^ a b c "Japan win World Baseball Classic to add to Premier12 and Olympic titles". World Baseball Softball Confederation. Retrieved April 19, 2023.
- ^ "IBAF World Ranking Notes" (PDF). International Baseball Federation. January 13, 2009. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 9, 2019. Retrieved June 23, 2009.
- ^ "Premier12 2019 Official Program – Page 6" (PDF). WBSC. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 27, 2019. Retrieved November 26, 2019.
- ^ a b "USA-Japan WBC Title Game Could Be the Most-Watched Baseball Game in History". nbcboston.com. March 21, 2023.
- ^ Riccardo Schiroli (2019). The Game We Love (PDF). World Baseball Softball Confederation. p. 174.
- ^ "Finally, a Chance to Find the Real World Champion". The New York Times. May 12, 2005.
- ^ a b "World Cup announcement made". ESPN. May 11, 2005.
- ^ "Classic produces comeback victory for commissioner". Sports Business Journal. March 27, 2006. Retrieved March 20, 2024.
- ^ "On Baseball; M.L.B. Needs To Play Tough For World Cup". The New York Times. February 10, 2004.
- ^ "World Baseball Classic". Archived from the original on January 23, 2015. Retrieved March 13, 2009.
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