The World Baseball Classic is back and kicks off with a late game in Japan on March 4.
In 2023, Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani struck out his former teammate Mike Trout to give Japan a 3-2 victory over Japan in the final. The U.S. this year is led by Yankees slugger Aaron Judge, who was named the captain by manager Mark DeRosa
Other stars participating for the U.S. include reigning AL and NL Cy Young winners Tarik Skubal and Paul Skenes, as well as two-time MVP Bryce Harper and Silver Sluggers Kyle Schwarber and Bobby Witt Jr.
World Baseball Classic 2026 groups
There are four groups with five teams each participating in this year’s World Baseball Classic. Each team plays its group in a round-robin format, with the winners and runners-up of each pool moving on to the quarterfinal round.
Pool A (San Juan, Puerto Rico)
Pool B (Houston)
Pool C (Tokyo)
Pool D (Miami)
World Baseball Classic 2026 schedule, locations, TV Channel
Wednesday, March 4
Thursday, March 5
Friday, March 6
Saturday, March 7
Sunday, March 8
Monday, March 9
Tuesday, March 10
Wednesday, March 11
Friday, March 13 – Quarterfinals
Saturday, March 14 – Quarterfinals
Sunday, March 15 – Semifinals
Monday, March 16 – Semifinals
Tuesday, March 17 – Final
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: World Baseball Classic 2026 schedule, teams, how to watch
Reporting by Dan Aulbach, Columbus Dispatch / The Columbus Dispatch
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
