Featured Image: Shohei Ohtani of Team Japan throws a pitch at Mike Trout of Team USA. (Photo Credit to Masterpress/Samurai Japan/Getty Images)

Prior to the start of the 2026 Major League Baseball (MLB)  season, baseball fans get to enjoy best-on-best with the sixth World Baseball Classic (WBC) beginning on March 5, 2026.

The tournament consists of five teams who compete to see which country is the best at baseball. Japan has dominated in this tournament recently, defeating Team USA in the WBC 2023 final, with a score of 3-2.

Team USA

Much to no one’s surprise, the stars have come out to play for Team USA. Led by outfielder and reigning American League MVP Aaron Judge, the U.S. team has high expectations for this tournament. The team has a couple of new young players representing the red, white and blue, such as center fielder Pete-Crow Armstrong and right-handed pitcher Paul Skenes. Another star pitcher for the team is reigning AL Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal. With Paul Skenes winning the National League Cy Young last season, the Americans will be scary on the mound.

However, Skubal has stated in an interview he only intends to start one game for the United States, which would be in the pool play rather than the knockout round. Skenes however stated in the same interview he plans to start in two games and compete in the knockout rounds.

The two catchers for Team USA are Cal Raleigh, who just had a dominant MVP worthy season with the Seattle Mariners, and Will Smith of the reigning World Series champs, the Los Angeles Dodgers. With Armstrong and Judge in the outfield, and Ernie Clement and Bryce Harper in the infield, Team USA should have solid defense on their side.

Team Japan

Team Japan is a monster that haunts Team USA’s dreams for good reason. With their biggest star being the best player in baseball, there’s plenty reason to fear the team. Shohei Ohtani, whether playing for the Dodgers or representing Japan, is a force to be reckoned with. At the 2023 WBC, he had an Earned Run Average(ERA) of 1.86, and 11 strikeouts in nine innings pitched. However, in an interview , Ohtani stated he would not be pitching for Japan in this tournament in order to stay healthy for the regular season.

Instead, Team Japan’s star pitcher is Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who was key to the 2025 Dodgers World Series title. His clutch factor is invaluable in this tournament.

Team Japan has instead decided to opt in several players who have either never played in a previous WBC or for the MLB. This decision might pay off and take several teams by surprise, with less scouting information being available.

The outfield will feature only two MLB ballplayers, those being Masataka Yoshida of the Boston Red Sox and Seiya Suzuki of the Chicago Cubs. The infield will tout a hyped third baseman prospect for the Chicago White Sox, Munetaka Murakami. He is a player to watch during this tournament.

Final Prediction: Team USA gets their vengeance against the Japanese in the finals with a score of 4-3.