All you need to about: World Baseball Classic 2023

The World Baseball Classic 2023 is met with a lot of anticipation. The two previous World Baseball Classics were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic and differing regulations by the various countries that would participate. But the event is finally taking off again before the Major League Baseball season.

Spring training will look different this year for those who like to attend because many MLB stars have chosen to represent their respective countries in this year’s World Baseball Classic. So making MLB picks in spring training will be difficult. 

It will also be interesting to see if there is any dropoff late in the season from players participating in World Baseball Classic 2023. When taking on MLB odds, whether futures bets or later in the year, they may be something to consider. Though for some players, it may earlier than they usually warm up to, particularly for pitchers.

Here is a breakdown of what fans need to know about this year’s World Baseball Classic.

Which Countries are Playing?

There are 20 countries represented in this year’s World Baseball Classic. They are broken into four divisions featuring five teams each.

Here is a breakdown of the pools:

A Star-studded Showing

A plethora of All-Stars has opted into the tournament. There are also up-and-coming stars who want to play in the tournament and represent their countries.

The United States won the tournament in 2017 when it was last played. They have commitments from outfielder Mike Trout, widely regarded as the best player in the sport, Mookie Betts, Trea Turner, Nolan Arenado, Clayton Kershaw, and other sluggers. The pitching may be suspect at times, but the offense may be good enough to overpower every other team in the event.

Japan received a massive commitment from the two-way star and former MLB MVP Shohei Ohtani. While he can play outfield, he may join a rotation featuring Yu Darvish, Kenta Maeda, Yusei Kikuchi, and former Yankees star Masahiro Tanaka. Cubs outfielder Seiya Suzuki is among several recognizable names by MLB fans.

The Most Complete Team

The Dominican Republic may be the most complete team, from its pitching staff to its offense and defense. It has stars like Rafael Devers, Jose Ramirez, Vladimir Guerrero Jr., and Juan Soto lined up. Promising prospects and developing stars Julio Rodriguez, Wander Franco, and Jeremy Pena are also committed to play. 

If that is not enough star power, they may have the best rotation and bullpen out of any country. The starters include NL Cy Young winner Sandy Alcantara, Framber Valdez and Cristian Javier of the Houston Astros, and Luis Castillo. The bullpen is electric with Camilo Doval, Diego Castillo, Felix Bautista, Rafael Montero, and Bryan Abreu. Good luck hitting against that staff.

Puerto Rico also has a very respectable roster with Christian Vazquez behind the plate, an infield of Javier Baez, Francisco Lindor, and Carlos Correa, along with George Springer to lock down the outfield. 

The pitching staff features Jose Berrios, Marcus Stroman, Edwin Diaz, Lou Trivino, Emilio Pagan, and Jorge Lopez.

The Schedule

It is going to be a tight tournament with not a lot of wiggle room for bad weather or postponements, so expect domes to be used when needed to avoid inclement weather. 

World Baseball Classic 2023 has to be wrapped up so players can report to MLB teams before opening day on March 30.

Here is a breakdown of the schedule:

First Round

The event’s first round runs March 8-15. Pool A will play from March 8-13 in Taichung, Taiwan. The Pool B will play March 9-13 in Tokyo, Japan. Pool C will play from March 11-15 in Phoenix, Arizona. Pool D will play from March 11-15 in Miami, Florida.

Second Round

Pools A and B will play on March 15-16 in Tokyo, Japan, while Pools C and D will play on March 17-18 in Miami, Florida.

Semifinals and Championship

All of the final rounds will be played in Miami, Florida. 

The semifinals are March 19-20 and feature the quadrant winners against the quadrant runners-up. The semifinal winners will meet for the World Baseball Classic Championship Game on March 21.

History Tour

The World Baseball Classic began in 2006 and typically occurs every four years. The first two rounds of the tournament are a round robin, while the tournament gets to be single-elimination in the semifinals and finals.

Past winners are Japan (2006, 2009), the Dominican Republic (2013), and the United States (2017). Japan leads the medal count with four, finishing with bronze in the other two events. Only South Korea has a second medal, winning silver in 2009 and bronze in 2006.

The Most Valuable Players were Japan’s Daisuke Matsuzaka (2006, 2009), the Dominican Republic’s Robinson Cano (2013), and the United States’ Marcus Stroman (2017). Both Cano and Stroman are playing in this year’s field.

This Year’s Odds

It is a three-team race in this year’s World Baseball Classic, as highlighted by some of the players committed to the respective countries.

The World Baseball Classic odds show the Dominican Republic is favored at +200 while the United States is +225. Japan is next at +350, before Puerto Rico at +800.

The next tier is Venezuela at +1300, and both Korea Republic and Cuba at +1400. Then it is Mexico at +3500, Netherlands and Chinese Taipei each at +4000, and Canada at +5000.

Who Wins the Event?

All of the favorites should escape the round-robin stage of the event, but anything can happen in a single elimination format to end it. 

That is where pitching depth is really going to matter, and the Dominican Republic having a pitching staff with its stars will be able to mix and match with all those games played in a short amount of time. Watching the World Baseball Classic scores with these stars will be fun.

Though, one has to wonder how revved up the arms will be when this event is usually when pitchers are ramping up for their seasons. The worst thing that could happen is an injury that impacts the World Baseball Classic and the MLB team stats heading into a new year. 

Still, we like the Dominican Republic to win over the United States in the final. Our biggest hesitation is that the United States would play Japan in the semifinals and potentially lose, so betting on silver for either country would be fair.

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