Everything You Need to Know About the World Baseball Classic
With spring training fast approaching on February 24th, many baseball fans are also highly anticipating the World Baseball Classic following shortly after. Fortunately, Event Tickets Center is here to answer your questions about the World Baseball Classic.
What is the World Baseball Classic
World Baseball Classic (WBC) is an international baseball tournament, officially sanctioned by the International Baseball Federation, in partnership with the MLB. This tournament started in just 2006, and is typically played every four years.
How many teams are there in the WBC
The WBC includes 16 teams from all over the world, as well as 12 automatic berths that are based on a team's finish in pool play during the previous WBC. The remaining berths are then determined by qualifying play. The first two rounds are played round-robin style, but the semifinals and finals are played single-elimination style. However, in the 2023 WBC, the tournament will expand to include 20 teams, and the 16 countries that participated in the 2017 WBC will get an automatic berth in the 2023. The teams include, but are not limited to, Australia, Canada, China, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Israel, United States, and Venezuela.
When is the World Baseball Classic
The WBC typically takes place in March every four years. In 2023, it'll be from Wednesday, March 8th, to Tuesday, March 21st. Typically, Spring Training will occur prior to the WBC.
How does the World Baseball Classic work?
The WBC is set up much simpler compared to other tournaments. Here, there are only four rounds, and each round eliminates half of the teams remaining. Some modifications to the following formats may occur with the 2023 WBC due to there being 20 teams instead of the usual 16.
In the first round, there are four pools of four teams. With the round-robin format of the first two rounds, each team will play each of the other teams in their pool once. After each team has played each other, usually totalling three games for each team, the top two teams from each pool will advance to the next round, meaning there will be eight teams in round two.
In round two, the teams are put into two pools of four teams. The top two from Pools A & B form Pool E, and the same goes for Pools C & D in forming Pool F. Much like the first round, each team will play each other once, and the top two teams from both pools advance, and brings the total number of teams down to four for the semifinals.
In round three, the round-robin method is abandoned. The winner of Pool E plays the runner up of Pool F, and Pool F plays the runner up of Pool E. In this case, it's a single elimination, so whoever wins each match will move to the championship game.
For the championship game, it's also a single elimination format, and whoever wins this match is then crowned the world champion for that tournament.
What is team usa’s roster?
According to NBC Sports as of January 17th, 2023, this the Team USA roster:
- Adam Ottavino, New York Mets
- Adam Wainwright, St. Louis Cardinals
- Bobby Witt Jr., Kansas City Royals
- Brady Singer, Kansas City Royals
- Bryce Harper, Philadelphia Phillies
- Cedric Mullins, Baltimore Orioles
- Clayton Kershaw, Los Angeles Dodgers
- David Bednar, Pittsburgh Pirates
- Devin Williams, Milwaukee Brewers
- Dillon Tate, Baltimore Orioles
- Jeff McNeil, New York Mets
- J.T. Realmuto, Philadelphia Phillies
- Kyle Freeland, Colorado Rockies
- Kyle Schwarber, Philadelphia Phillies
- Kyle Tucker, Houston Astros
- Logan Webb, San Francisco Giants
- Merrill Kelly, Arizona Diamondbacks
- Mike Trout, Los Angeles Angels
- Mookie Betts, Los Angeles Dodgers
- Nestor Cortes, New York Yankees
- Nolan Arenado, St. Louis Cardinals
- Paul Goldschmidt, St. Louis Cardinals
- Pete Alonso, New York Mets
- Tim Anderson, Chicago White Sox
- Trevor Story, Boston Red Sox
- Trea Turner, Philadelphia Phillies
- Will Smith, Los Angeles Dodgers
How do I see these games in person? How do I watch them locally?
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If you plan to watch locally, various cable networks do air the games, or offer them on their dedicated streaming platforms, so be sure to check your local listings for options available to you. The MLB Network is a great place to look at the TV schedules for all MLB games, and allows you to search by TV Provider. FOX Sports will be the exclusive home to the WBC, however. If you prefer to stream, the games are available to watch for free at the World Baseball Classic website, as well as on MLB.TV, MLB.com, the WBC Youtube Channel and their Facebook page.