20 national teams from across the globe will compete in the sixth edition of the WBC, international baseball’s biggest stage. The field is set. Dates and venues are locked in. And now, the real fun begins: roster construction, star commitments, and the slow drip of news that always turns the WBC into must-watch baseball.
Check all the projected starting lineups and rosters as rumors and news comes in.
The 2026 World Baseball Classic will run from March 5–17, 2026, with games hosted in four cities:
Japan enters as the defending champion after a legendary 2023 run, while the United States and Dominican Republic will be looking to reclaim the top spot. Seventeen other nations are chasing their first WBC title.
The tournament begins with pool play, featuring four pools of five teams. Each pool plays a round-robin format, with every team facing the other four once. The top two teams from each pool advance, leaving eight teams in the knockout stage.
Each host city will stage 10 pool play games.
From there, the tournament shifts to single-elimination baseball:
Houston and Miami will host the quarterfinals, while all semifinals and the championship game will take place at loanDepot Park in Miami.
The final four spots were earned through two qualifying tournaments held in early 2025.
China failed to qualify for the first time in tournament history, as they were consistently the worst team in the field.
Roster announcements are underway as the 35-man preliminary rosters were due earlier this month. The official 30-man roster is due February 3rd.
20 national teams from across the globe will compete in the sixth edition of the WBC, international baseball’s biggest stage. The field is set. Dates and venues are locked in. And now, the real fun begins: roster construction, star commitments, and the slow drip of news that always turns the WBC into must-watch baseball.
Check all the projected starting lineups and rosters as rumors and news comes in.
The 2026 World Baseball Classic will run from March 5–17, 2026, with games hosted in four cities:
Japan enters as the defending champion after a legendary 2023 run, while the United States and Dominican Republic will be looking to reclaim the top spot. Seventeen other nations are chasing their first WBC title.
The tournament begins with pool play, featuring four pools of five teams. Each pool plays a round-robin format, with every team facing the other four once. The top two teams from each pool advance, leaving eight teams in the knockout stage.
Each host city will stage 10 pool play games.
From there, the tournament shifts to single-elimination baseball:
Houston and Miami will host the quarterfinals, while all semifinals and the championship game will take place at loanDepot Park in Miami.
The final four spots were earned through two qualifying tournaments held in early 2025.
China failed to qualify for the first time in tournament history, as they were consistently the worst team in the field.
Roster announcements are underway as the 35-man preliminary rosters were due earlier this month. The official 30-man roster is due February 3rd.
