In this article, we'll be taking a look at: Favourites to dominate, players opting out, underdogs to watch, and how we could see history repeat itself.
From March 4th to March 18th (give or take a couple of days depending on your specific timezone), the World Baseball Classic will have games airing around the clock the entire time. From the haul of games in the Pool Stage (first round) to the primetime games in the semi-finals and final, there will be non-stop baseball on the biggest stage for two straight weeks.
Check out the full schedule, locations, and group details here.
Favourites to dominate
Fans should expect at least one of the three giants - USA, Japan, Dominican Republic - to be in the title game this year, unless another pair of countries decides to miraculously shock the world. So let's take a look at the three-headed giants.
USA (-115)
The United States are the heavy favourite and for a multitude of good reasons. Of the 30 players on their team, they have a combined 65 MLB All-Star selections, 15 of those players were All-Stars just last season.
It is officially the most star-studded team in World Baseball Classic history with guys like Cal Raleigh (2025 MLB Home Run Champion), Aaron Judge (2025 American League MVP), Paul Skenes (2025 National League Cy Young winner), Kyle Schwarber (2025 National League home run leader), and others, such as Bobby Witt Jr., Gunnar Henderson, and Bryce Harper.
Japan (+330)
While Shohei Ohtani won't pitch this time around, he will still partake in the full tournament as a hitter. His Dodgers teammate, and reigning World Series MVP, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, will, however, be pitching in the entire tournament.
Other notable names are pitcher Hiromi Itoh, who won the 2025 Eiji Sawamura Award in the NPB, which is the Japanese equivalent of winning a Cy Young in the MLB. Others include Munetaka Murakami, who just signed with the Chicago White Sox and is already raking in Spring Training, and Kazuma Okamoto, who hit a stellar .322 batting average in the NPB in 2025 and is a six-time NPB All-Star and three-time NPB Home Run Champion.
Dominican Republic (+400)
The Dominican Republic, while not having the pitchers that Japan and the USA have, arguably boasts the best lineup of hitters in the entire tournament. Big stars in their lineup include Vladimir Guererro Jr. (Toronto Blue Jays), Manny Machado (San Diego Padres), Junior Caminero (Tampa Bay Rays), Fernando Tatis Jr. (San Diego Padres), Julio Rodriguez (Mariners), Juan Soto (New York Mets), and Oneil Cruz (Pirates).
If your jaw didn't drop at that list of names, it should because it could definitely carry them to their second WBC title. They are among the top echelon of hitters in baseball, whether for their contact, power, or speed on the basepaths.
As for Venezuela (+900) and Mexico (+2500), they aren't necessarily favourites. But they aren't necessarily underdogs either. They're sandwiched in that tight little spot between both tiers heading into the tournament, who could either crumble or outright show why they belong in the favourites category.
Now, how about players fans cannot expect to see at the WBC?
Players out for multiple reasons
A lot of notable names either opted out of the World Baseball Classic to focus on the regular season for their respective teams or will play a game or two before returning to their MLB squads for spring training.
For example, Los Angeles Dodgers rookie pitching sensation from last year, Roki Sasaki, opted out of playing for Team Japan for the WBC to avoid overstressing his arm and focus on the regular season.
For the Americans, Tarik Skubal, the reigning back-to-back American League Cy Young Award winner, said he will only be starting in one game for the USA before returning to the Detroit Tigers' camp.
Then, there's the controversy around some players who were denied permission to play in the WBC in the first place...
Over 150 players were denied insurance coverage to play in the WBC, effectively barring them from participating, because of past injuries. Some of these players included some of baseball's best, including Francisco Lindor, Jose Berrios, and Carlos Correa - three big-time star players who were planning to play for their home country of Puerto Rico (+1600).
No other country got hit worse than Puerto Rico did with the denials. It was so bad that the country even thought of pulling out of the tournament entirely, and that international music star Bad Bunny, who performed at the recent Super Bowl halftime show, even offered to pay the insurance for them.
But the players were advised against taking it after agents told them the insurance companies probably wouldn't pay the money back.
Venezuela will be without former American League MVP Jose Altuve, among others, such as Miguel Rojas, due to the denial of insurance coverage. However, three-time All-Star catcher Wilson Contreras was cleared to play after being hung up in the same insurance web as the others.
The Dominican Republic, a heavy favourite next to the USA and Japan, will be without Cincinnati Reds star Elly De La Cruz as the team was the one to deny him to play in the WBC as he recovers from a quad injury (he also dealt with the insurance issue because of this).
Underdogs to watch
So, who will the underdogs be in this tournament that could pull their way through to the title game?
South Korea (+6500)
The KBO is considered the third most prestigious baseball league in the world, behind the NBP (Japan) and MLB (USA). But since being the runner-ups in 2009, South Korea hasn't had a shred of success in the WBC.
However, this year could prove to be different with Jung Ho Lee (Giants) leading the way as team captain with South Korean stars Do Yeong Kim (2024 KBO MVP), Ja Wook Koo (four-time Gold Glove winner), Hyun-min Ahn (2025 KBO Rookie of the Year), and pitcher Tae-in Won (2025 Best Battery Award for pitcher-catcher).
Many consider South Korea to have one of the best bullpens in the WBC this year, bolstered by Korean-Americans Riley O'Brien (Cardinals), who had a stellar 2.06 earned run average in 42 games for the St. Louis Cardinals in 2025.
Being in the same Pool as Japan, it's expected that they won't win their group. However, with Czechia, Chinese Taipei, and Australia as the others, South Korea can definitely make their way to at least the quarter-finals. It would be the first time they did since 2009 - the same year they lost to Japan in the final.
Canada (+4000)
Most would think that Canada is an afterthought when it comes to the WBC, as they've never even placed fourth. However, their roster this year might surprise some people.
With Tyler O'Neill, Josh Naylor, and one of the Chicago Cubs' top power-hitting prospects in Owen Cassie, the Canadians could do a lot worse. They are no doubt understaffed in terms of star power. But a starting rotation with guys such as Michael Soroka and Jameson Taillon, who both had solid seasons in the MLB in 2025, will need to be on point if Canada wants a chance.
And with weakened Puerto Rico and Cuban teams due to the insurance problems, along with Panama and Colombia, Canada could make it out of the Pool stage and advance to the quarter-finals. If they do, they'd face either Brazil, Italy, Mexico, or Great Britain, with the United States being the overwhelming favourites to win that group, meaning they wouldn't face them in the quarter-finals if both Canada and the United States won their groups (check the full bracket here).
Italy (+8000)
The Italians advanced to the quarter-finals in 2023 - but then got throttled by the eventual winners in Japan.
However, much like Canada, they may be able to take advantage of who they're grouped with in the Pool stage. They even have some nice MLB names on their roster as well, especially some of the biggest rookie names from the MLB last year.
Jac Caglianone was the No. 10 prospect in all of baseball and No. 1 in the Royals system in 2025, while his teammate Vinnie Pasquantino raked for the Royals last season, putting up 32 home runs and 113 RBI with a .264 average, making him one of the most sneaky-dangerous hitters of the tournament.
White Sox rookie Kyle Teel is also on the roster this year after he posted a .273 batting average with eight homers and 35 RBI in 78 games during his rookie campaign in 2026, making him one of the best young contact hitters in the game.
Will these teams make a run? Who knows. But they certainly have interesting opportunities to.
History could be repeated
Since the World Baseball Classic began in 2006, only three countries have won it across the five competitions in its history: Japan (x3), the United States, and the Dominican Republic. However, there are always surprises.
In 2006, Japan beat Cuba while South Korea took home third place. Then Japan reclaimed their title in 2009 with a title win over South Korea, with Venezuela and the United States behind them. The Dominican Republic won their first WBC in 2013 over Puerto Rico, with Japan in third, followed by a shocker in the Netherlands, who would claim fourth place in the next WBC in 2017 as well.
The 2017 WBC is what started to begin to show the USA and Japan dominance in the tournament. Team USA won their first title over Puerto Rico, with Japan claiming third. Then, as most know, the 2023 WBC went to Japan after the final at-bat came down to the MLB's greats in Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout.
In short, since the WBC started, Japan has never once placed lower than the bronze medal. They are the only country to do so, as the others have all mingled in one way or another. And it's gearing up to be the same this year.
The same goes for the United States. They outright have the best squad of the entire World Baseball Classic, and it's not up for debate. Anything but the title game for those two teams will be considered a massive letdown on their parts.
With Puerto Rico heavily hit by the insurance denials, and countries like Cuba (+8000), Venezuela, and Mexico not boasting too much of a powerhouse this year, the field is wide open after the Big 3. So perhaps we can see some surprises as we did with the Netherlands in 2013 and 2017.
However, expect the heavy favourites to show they're the favourites for a reason when the final showdown begins.