When is the first WBC game? World Classic Baseball schedule, rosters

[ASFN Admin]

Playball!

Get ready baseball fans as many of the top MLB players, including 16 major and minor leaguers from the Philadelphia Phillies, will compete in the World Baseball Classic starting this week.

The United States will look to avenge its loss to Japan in those finals in 2023. The US team, along with Japan, the Dominican Republic and Venezuela are favorites to win the international tournament.

This year's competition has an added twist, with the top two finishers automatically qualified for the 2028 Olympics.

Here's a look at rosters, schedules and other WBC details:

When does WBC baseball start?​

The 2026 World Baseball Classic begins Thursday, March 5 and lasts through Tuesday, March 17.

The action begins with a pool play round-robin portion that gets underway Wednesday, March 4. Taiwan will play Australian in Tokyo at 10 p.m. ET to kick off the tournament.

Where to watch WBC 2026​

The World Baseball Classic will air in the United States on FOX, FS1, FS2, the FOX Sports App, FOX One and Tubi.

Stream 2026 World Baseball Classic live on Fubo

World Baseball Classic format​

Once pool play begins, each five-team group will duke it out for a week, and the top two teams in each pool by the end of the round-robin stage move on to the quarterfinals. The knockout round will last a little less than one week with the WBC final closing out the tournament on March 17 in Miami.

World Baseball Classic pools​

Pool A​

• Canada
• Colombia
• Cuba
• Panama
• Puerto Rico

Pool B​

• Brazil
• Great Britain
• Italy
• Mexico
• USA

Pool C​

• Australia
• Chinese Taipei
• Czechia
• Japan
• Korea

Pool D​

• Dominican Republic
• Israel
• Netherlands
• Nicaragua
• Venezuela

World Baseball Classic 2026 schedule​

Wednesday, March 4​

• 10 PM ET: Taiwan vs. Australia (Tokyo)

Thursday, March 5​

• 5 AM: Czechia vs. South Korea (Tokyo)
• 10 PM: Australia vs. Czechia (Tokyo)

Friday, March 6​

• 5 AM: Japan vs. Taiwan (Tokyo)
• 11 AM: Cuba vs. Panama (San Juan)
• Noon PM: Netherlands vs. Venezuela (Miami)
• 1 PM: Mexico vs. Great Britain (Houston)
• 6 PM: Puerto Rico vs. Colombia (San Juan)
• 7 PM: Nicaragua vs. Dominican Republic (Miami)
• 8 PM: USA vs. Brazil (Houston)
• 10 PM: Taiwan vs. Czechia (Tokyo)

Saturday, March 7​

• 5 AM: South Korea vs. Japan (Tokyo)
• 11 AM: Colombia vs. Canada (San Juan)
• Noon PM: Nicaragua vs. Netherlands (Miami)
• 1 PM: Brazil vs. Italy (Houston)
• 6 PM: Panama vs. Puerto Rico (San Juan)
• 7 PM: Israel vs. Venezuela (Miami)
• 8 PM: Great Britain vs. USA (Houston)
• 10 PM: Taiwan vs. South Korea (Tokyo)

Sunday, March 8​

• 6 AM: Australia vs. Japan (Tokyo)
• Noon PM: Colombia vs. Cuba (San Juan)
• Noon PM: Netherlands vs. Dominican Republic (Miami)
• 1 PM: Great Britain vs. Italy (Houston)
• 7 PM: Panama vs. Canada (San Juan)
• 7 PM: Nicaragua vs. Israel (Miami)
• 8 PM: Brazil vs. Mexico (Houston)

Monday, March 9​

• 6 AM: South Korea vs. Australia (Tokyo)
• Noon PM: Dominican Republic vs. Israel (Miami)
• Noon PM: Colombia vs. Panama (San Juan)
• 1 PM: Brazil vs. Great Britain (Houston)
• 7 PM: Cuba vs. Puerto Rico (San Juan)
• 7 PM: Venezuela vs. Nicaragua (Miami)
• 8 PM: Mexico vs. USA (Houston)

Tuesday, March 10​

• 6 AM: Czechia vs. Japan (Tokyo)
• 7 PM: Canada vs. Puerto Rico (San Juan)
• 7 PM: Israel vs. Netherlands (Miami)
• 9 PM: Italy vs. USA (Houston)

Wednesday, March 11​

• 3 PM: Canada vs. Cuba (San Juan)
• 7 PM: Italy vs. Mexico (Houston)
• 8 PM: Dominican Republic vs. Venezuela (Miami)

Quarterfinals (Houston and Miami)​

Friday, March 13​

• 6:30 PM (FS2): Runner-up Pool C vs. Winner Pool D — Miami
• 8 PM (FOX): Runner-up Pool B vs. Winner Pool A — Houston

Saturday, March 14​

• 3 PM (FS1): Runner-up Pool A vs. Winner Pool B — Houston
• 9 PM (FOX): Runner-up Pool D vs. Winner Pool C — Miami

Semifinals (Miami)​

• Sunday, March 15 (8 PM ET): Winner QF1 vs. Winner QF2
• Monday, March 16 (8 PM ET): Winner QF3 vs. Winner QF4

World Baseball Classic Final (Miami)​

• Tuesday, March 17 (8 PM ET): Winner SF1 vs. Winner SF2

USA World Baseball Classic roster​

Team USA WBC roster 2026​

Catchers​

• Cal Raleigh – Mariners
• Will Smith – Dodgers

Infielders​

• Alex Bregman (3B) – Red Sox
• Ernie Clement (UTIL) – Blue Jays
• Paul Goldschmidt (1B) – Yankees
• Bryce Harper (1B) – Phillies
• Gunnar Henderson (SS) – Orioles
• Brice Turang (2B) – Brewers
• Bobby Witt Jr. (SS) – Royals

Outfielders / DH​

• Roman Anthony – Red Sox (replacement for Corbin Carroll)
• Byron Buxton – Twins
• Pete Crow-Armstrong – Cubs
• Aaron Judge – Yankees
• Kyle Schwarber – Phillies

Pitchers​

• David Bednar – Yankees
• Matthew Boyd – Cubs
• Garrett Cleavinger – Rays
• Clay Holmes – Mets
• Griffin Jax – Rays
• Brad Keller – Phillies
• Clayton Kershaw – Retired/Dodgers
• Nolan McLean – Mets
• Mason Miller – Padres
• Joe Ryan – Twins
• Paul Skenes – Pirates
• Tarik Skubal – Tigers
• Gabe Speier – Mariners
• Michael Wacha – Royals
• Logan Webb – Giants
• Garrett Whitlock – Red Sox

Phillies in the World Baseball Classic​

United States​

• Bryce Harper, 1B
• Kyle Schwarber, DH
• Brad Keller, RP

Italy​

• Aaron Nola, SP
• Dante Nori, OF

Dominican Republic​

• Cristopher Sánchez, SP
• Johan Rojas, OF

Venezuela​

• Jesús Luzardo, SP

Mexico​

• Taijuan Walker, SP
• Alan Rangel, P

Panama​

• Edmundo Sosa, IF

Israel​

• Garrett Stubbs, C
• Max Lazar, P

Brazil​

• Gabriel Barbosa, P

Australia​

• Mitch Neunborn, P

Netherlands​

• Jaydenn Estanista, P

USA Today contributed to this story.

This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: When is the first WBC game? World Classic Baseball schedule, rosters

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