View source for World Baseball Classic

{{Short description|International baseball tournament}}
{{About|the current baseball world championship|the world championship before 2013|Baseball World Cup}}
{{Use American English|date=December 2023}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=December 2023}}
{{Infobox sports league
| title           = World Baseball Classic
| current_season  = 
| upcoming_season = 2026 World Baseball Classic
| logo            = WBC_logo.svg
| pixels          = 290px
| caption         = 
| president       = Jim Small<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-01-13 |title=Mentor Spotlight: Jim Small |url=https://kualumni.org/news/mentor-spotlight-jim-small/ |access-date=2025-02-04 |website=KU Alumni Association |language=en-US |quote=In my current job, I am President of the World Baseball Classic… the official world championship of baseball.}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Small |first=Jim |title=Jim Small Personal Page |url=https://www.linkedin.com/in/jim-small-2375b3b3 |website=Linkedin |at=About}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Vaccaro |first=Chris |date=2022-10-04 |title=MLB’s Jim Small to Receive IABF Executive of the Year Award - Italian American Baseball Foundation |url=https://iabf.foundation/mlbs-jim-small-to-receive-iabf-executive-of-the-year-award/ |access-date=2025-02-04 |work=Italian American Baseball Foundation |language=en-US}}</ref>
| sport           = Baseball
| founded         = {{Start date and age|2005}}
| country         = 
| inaugural       = 2006
| organiser       = {{Indented plainlist|
* [[WBCI (Baseball)|WBCI]]
* [[World Baseball Softball Confederation|WBSC]]
}}
| teams           = 20 (tournament)<br />8 (qualification)
| region          = Worldwide
| TV              = 
| streaming       = 
| champion        = {{bb|JPN}} ([[2023 World Baseball Classic|2023]])
| most_champs     = {{bb|JPN}} (3 titles)
| website         = {{URL|https://www.WorldBaseballClassic.com|WorldBaseballClassic.com}}
}}
{{World Baseball Championship sidebar}}

The '''World Baseball Classic''' ('''WBC'''), also referred to as '''the Classic''',<ref>{{Cite web |last=World Baseball Classic |date=Apr 19, 2023 |title=Baseball Zen: The Classic! See the World Baseball Classic through a Baseball Zen lens |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W5iURB5jtEg |website=YouTube}}</ref> is an international [[baseball]] tournament sanctioned by the [[World Baseball Softball Confederation]] (WBSC),{{efn|From 2013 onward}} the sport's global governing body, and organized in [[World Baseball Classic Inc.|partnership]] with [[Major League Baseball]] (MLB) and [[Major League Baseball Players Association]] (MLBPA). The winning team is awarded the [[World Baseball Classic Championship Trophy]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Japan 2023 World Baseball Classic Championship Trophy Pano Framed LE #1 |url=https://auctions.mlb.com/japan-2023-world-baseball-classic-championship-trophy/isynmv1/aucd/4457970 |access-date=April 18, 2023 |website=MLB Auctions  |language=en |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230531231728/https://auctions.mlb.com/japan-2023-world-baseball-classic-championship-trophy/isynmv1/aucd/4457970 |archive-date=2023-05-31 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Suvanto |first=Lyndon |title=World Baseball Classic Trophy unveiled, how does it compare to past designs? |url=https://www.sportskeeda.com/baseball/news-world-baseball-classic-trophy-unveiled-compare-past-designs |access-date=April 18, 2023 |website=www.sportskeeda.com |language=en-us}}</ref> It is one of the two main senior baseball tournaments sanctioned by the WBSC, alongside the [[WBSC Premier12]], but is the only one to grant the winner the title of "world champion".<ref name="International Baseball Federation">{{cite web |title=IBAF introduces new Format of International Tournaments |url=http://www.ibaf.org/en/infopage-detail.aspx?id=72ac735a-33d5-45b6-a99d-23e44243f427 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150725113405/http://www.ibaf.org/en/infopage-detail.aspx?id=72ac735a-33d5-45b6-a99d-23e44243f427 |archive-date=July 25, 2015 |access-date=October 4, 2014 |work=IBAF.org |publisher=International Baseball Federation}}</ref><ref name="wbsc.org">{{Cite web |title=Japan win World Baseball Classic to add to Premier12 and Olympic titles |url=http://www.wbsc.org/en/news/japan-win-world-baseball-classic-confirm-their-domination |access-date=April 19, 2023 |website=World Baseball Softball Confederation }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=MLBPA |date=2024-05-23 |title=VENUES ANNOUNCED FOR 2026 WORLD BASEBALL CLASSIC |url=https://www.mlbplayers.com/post/venues-announced-for-2026-world-baseball-classic |access-date=2024-05-24 |website=MLBPA Players |language=en |quote=The World Baseball Classic is sanctioned by the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) as the sport’s official National Team World Championship.}}</ref>

The tournament, proposed in 2005 by MLB and its [[Major League Baseball Players Association|Players Association]], was first held in [[2006 World Baseball Classic|2006]] as an invitational event. It previously coexisted with [[Baseball at the Summer Olympics|Olympic baseball]] (until 2008) and the [[Baseball World Cup]] (until 2011) as tournaments sanctioned by the [[International Baseball Federation]], the predecessor to the WBSC.<ref name="ibaf world ranking notes">{{cite web |date=January 13, 2009 |title=IBAF World Ranking Notes |url=http://ibaf.org/fileadmin/user_upload/Files_-_world_rankings/4221-IBAF_World_Rankings_Notes.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190509034100/http://ibaf.org/fileadmin/user_upload/Files_-_world_rankings/4221-IBAF_World_Rankings_Notes.pdf |archive-date=May 9, 2019 |access-date=June 23, 2009 |publisher=International Baseball Federation}}</ref> The Baseball World Cup was discontinued after the 2011 edition, when the WBSC accepted an MLB suggestion to make the WBC the officially-sanctioned world championship, on the condition that the Classic should have direct qualifications and follow international anti-doping rules.<ref>{{cite web |title=Premier12 2019 Official Program – Page 6 |url=https://wbsc-bucket.s3-eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/event+media+book/201909_WBSC_premier12_magazine_WEB.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191127012323/https://wbsc-bucket.s3-eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/event+media+book/201909_WBSC_premier12_magazine_WEB.pdf |archive-date=November 27, 2019 |access-date=November 26, 2019 |work=WBSC }}</ref>

After a three-year gap between the first two installments of the tournament, plans were made for the World Baseball Classic to be repeated every four years following the 2009 event. The third installment of the Classic was held in 2013, and the fourth was held in 2017. The World Baseball Classic was held five times from [[2006 World Baseball Classic|2006]] to [[2023 World Baseball Classic|2023]], with [[Samurai Japan|Japan]], the [[Dominican Republic national baseball team|Dominican Republic]], and the [[United States national baseball team|United States]] winning the championship. Japan, as of the 2023 tournament, is the only team to win the tournament multiple times.

The tournament is the first of its kind to have national teams featuring professional players from the top-level major leagues around the world, including Major League Baseball and [[Nippon Professional Baseball]] (NPB). In addition to providing a format for the best baseball players in the world to compete against one another while representing their home countries, the World Baseball Classic was created in order to further promote the game around the globe. As of the 2023 World Baseball Classic, the tournament is one of the most viewed sporting events in the world.<ref name="auto1">{{cite web |date=March 21, 2023 |title=USA-Japan WBC Title Game Could Be the Most-Watched Baseball Game in History |url=https://www.nbcboston.com/news/sports/usa-japan-wbc-title-game-could-be-the-most-watched-baseball-game-in-history/3002635/ |access-date= |website=nbcboston.com |publisher=}}</ref>

== Background ==
{{See also|Baseball World Cup|International Baseball Federation}}
[[File:1951 cuba baseball team.jpg|thumb|The [[Cuba national baseball team|Cuban national team]] at the [[1951 Amateur World Series]]. Cuba won the most international titles in the 20th century.]]
Prior to the advent of the World Baseball Classic, there was no international baseball championship that saw universal participation from players across the globe. Outside the United States, the formally-recognized "world championship" was the [[Baseball World Cup]], sanctioned by the [[International Baseball Federation]] and held 38 times from 1938 to 2011; it was known as the Amateur World Series until 1988. The inaugural [[1938 Amateur World Series]] was contested by [[Great Britain national baseball team|Great Britain]] and the [[United States national baseball team|United States]] over a series of five games from August 13 to 20 in [[England]], and was won by [[Great Britain national baseball team|Great Britain]]. [[Cuba national baseball team|Cuba]] was by far the most successful team at the Baseball World Cup, winning 25 of the 39 editions.

Baseball was also intermittently played [[Baseball at the Summer Olympics|at the Summer Olympic Games]] as early as [[Baseball at the 1912 Summer Olympics|1912]], although it was not recognized as an official [[demonstration sport]] until the [[Baseball at the 1984 Summer Olympics|1984 Los Angeles Games]]. It would take another eight years, at the [[Baseball at the 1992 Summer Olympics|1992 Games]], for baseball to be accorded the status of a medal sport.

For most of their history, the Olympics and Baseball World Cup were open [[Olympic Games#Amateurism and professionalism|only to amateur (i.e. non-professional) players]]; as a results, those participating in top-level [[professional baseball]] leagues in the United States, Japan, and elsewhere were not included. Although both competition formally rescinded their amateur-only status in the 1990s, allowing professional players to participate, there was little participation from major league players. Nevertheless, the idea of a tournament with the express involvement of top-level professional ballplayers had been seriously considered since the mid-1990s. Gene Orza, counsel and board member of the [[Major League Baseball Players Association]], began campaigning for such a tournament in 2004, enlisting the support of IBAF president [[Aldo Notari]].<ref name="schiroli">{{cite book |author1=Riccardo Schiroli |title=The Game We Love |date=2019 |publisher=World Baseball Softball Confederation |url=https://static.wbsc.org/assets/files/2019_WBSC_The_Game_We_Love_SMALL.pdf |page=174}}</ref> The inaugural tournament was announced by [[MLB Commissioner]] [[Bud Selig]] and MLBPA president [[Donald Fehr]] on May 11, 2005.<ref>{{cite news |title=Finally, a Chance to Find the Real World Champion |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2005/05/12/sports/baseball/finally-a-chance-to-find-the-real-world-champion.html |agency=The New York Times |date=May 12, 2005 |last1=Chass |first1=Murray }}</ref><ref name="schwarz">{{cite news |title=World Cup announcement made |url=https://www.espn.com/mlb/news/story?id=2057633 |agency=ESPN |date=May 11, 2005}}</ref> The success of the 2006 tournament led organizers to immediately begin planning for a follow-up tournament in 2009.<ref>{{cite news |title=Classic produces comeback victory for commissioner |url=https://www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/Journal/Issues/2006/03/27/This-Weeks-News/Classic-Produces-Comeback-Victory-For-Commissioner.aspx?publicationSource=sbj&issue=9ec0e31864574691a61f01fcf6bfb5e9 |access-date=20 March 2024 |agency=Sports Business Journal |date=March 27, 2006}}</ref>

The IBAF merged with the International Softball Federation in 2013 to form the [[World Baseball Softball Confederation]]. That same year, the WBSC discontinued the Baseball World Cup, last held in 2011, making the World Baseball Classic one of the two main senior baseball tournaments sanctioned by the WBSC, alongside the [[WBSC Premier12|Premier 12]].

== Status ==
{{See also|WBSC World Rankings}}
The World Baseball Classic is often compared to the [[WBSC Premier12]] as they are the only two senior international baseball tournament. However, the WBC is the only one which grants to the winner the title of "World Champion".<ref name="International Baseball Federation" /><ref name="wbsc.org" /> This is because players active in [[Major League Baseball]], arguably the highest level baseball league in the world, do not participate in the Premier12.<ref>{{Cite web |last=May |first=Jeffrey |date=2024-11-08 |title=Why are MLB players not playing in the WBSC Premier12 2024? |url=https://en.as.com/mlb/why-are-mlb-players-not-playing-in-the-wbsc-premier12-2024-n/ |access-date=2025-01-22 |website=AS USA |language=en-us}}</ref> This renders the latter tournament less significant without the best players participating.

Despite this, controversially, the [[WBSC World Rankings]] award higher points for winning the [[WBSC Premier12]] than winning the World Baseball Classic. Yet, the baseball world generally acknowledges the World Baseball Classic as the ''de facto'' most prestigious international baseball tournament, even often referring to it as "The World Cup of Baseball", comparing the Classic with the [[FIFA World Cup]].<ref>{{Cite web |title='Biggest thing ever': Germany, Brazil to play for final Classic spot |url=https://www.mlb.com/world-baseball-classic/news/brazil-germany-to-play-for-world-baseball-classic-bid |access-date=2025-03-07 |website=MLB.com |language=en |quote="That 'World Cup', as we say in Brazil, is important for all the young people as well who follow the Brazilian team,” Orlando added. “It will be important to have that feeling of moving on to the next level.”}}</ref>

== History ==
[[File:Bud Selig on October 31, 2010.jpg|thumb|MLB Commissioner [[Bud Selig]] was a driving force in creating the WBC]]
The first World Baseball Classic tournament was announced in May {{baseball year|2005}} by [[Bud Selig]], the [[Commissioner of Baseball|commissioner]] of Major League Baseball.<ref name="schwarz" /> Major League Baseball had been attempting to create such a tournament for at least two years, but faced resistance from both owners and the MLBPA players' union. MLB owners, notably [[New York Yankees]] owner [[George Steinbrenner]], had been concerned about their star players being injured in international play before the beginning of [[spring training]] and the regular season. This was a concern for the MLBPA as well, but their primary objection was with [[Doping (sport)|drug testing]]. MLB wanted the stricter [[Olympic Games|Olympic]] standards in place for the tournament, while the union wanted the more lax MLB standards in place at the time.<ref>{{cite news |title=On Baseball; M.L.B. Needs To Play Tough For World Cup |work=The New York Times |agency=The New York Times |date=February 10, 2004 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2004/02/10/sports/on-baseball-mlb-needs-to-play-tough-for-world-cup.html |last1=Chass |first1=Murray }}</ref> Eventually, a deal was reached on insurance for player contracts and a fairly tough drug testing standard. MLB teams would not be able to directly block their players from participating.

Similarly, [[Nippon Professional Baseball]] (NPB) and its players' association had a disagreement over participation in the tournament. While the owners initially agreed to the invitation, the players' union was concerned about the time of year the tournament was scheduled to take place, as well as their right to be better represented for the {{baseball year|2009}} tournament. On September 16, 2005, after four months of negotiations, NPB officially notified the IBAF and MLB they had accepted the invitation.

=== 2006–09: Samurai Japan's back-to-back championships ===
{{see also||2006 World Baseball Classic championship|2009 World Baseball Classic championship}}

The 16-team field for the inaugural [[2006 World Baseball Classic|2006 tournament]] was pre-selected, featuring the countries judged to be the "best baseball-playing nations" in the world; no qualifying competition was held.<ref>{{cite web|title=World Baseball Classic |url=http://web.worldbaseballclassic.com/2006/about/index.jsp?sid=wbc |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150123003823/http://web.worldbaseballclassic.com/2006/about/index.jsp?sid=wbc |archive-date=January 23, 2015 |url-status=live |access-date=March 13, 2009 }}</ref> The tournament format featured [[Round-robin tournament|round-robin]] group play in the first and second rounds, followed by [[single-elimination]] semifinals and finals. The first game in WBC history saw [[South Korea national baseball team|South Korea]] defeat [[Chinese Taipei national baseball team|Chinese Taipei]] 2–0 before a crowd of 5,193 at the [[Tokyo Dome]] on March 3, 2006. South Korea went on to advance to the semifinals with a 6–0 record but lost to [[Japan national baseball team|Japan]] (a team South Korea had beaten twice in the earlier rounds) for a berth in the final game. Meanwhile, [[Cuba national baseball team|Cuba]] defeated the [[Dominican Republic national baseball team|Dominican Republic]] in the other semifinal. Both countries had to go through two rounds of [[Tournament#Multi-stage tournaments|group stages]] and the semi-finals in [[single-elimination tournament|knockout format]] to reach the final. Cuba lost only two games, once to [[Puerto Rico national baseball team|Puerto Rico]] in the first round and once to the [[Dominican Republic national baseball team|Dominican Republic]] in the second round. However, Japan lost three times, twice to [[South Korea national baseball team|South Korea]] in each round and the [[United States national baseball team|United States]] in the second round. This sparked a [[Controversies at the 2006 World Baseball Classic#Format|format controversy]] since South Korea would have a better overall and head-to-head record than Japan by the end of the tournament. As such, Cuba was the favorite to win the final.  The team with the higher winning percentage of games in the tournament was to be the home team.

[[file:WBC Championship Trophy.JPG|thumb|2006 World Baseball Classic Trophy; the trophy is in the [[Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame]]]]

The match began progressing when Japan's starting pitcher–[[Daisuke Matsuzaka]]–gave up four [[Hit (baseball)|hits]], five [[strikeout]]s and one run by the end of the 4th inning using a [[gyroball]] pitching style. Offensively, Japan was able to record 6 runs with the help of [[Ichiro Suzuki]]'s batting style of [[Contact hitter|contact hitting]]. Once the Japanese [[bullpen]] took the mound in the 6th inning, Cuba aggressively responded for the rest of the baseball game, using [[Power hitter|power hitting]]. By the end of the eighth, the disparity would come down to one run in favor of Japan from [[Frederich Cepeda]]'s [[home run]], who would record three [[Run batted in|runs batted in]] by the end of the game. In the ninth, Japan would counter by pushing their offensive limit over Cuba's, which would result in a final score of ten to six. The aftermath of the final most notably included notice from [[Major League Baseball]], from Cuba's increase in [[List of baseball players who defected from Cuba|defection]] to Matsuzaka's impact for the [[2007 World Series|World Series champion]] [[2007 Boston Red Sox season|Boston Red Sox]] in the next year.

The next iteration of the tournament, taking place in 2009, featured the same 16 teams from 2006. However, the [[2006 World Baseball Classic#Controversies|controversial]] round-robin format from 2006 was replaced by a [[double-elimination|modified double-elimination]] format for the first two rounds (the semifinals and final game remained single-elimination).  The eight teams advancing from the first round were the same as in 2006, except for a [[Cinderella (sports)|"Cinderella"]] performance by the [[Netherlands national baseball team|Netherlands]], which twice defeated the Dominican Republic to reach the second round.  In the semifinals, South Korea defeated [[Venezuela national baseball team|Venezuela]] while Japan defeated the [[United States national baseball team|United States]]. [[South Korea]] won the coin flip held after the second semifinal between [[Japan]] and the United States, designating them as the home team for the final.<ref>{{cite news |first=John |last=Schlegel |title=Japan and Korea familiar foes at Classic |url=http://www.worldbaseballclassic.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20090323&content_id=4052198&vkey=wbc&team= |work=Worldbaseballclassic.com |date=March 23, 2009 |access-date=March 24, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101207210323/http://www.worldbaseballclassic.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20090323&content_id=4052198&vkey=wbc&team= |archive-date=December 7, 2010 |url-status=dead  }}</ref>

Japan drew first blood, scoring on an [[Runs batted in|RBI]] [[single (baseball)|single]] by [[Michihiro Ogasawara]] in the third inning. [[Shin-Soo Choo]] tied the score 1−all with a [[home run]] in the fifth inning. With runners on first and third, [[Hiroyuki Nakajima]] hit an RBI single to bring [[Seiichi Uchikawa]] home to give Japan the lead 2−1.<ref name=news>{{cite news |first=Barry |last=Bloom |title=Ichiro lifts Japan to Classic glory |url=http://web.worldbaseballclassic.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20090323&content_id=4056138&vkey=wbc&team=jpn |work=Worldbaseballclassic.com |date=March 24, 2009 |access-date=March 24, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090326235023/http://web.worldbaseballclassic.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20090323&content_id=4056138&vkey=wbc&team=jpn |archive-date=March 26, 2009 |url-status=dead  }}</ref> South Korea failed to take advantage of Japanese pitcher [[Hisashi Iwakuma]], who was visibly tired, when they failed to score in the seventh inning, when Iwakuma was relieved by [[Toshiya Sugiuchi]] after two outs. Uchikawa hit a single to start the eighth. [[Atsunori Inaba]] scored a [[double (baseball)|double]] to put Uchikawa in scoring position, and Uchikawa scored on [[Akinori Iwamura]]'s [[sacrifice fly]]. [[Jong Hyun-wook|Hyun-wook Jong]] retired the remaining batters to close out the inning.<ref name=news/>

Japan brought out their [[closer (baseball)|closer]], [[Yu Darvish]], for the bottom of the ninth with a 3−2 lead. Darvish struck out [[Jeong Keun-woo|Keun-woo Jeong]], but [[walk (baseball)|walked]] [[Hyun-soo Kim]] and [[Kim Tae-kyun (baseball, born 1982)|Tae-kyun Kim]] to put South Koreans on first and second with one out. Darvish then struck out Choo and was one out away from saving the game. But [[Lee Bum-ho|Bum-ho Lee]] singled, driving in [[Lee Jong-wook (baseball)|Jong-wook Lee]] for the game-tying run to make it 3−all and send the game into [[extra innings]].<ref name=ESPN1>{{cite news |title=Ichiro comes through with big hit as Japan wins WBC |url=http://sports.espn.go.com/extra/baseball/wbbc/recap?gameId=290323108&league=wbbc |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090327023442/http://sports.espn.go.com/extra/baseball/wbbc/recap?gameId=290323108&league=wbbc |url-status=dead |archive-date=March 27, 2009 |agency=[[Associated Press]] |work=ESPN |date=March 24, 2009 |access-date=March 24, 2009 }}</ref> Japan batted first, with [[Lim Chang-yong|Chang-yong Lim]] pitching for South Korea in the tenth. Uchikawa and Iwamura hit a single to put runners on first and third with two out. Ichiro was one strike away from ending the inning when he hit a line-drive single up the middle that scored Iwamura and Uchikawa. Lim then hit Nakajima with a pitch and intentionally walked [[Norichika Aoki]] to face [[Kenji Johjima]] who was hitless up to that point. Lim was able to strikeout Johjima and send the game to the bottom of the tenth. Darvish made short work of South Korea, capping with a strikeout of [[Jeong Keun-woo|Keun-woo Jeong]] to clinch Japan's successful defense of their 2006 championship.<ref name=ESPN1/><ref>{{cite news |title=Japan vs. Korea box score |work=[[Yahoo! Sports]] |date=March 24, 2009 |access-date=March 24, 2009 |url=https://sports.yahoo.com/wbc/boxscore;_ylt=Asn84i5Xw8_6qBN7jTWUZEERvLYF?gid=290323104 }}</ref>

Pitcher [[Daisuke Matsuzaka]] of Japan was awarded the tournament MVP for the second consecutive time, with a 3−0 [[win (baseball)|record]] and 2.45 [[earned run average|ERA]].<ref>{{cite web
|title=Ichiro Suzuki Delivers Memorable End to World Baseball Classic |work=The New York Times
|date=March 24, 2009 |first=Jack |last=Curry |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/25/sports/baseball/25wbc.html
|access-date=March 27, 2009| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090325183547/http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/25/sports/baseball/25wbc.html| archive-date= March 25, 2009 | url-status= live}}</ref><ref>{{cite AV media |date=March 23, 2019 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ixb2E5rxe4Q |title=Round 4-2009 WBC Final - Japan vs Korea - Monday, March 23, 2009 - 8:30pm CDT - ESPN, MLB Int |publisher=The Bricks & Ivy Archive |via=[[YouTube]] |access-date=September 7, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200508212926/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ixb2E5rxe4Q&gl=US&hl=en |archive-date=May 8, 2020 |url-status=live}}</ref>

After the match the team was congratulated immediately for their victory by Japanese prime minister [[Taro Aso]]. And Korean President [[Lee Myung-bak]] invited the Korean team to come and encourage the team.

=== 2013: Direct qualification and "Plátano Power" ===
{{see also||2013 World Baseball Classic championship}}
In 2013, the World Baseball Classic was one of the two main senior baseball tournaments sanctioned by the WBSC, alongside the [[WBSC Premier12|Premier 12]] but the Classic is the only one which grants to the winner the title of "World Champion".<ref name="International Baseball Federation"/><ref name="wbsc.org"/>

The buildup to the [[2013 World Baseball Classic|2013 tournament]] included a [[2013 World Baseball Classic qualification|qualifying round]] for the first time, with the four lowest finishers from 2009 having to re-qualify against 12 additional teams. This resulted in two new nations making their first appearances in the WBC, as [[Brazil national baseball team|Brazil]] and [[Spain national baseball team|Spain]] respectively replaced [[Panama national baseball team|Panama]] and [[South Africa national baseball team|South Africa]]. The round-robin format was revived for the tournament's first-round, while the second-round remained double-elimination. in Pool B, [[South Korea national baseball team|South Korea]] went into the final game needing not only to win (which would cause a three-way tie for the two second-round berths) but to win by at least five runs in order to have a chance of advancing on tiebreakers. Although [[Chinese Taipei national baseball team|Chinese Taipei]] lost its 2−0 lead in Korea's three-run eighth-inning rally, and then lost the game, they emerged as winners of the pool and of the second-round berth since Korea's margin of victory was only one run. and then [[Italy national baseball team|Italy]] was the biggest surprise in the early stages of the tournament, making it to the second round with wins over Canada and Mexico.

[[File:DR_vs_PR._World_Baseball_Classic.jpg|thumb|[[2013 World Baseball Classic championship]] between [[Dominican Republic national baseball team|Dominican Republic]] and [[Puerto Rico national baseball team|Puerto Rico]], 20 March 2013]]
The tournament ended in an all-Caribbean championship game, with the [[Dominican Republic national baseball team|Dominican Republic]] defeating [[Puerto Rico national baseball team|Puerto Rico]], In the final, [[Samuel Deduno]] started for the Dominican Republic, while [[Giancarlo Alvarado]] started for Puerto Rico.<ref name=aol>{{cite web|agency=Associated Press |url=http://aol.sportingnews.com/mlb/story/2013-03-19/world-baseball-classic-2013-dominican-republic-puerto-rico-jose-reyes-robinson-c |title=Dominican Republic wins 2013 World Baseball Classic; blanks Puerto Rico in final – MLB – Sporting News |publisher=Aol.sportingnews.com |access-date=March 20, 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/mlb/2013/03/18/wbc-championship-game-puerto-rico-giancarlo-alvarado/1998117/ |title=WBC provides journeyman one shot at stardom |work=USA Today |date= March 18, 2013|access-date=March 20, 2013 |first1=John |last1=Perrotto}}</ref> 35,703 fans attended the game at [[Oracle Park|AT&T Park]] in [[San Francisco]]. An additional 50,000 Dominican fans watched the game at [[Estadio Quisqueya]] in [[Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic]].<ref name=aol/> In Puerto Rico, the final was the most watched sporting event for the past year with nearly three-fourths of all households tuning in.<ref name=Guardian>{{cite news|title=Unbeaten Dominican Republic claim World Baseball Classic title|url=https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2013/mar/20/dominican-republic-win-world-baseball-classic|access-date=March 21, 2013|newspaper=The Guardian|location=London|first=Steve|last=Busfield|date=March 20, 2013}}</ref><ref name=ESPN2>{{cite news|title=To D.R., WBC title means everything|url=https://www.espn.com/mlb/worldclassic2013/story/_/id/9073682/world-baseball-classic-title-means-everything-dominicans|access-date=March 21, 2013|newspaper=ESPN}}</ref> [[Edwin Encarnación]] hit a two-run [[double (baseball)|double]] in the first inning, giving the Dominican Republic the lead. [[Erick Aybar]] had the game's third [[run batted in]] for the Dominican Republic. Deduno recorded five [[strikeout]]s in five scoreless [[innings pitched]] and [[Fernando Rodney]] completed the game with a [[save (baseball)|save]], his seventh of the tournament.<ref name=aol/>  Four Dominican relief pitchers combined for 4 scoreless innings.<ref name="New York Times">{{cite news|title=World-Class Pitching Carries Undefeated Dominicans to Title|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/20/sports/baseball/dominican-republic-wins-world-baseball-classic.html?_r=0|access-date=March 21, 2013|newspaper=The New York Times|first=Tyler|last=Kepner|date=March 20, 2013}}</ref>

This was the third time in the tournament that the Dominican Republic defeated Puerto Rico.<ref name=aol/>  The Dominican Republic completed the tournament with an 8–0 record, becoming the first undefeated team to win the World Baseball Classic.<ref name=ESPN2/> [[Robinson Canó]] was named the [[Most Valuable Player]] of the Classic after he batted 15-for-32 (.469), the most hits in tournament history. After the match the team was congratulated for their victory by Dominican president [[Danilo Medina]].<ref name=ESPN2/><ref>{{cite web|title=Danilo Medina felicita la selección de béisbol|url=http://eldia.com.do/deportes/2013/3/20/109873/Danilo-Medina-felicita-la-seleccion-de-beisbol|publisher=El Dia|access-date=March 21, 2013|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130412110721/http://eldia.com.do/deportes/2013/3/20/109873/Danilo-Medina-felicita-la-seleccion-de-beisbol|archive-date=April 12, 2013|url-status=dead}}</ref>

=== 2017: American redemption ===
{{see also|2017 World Baseball Classic championship}}
[[File:Play_Ball_Ballpark_(48262401092).jpg|thumb|2013-17 The Classic Trophy]]
The [[2017 World Baseball Classic|2017 tournament]] returned to the format used in 2006, where both the first and second rounds were round-robin, though with the addition of tiebreaker games if needed. [[Colombia national baseball team|Colombia]] and [[Israel national baseball team|Israel]] qualified for the first time, with Israel using a roster mostly of [[Jewish American]] players. Prior to the start of the 2017 World Baseball Classic, [[ESPN]] considered Team Israel, ranked 41st in the world, to be the biggest underdog in the tournament, referring to it as the "[[Jamaica national bobsleigh team|Jamaican bobsled team]] of the WBC".<ref>[https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/18805572/team-israel-wbc-biggest-underdog-ever "Team Israel -- and its mascot, Mensch on a Bench -- is the Jamaican bobsled team of the WBC"], ESPN.</ref><ref>[http://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/sports/1.775667 "World Baseball Classic: Israel's Cinderella Run Forges Ahead After Upsetting Taiwan"], ''Haaretz''.</ref> On the other hand, Defending champion [[Dominican Republic national baseball team|Dominican Republic]] extended its WBC winning streak to 11 games, dating to the 2013 tournament, before being eliminated in the second round. The [[United States national baseball team|United States]] won its first WBC championship, defeating Japan and [[Puerto Rico]] in the semifinals and finals, respectively. Puerto Rico reached the championship undefeated in the tournament, winning all seven [[games played]]. Puerto Rico had defeated the United States when they faced each other in [[2017 World Baseball Classic – Pool F|Pool F]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.mlb.com/news/usa-puerto-rico-meet-in-classic-final-c220353482|title=USA-PR a final worthy of emotional WBC '17|work=MLB.com|first=Phil|last=Rogers|date=March 22, 2017|access-date=March 22, 2017|archive-date=March 22, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170322173528/http://m.mlb.com/news/article/220353482/usa-puerto-rico-meet-in-classic-final/|url-status=live}}</ref>

In the semi-final Japan reached the semifinals with wins in all six games played in the previous rounds.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.espn.com/blog/sweetspot/post/_/id/78147/exactly-how-good-is-this-japanese-wbc-team|first=David|last=Schoenfield|title=Just how good is Japan's unbeaten WBC team?|work=ESPN.com|date=March 21, 2017|access-date=March 22, 2017}}</ref> [[Tanner Roark]] started for the United States in the semifinal game,<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/nationals-journal/wp/2017/03/19/tanner-roark-set-to-start-for-team-usa-on-tuesday-daniel-murphy-continues-to-sit/|title=Tanner Roark set to start for Team USA on Tuesday, Daniel Murphy continues to sit|first=Chelsea|last=Janes|newspaper=Washington Post|date=March 19, 2017|accessdate=March 20, 2017}}</ref> while [[Tomoyuki Sugano]] started for Japan.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.theolympian.com/sports/article139755443.html|title=US gives Roark shot at redemption vs Japan in WBC semis|agency=Associated Press|work=The Olympian|date=March 20, 2017|accessdate=March 20, 2017}}{{Dead link|date=September 2019 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> Roark pitched four scoreless innings,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/mlb/2017/03/22/usa-beats-japan-reaches-world-baseball-classic-final-first-time/99480456/|title=USA beats Japan, reaches World Baseball Classic final for the first time|first=Bob|last=Nightengale|work=USA Today|date=March 22, 2017|accessdate=March 22, 2017}}</ref> while Sugano allowed one run in six innings. The United States scored a run on an RBI [[single (baseball)|single]] by [[Andrew McCutchen]] in the fourth inning, and [[Ryosuke Kikuchi]] hit a home run for Japan in the sixth inning to tie the game. The United States scored another run in the eighth inning to take the lead, and [[Luke Gregerson]] earned the [[save (baseball)|save]]. Though the Japanese team was considered the strongest defensive team in the WBC, mistakes by Kikuchi at second base and [[Nobuhiro Matsuda]] at third base led to each of the United States's runs.<ref name=nyt_semi>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/22/sports/baseball/world-baseball-classic-usa-japan.html|title=U.S., Exploiting Japan's Miscues, Reaches First W.B.C. Final|first=Billy|last=Witz|work=The New York Times|date=March 22, 2017|accessdate=March 22, 2017}}</ref>

In the championship game, [[Seth Lugo]] started for Puerto Rico,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.mlb.com/news/puerto-rico-eyes-crown-in-classic-run-c220223342|title=Puerto Rico eyes crown in Classic run|first=Barry M.|last=Bloom|work=MLB.com|date=March 21, 2017|access-date=March 21, 2017|archive-date=March 22, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170322014729/http://m.mlb.com/news/article/220223342/puerto-rico-eyes-crown-in-classic-run/|url-status=live}}</ref> and [[Marcus Stroman]] started for the United States. [[Ian Kinsler]] hit a two-run home run for the United States in the third inning, as Puerto Rico's performance faltered without earning a single run throughout the innings. Kinsler scored again in the fifth inning on a single by [[Christian Yelich]], and Yelich scored on an infield single by McCutchen. Two more runs scored on a [[bases loaded]] single by [[Brandon Crawford]] in the seventh inning, and [[Giancarlo Stanton]] scored the inning's third run with an RBI single. Meanwhile, Stroman did not allow a hit for the first six innings of play. The United States added another run in the eighth inning with an RBI single by McCutchen. The [[United States]] completed the [[shutout]] to win the championship.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sportingnews.com/mlb/news/world-baseball-classic-2017-final-usa-puerto-rico-updates-championship-game-score-result/1kz8lmqgb45jk1um11snm713zs|title=World Baseball Classic 2017: Live updates of U.S.-Puerto Rico tournament final|first=Tom|last=Gatto|work=Sporting News|date=March 22, 2017|access-date=March 22, 2017}}</ref> Stroman was named the tournament's [[Most valuable player|Most Valuable Player]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sportsnet.ca/baseball/mlb/stroman-stellar-u-s-blows-puerto-rico-win-world-baseball-classic/|title=Stroman MVP, U.S. blows out Puerto Rico to win World Baseball Classic|agency=Associated Press|work=Sportsnet.ca|date=March 23, 2017|access-date=March 23, 2017}}</ref>

=== 2023: "Baseball's already won" ===
[[File:WBC 2023 Gold Medal.jpg|thumb|World Baseball Classic Championship gold medal November 21, 2023]]
In January 2020, MLB announced that the 2021 WBC would be expanded to 20 teams. The additional four participants would be determined through qualifying tournaments, which were originally planned to take place in March 2020.<ref>{{cite web |title=Qualifying Round brackets set for '21 Classic |url=https://www.mlb.com/news/world-baseball-classic-qualifying-round-brackets |website=MLB.com |access-date=February 2, 2020}}</ref> However, on March 12, 2020, Major League Baseball announced that the 2021 tournament would be postponed due to the [[COVID-19 pandemic]].<ref>{{ cite web |url=https://www.mlb.com/press-release/press-release-major-league-baseball-to-delay-2020-opening-day-by-at-least-two-we | title=Major League Baseball to delay 2020 Opening Day by at least two weeks | work=MLB.com Press Release | date=March 12, 2020 | access-date=May 19, 2020 }}</ref>

The [[Collective agreement|collective bargaining agreement]] (CBA) from the [[2021–22 Major League Baseball lockout]] planned for the next World Baseball Classic to be held in [[2023 World Baseball Classic|2023]].<ref>{{cite web |title=MLB's plans for international play from now until 2026 |url=https://twitter.com/EvanDrellich/status/1504151435159744517 |publisher=[[Twitter]] |access-date=March 22, 2022}}</ref><ref name="auto5">{{cite web |title=World Baseball Classic returning in 2023 |date=March 16, 2022 |url=https://www.thescore.com/mlb/news/2318303 |publisher=The Athletic |access-date=March 22, 2022}}</ref> [[2023 World Baseball Classic qualification|Qualification]] for the tournament concluded on October 5, 2022, with Nicaragua claiming the final berth in a victory against Brazil.<ref>{{Cite web |date=October 5, 2022 |title=Nicaragua qualify for first World Baseball Classic |url=https://www.insidethegames.biz/articles/1128883/nicaragua-wbc |access-date=February 14, 2023 |website=www.insidethegames.biz}}</ref> The competition took place from March 8, 2023, to March 21, 2023.<ref name="MLB.com">{{Cite web |title=World Baseball Classic |url=https://www.mlb.com/world-baseball-classic |access-date=February 14, 2023 |website=MLB.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.baseballamerica.com/stories/2023-world-baseball-classic-schedule-scores-and-standings/|title=2023 World Baseball Classic Schedule and Scores|first=Kyle|last=Glaser|website=www.baseballamerica.com|date=March 22, 2023 }}</ref>

For the 2023 classic, the MLB urged its stars to participate. [[Mike Trout]] announced his participation, which motivated a cascade of others including [[Trea Turner]], [[Paul Goldschmidt]], [[Nolan Arenado]], [[J. T. Realmuto]], [[Mookie Betts]] and more of MLB's finest to join Team USA. This further stimulated participation of other important stars in countries around the world. The [[Japan national baseball team|Samurai Japan]] team assembled their own star-studded roster, including [[Shohei Ohtani]], [[Roki Sasaki]], [[Yu Darvish]], [[Masataka Yoshida]], [[Munetaka Murakami]], and [[Yoshinobu Yamamoto]], to form what many consider to be the most powerful Japanese team in history.

The [[United States national baseball team|United States]] beat Venezuela to face [[Cuba national baseball team|Cuba]] in the semifinals. Baseball is Cuba's most popular sport, and is played at a very high level. Therefore, the stakes of the encounter were high. Meanwhile, Japan faced [[Mexico national baseball team|Mexico]] in the semifinals, who were on a [[Cinderella (sports)|Cinderella run]], majorly led by [[Tampa Bay Rays]] outfielder [[Randy Arozarena]].

After defeating Cuba in the semifinals by a wide margin, the [[United States national baseball team|United States]] faced another rival, [[Japan national baseball team|Japan]], in the [[2023 World Baseball Classic championship|championship game]]. The final was incredibly popular in Japan, drawing over 54 million Japanese viewers. [[Shōta Imanaga]] started for Japan, while [[Merrill Kelly]] started for USA. With a 3–2 lead, two outs, and no runners on base in the bottom of the ninth inning, Japan's [[Shohei Ohtani]], one of the best pitchers in recent memory, stood on the mound as his [[Los Angeles Angels|Angels]] teammate [[Mike Trout]], widely considered the greatest player of his generation, stepped up to the plate. After the first pitch of this matchup, [[Fox Sports]] commentator [[Joe Davis (sportscaster)|Joe Davis]] reflected on the spectacle, saying, "As [[Benji Gil]] said last night, 'Baseball's already won.'"<ref name="Imperialism at the World Baseball Classic" /><ref>{{cite news|last=Kepner|first=Tyler|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/21/sports/baseball/japan-world-baseball-classic.html|title=With Japan-U.S. Final at the W.B.C., the World Has Already Won|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|date=March 21, 2023|access-date=June 3, 2025}}</ref> The two battled to a full count. Ohtani would lure Trout to swing and miss with a slider down and away, sealing the victory for Japan.<ref name="Imperialism at the World Baseball Classic">{{cite news|last=Stutman-Shaw|first=Caleb|url=https://www.theindy.org/article/2980|title=Imperialism at the World Baseball Classic|newspaper=[[The College Hill Independent]]|date=April 22, 2023|access-date=June 3, 2025}}</ref>

After the match, Japan was congratulated for their victory by Japanese prime minister [[Fumio Kishida]]. They became the second team to win the World Baseball classic without losing a single game the entire tournament, after the aforementioned Dominican Republic in 2013.<ref name="Axisa"/>

===2026 tournament===
Before the championship game of the 2023 tournament, MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred announced that the next World Baseball Classic would be held in [[2026 World Baseball Classic|2026]].<ref>[https://sports.yahoo.com/world-baseball-classic-to-be-held-again-in-2026-mlb-commissioner-announces-215230359.html World Baseball Classic to be held again in 2026, MLB commissioner announces]</ref> Sixteen teams qualified by making the top four of their four respective pools during the [[2023 World Baseball Classic|2023]] tournament. The other four remaining participants will be determined through the qualifying tournament scheduled for 2025.<ref>{{Cite web |title=When's the next World Baseball Classic? MLB commissioner Rob Manfred confirms plans for 2026 tournament |url=https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/whens-the-next-world-baseball-classic-mlb-commissioner-rob-manfred-confirms-plans-for-2026-tournament/amp/ |access-date=March 22, 2023 |website=CBS Sports }}</ref>

In May 2024, it was announced that the pool play rounds will be played in [[loanDepot Park|Miami, Florida]]; [[Minute Maid Park|Houston, Texas]]; [[Hiram Bithorn Stadium|San Juan, Puerto Rico]]; and [[Tokyo Dome|Tokyo, Japan]]. The quarterfinals will be split between Miami and Houston, and the final round will be played in Miami.<ref>[https://www.mlb.com/news/world-baseball-classic-2026-host-sites-announced Tokyo, San Juan, Houston and Miami announced as World Baseball Classic 2026 hosts]</ref>

==Format==
The World Baseball Classic is held during the month of March, coinciding with the [[spring training]] pre-season for most top-level professional baseball leagues such as [[Major League Baseball]] (MLB), [[Nippon Professional Baseball]] (NPB) and the [[KBO League]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=WBC returns in March 2026, retaining spring training slot |url=https://sports.yahoo.com/wbc-returns-march-2026-retaining-034455687.html |access-date=March 22, 2023 |website=Yahoo Sports |language=en-US}}</ref> Venues are located in either indoor baseball domes or at outdoor baseball stadiums which have mild or moderately warm temperatures during early spring.

{| class="wikitable floatright"
|+ style="font-size:85%"| Number of MLB [[Major League Baseball rosters#26-man roster|26-man players]] by country (or possession) ([[2022 MLB season|2022]])<ref name="MLBbirth">{{cite web |title=MLB Players by Birthplace During the 2022 Season |url=https://www.baseball-almanac.com/players/birthplace.php?y=2022 |publisher=Baseball Alamanac |access-date=9 December 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=2022 Major League Baseball Team Statistics (Compiled from Team Rosters) |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/leagues/majors/2022.shtml |publisher=Baseball Reference |access-date=9 December 2022}}</ref>
|-<!--ADJUSTED TO REFLECT NUMBERS FOUND ON BASEBALL REFERENCE. DO NOT CHANGE UNLESS SOURCES CAN BE PROVIDED.-->
!Rank
!Country (or possession)
!{{tooltip|#|Amount}}
!{{tooltip|%|Percentage}}
|-
| 1 || {{bb|United States}} || 1,057 || {{percentage|1057|1495|1}}
|-
| 2 || {{bb|Dominican Republic}} || 171 || {{percentage|171|1495|1}}
|-
| 3 || {{bb|Venezuela}} || 106 || {{percentage|106|1495|1}}
|-
| 4 || {{bb|Cuba}} || 33 || {{percentage|33|1495|1}}
|-
| 5 || {{bb|Puerto Rico}} || 28 || {{percentage|28|1495|1}}
|-
| 6 || {{bb|Mexico}} || 24 || {{percentage|24|1495|1}}
|-
| 7 || {{bb|Canada}} || 15 || {{percentage|15|1495|1}}
|-
| 8 || {{bb|Colombia}} || 13 || {{percentage|13|1495|1}}
|-
| 9 || {{bb|Panama}} || 9 || {{percentage|9|1495|1}}
|-
| 10 || {{bb|Japan}} || 7 || {{percentage|8|1495|1}}
|-
| 11 || {{bb|South Korea}} || 6 || {{percentage|6|1495|1}}
|-
| 12 || {{bb|Curaçao}}{{efn|Curaçao is represented by the Netherlands in certain [[World Baseball Softball Confederation|international competitions]].}} || 5 || {{percentage|5|1495|1}}
|-
| 13 || {{bb|Australia}}<br>{{bb|Germany}} || 3 || {{percentage|3|1495|1}}
|-
| 15 || ''Multiple''{{efn|Aruba, Bahamas & Nicaragua all had two players compete in MLB games.}}{{efn|Aruba is represented by the Netherlands in certain [[World Baseball Softball Confederation|international competitions]].}}{{efn|Bahamas is represented by Great Britain in certain [[World Baseball Softball Confederation|international competitions]].}} || 2 || {{percentage|2|1495|1}}
|-
| 18 || ''Multiple''{{efn|Brazil, Guam, Honduras, Hong Kong, Netherlands, Peru, South Africa, Taiwan & United States Virgin Islands all had one player compete in MLB games.}}{{efn|Guam is represented by the United States in certain [[World Baseball Softball Confederation|international competitions]].}}{{efn|The US Virgin Islands is represented by the United States in certain [[World Baseball Softball Confederation|international competitions]].}} || 1 || {{percentage|1|1495|1}}
|}
<!--BELOW ARE PLAYERS WHO WERE CALLED UP IN THE 2022 MLB SEASON. CHANGES FOR 2023 WILL BE MADE AT THE END OF THE SEASON-->
Despite the absence of many elite MLB pitchers due to exposure or conditioning limits set by their club employers and insurance [[underwriting]] issues and non-standardization,<ref>{{Cite web |date=March 21, 2023 |title=MLB's Rob Manfred pushes for more star pitchers in next WBC |first1=Alden |last1=Gonzalez |url=https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/35913858/mlb-rob-manfred-pushes-more-star-pitchers-next-wbc |access-date=March 22, 2023 |website=ESPN |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=March 8, 2023 |title=Why the 2023 World Baseball Classic is the most important ever |first1=Joon |last1=Lee |url=https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/35804308/world-baseball-classic-2023-mlb-impact-explained |access-date=March 22, 2023 |website=ESPN |language=en |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230322143941/https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/35804308/world-baseball-classic-2023-mlb-impact-explained |archive-date= March 22, 2023 }}</ref> the tournament continues to attract a star-studded field of elite baseball players, particularly among position players who are potent [[Batting (baseball)|batters]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Yomtov |first=Jesse |title=2023 World Baseball Classic: Team USA's full roster includes 21 All-Stars, 4 MVPs |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/mlb/2023/02/10/team-usa-world-baseball-classic-2023-roster-coaches/11228427002/ |date=Feb 10, 2023 |access-date=March 22, 2023 |website=USA Today |language=en-US}}</ref>

In 2006, many high caliber players from both [[Major League Baseball]] and in leagues around the world participated in the World Baseball Classic. Amongst the players that made the All–WBC team were Americans [[Derek Jeter]] and [[Ken Griffey Jr.]] From Japan, [[Daisuke Matsuzaka]], [[Ichiro Suzuki]] and [[Tomoya Satozaki]] were on the team. Other internationals included players from Cuba—[[Yulieski Gurriel]], [[Yoandy Garlobo]] and [[Yadel Martí]]; and from the Dominican Republic—[[Albert Pujols]], [[Pedro Martínez]] and [[José Bautista]]. The 2009 Classic saw a similarly high-profile field, with a number of players such as [[National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum|Hall of Famers]] [[Pedro Martínez]], [[Iván Rodríguez]] and [[Chipper Jones]] and the major international debuts of Cuba's [[Yoenis Céspedes]] and [[Aroldis Chapman]].

For the 2013 tournament, Japanese players threatened to boycott the event despite its domestic popularity,<ref>{{cite web |last=Coskrey |first=Jason |title=JPBPA unanimously votes to boycott WBC |work=The Japan Times |date=July 21, 2012 |access-date=August 13, 2012 |url=http://www.japantimes.co.jp/text/sb20120721g1.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130426011859/http://www.japantimes.co.jp/sports/2012/07/21/sports/jpbpa-unanimously-votes-to-boycott-wbc/#.UXnWD0TP1qY |archive-date= Apr 26, 2013 }}</ref> before later agreeing to take part after reaching a compromise in September 2012 with tournament organizers on sharing sponsorship and licensing revenue.<ref>{{cite news |title=Japan agrees to play in 2013 WBC |agency=Associated Press |work=ESPN |date=September 4, 2012 |url=https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/8335634/japan-commits-2013-world-baseball-classic/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160129042239/http://espn.go.com/mlb/story/_/id/8335634/japan-commits-2013-world-baseball-classic/ |archive-date= Jan 29, 2016 }}</ref> Nevertheless, many key players from the 2009 Japanese team such as [[Yu Darvish]], Ichiro, and [[Hisashi Iwakuma]] decided not to participate. However, other prominent MLB players accepted selections from their national teams, such as [[Miguel Cabrera]], [[David Wright]], [[R. A. Dickey]], [[Joey Votto]], [[Adrián González]], [[Robinson Canó]], and [[José Reyes (shortstop)|José Reyes]], among many others.

In 2017, former All-Stars such as [[Adam Jones (baseball)|Adam Jones]], [[Chris Archer]], [[Buster Posey]], [[Paul Goldschmidt]], [[Andrew McCutchen]] and others played for the United States. For the Dominican Republic, former All-Stars [[Adrián Beltré]], [[Robinson Canó]], [[Manny Machado]], [[José Reyes (shortstop)|José Reyes]], [[Edinson Vólquez]], and more participated. [[Adrián González]] played once more for Mexico, and [[Yadier Molina]] and [[Carlos Beltrán]] represented Puerto Rico alongside up-and-coming stars such as [[Javier Báez]], [[Carlos Correa]], and [[Francisco Lindor]]. Venezuela's roster included [[Jose Altuve]] and [[Miguel Cabrera]].

In 2023, former All-Stars on the U.S. team included [[Mike Trout]], [[Nolan Arenado]], [[Pete Alonso]], [[Mookie Betts]], [[Tim Anderson (baseball)|Tim Anderson]], [[Jeff McNeil]], [[J. T. Realmuto]], [[Kyle Schwarber]], [[Trea Turner]], [[Kyle Tucker]], [[Ryan Pressly]], [[Lance Lynn]], [[Miles Mikolas]], and [[Paul Goldschmidt]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Kepner |first=Tyler |date=March 9, 2023 |title=Captain America |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/09/sports/baseball/mike-trout-usa-world-baseball-classic.html |url-access=subscription |access-date=March 11, 2023 |issn=0362-4331 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230311005019/https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/09/sports/baseball/mike-trout-usa-world-baseball-classic.html |archive-date=March 11, 2023  }}</ref> [[St. Louis Cardinals|St Louis Cardinals]] teammates [[Lars Nootbaar]] and [[Tommy Edman]] both participated as part of [[Japan national baseball team|Japan]] and [[South Korea national baseball team|South Korea]] respectively, in honor of both their mothers' heritages.<ref>{{Cite web |date=March 21, 2023 |title=Why is Lars Nootbaar playing for Japan in WBC? California-born outfielder honoring mother's heritage |url=https://www.sportingnews.com/us/mlb/news/lars-nootbaar-japan-wbc-mother/duzcpbmxqnujsssxmo7ajp5z |first1=Jacob |last1=Camenker |access-date=May 30, 2023 |website=Sporting News |language=en-us}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=February 28, 2023 |title=Why Tommy Edman is playing for Korea: Michigan-born infielder to represent mother's heritage in World Baseball Classic |url=https://www.sportingnews.com/us/mlb/news/tommy-edman-korea-world-baseball-classic/jxnjmdhvgadjkkmnkzdibnde |first1=Kevin |last1=Skiver |access-date=May 30, 2023 |website=Sporting News |language=en-us}}</ref> Similarly, [[Los Angeles Dodgers]] player [[Freddie Freeman]] decided to play for [[Canada national baseball team|Canada]] instead, in honor of his late mother.<ref>{{Cite web |date=March 13, 2023 |title=Why Freddie Freeman is playing against the U.S. tonight instead of for Team USA |url=https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/35828722/wbc-2023-world-baseball-classic-freddie-freeman-team-canada |first1=Jesse |last1=Rogers |access-date=May 30, 2023 |website=ESPN.com |language=en}}</ref> [[Randy Arozarena]], despite being Cuban, opted to play for Mexico instead after the WBC rules allowed players who legally were residents in a country to play for that country, having asked Mexican president [[Andrés Manuel López Obrador]] to help him in his case for approval of his application as a legal citizen of Mexico.<ref>{{Cite web |date=March 19, 2023 |title=Why is Randy Arozarena playing for Mexico in WBC? Cuban-born Rays outfielder embraces Mexican citizenship |url=https://www.sportingnews.com/us/mlb/news/randy-arozarena-mexico-citizen-cuba-wbc/ydwhr2ywfbudgrzrlyu0duxx |first1=David |last1=Suggs |access-date=May 30, 2023 |website=Sporting News |language=en-us}}</ref>

== Rules of play==
=== Eligibility ===
In addition to the standard [[rules of baseball]], the World Baseball Classic employs the following additional rules:

A player is eligible to participate on a World Baseball Classic team if any one of the following criteria is met:<ref>{{cite web|url=http://web.worldbaseballclassic.com/wbc/2013/about/rules.jsp#player_eligibility|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130209190928/http://web.worldbaseballclassic.com/wbc/2013/about/rules.jsp|url-status=dead|archive-date=February 9, 2013|title=World Baseball Classic Qualifier Rules and Regulations|access-date=January 9, 2013}}</ref>
*The player is a citizen of the nation the team represents.
*The player is qualified for citizenship or to hold a passport under the laws of a nation represented by a team, but has not been granted citizenship or been issued a passport; in this case, the player may be made eligible by [[World Baseball Classic Inc.]]{{clarify|reason=WBCI is not defined anywhere|date=March 2017}} upon petition by the player or team.
*The player is a permanent legal resident of the nation or territory the team represents.
*The player was born in the nation or territory the team represents.
*The player has one parent who is, or if deceased was, a citizen of the nation the team represents.
*The player has one parent who was born in the nation or territory the team represents.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://deadspin.com/5167239/dan-serafini-wins-one-for-team-italy|title=Dan Serafini Wins One For Team Italy |date=March 10, 2009 |access-date=March 21, 2009}}</ref>

=== Pitching ===
A pitcher cannot pitch more than:
*85 pitches per game in the Qualifying Round (all tournaments since 2013, when this round was introduced)
*65 pitches per game in the First Round (all tournaments except 2009, in which the limit was 70)
*80 pitches per game in the Second Round (all tournaments except 2009, in which the limit was 85)
*95 pitches per game in the Championship Round (all tournaments except 2009, in which the limit was 100)

A pitcher can still finish a batter's plate appearance even if the limit is reached, but must come out after completing the plate appearance.

=== Mercy rules ===
To prevent one-sided contests, games are ended early if one team is ahead by a certain amount. These [[mercy rule]]s do not apply during the knockout stage.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.nbcsports.com/bayarea/giants/what-are-2023-world-baseball-classic-rules|title=World Baseball Classic rule guide: Pitch count, mercy rules, DH|website=RSN|date=February 16, 2023 }}</ref>

=== Designated hitter ===
The [[designated hitter]] rule applies for all games.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://web.worldbaseballclassic.com/wbc/2013/about/rules.jsp|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130209190928/http://web.worldbaseballclassic.com/wbc/2013/about/rules.jsp|url-status=dead|title=World Baseball Classic: About - Rules|archive-date=February 9, 2013}}</ref>

=== Extra innings ===
From 2009 through 2017, starting with the 11th inning, teams automatically start with runners on first and second base.<ref>{{cite web|title=About World Baseball Classic|url=http://web.worldbaseballclassic.com/wbc/2013/about/infographic.jsp|publisher=worldbaseballclassic.com|access-date=October 12, 2013}}</ref> The baserunners are the players in the two batting order positions previous to the leadoff batter for the inning (or substitutes called in to [[pinch-runner|pinch-run]] for those players). Organizers put this rule in place starting with the 2009 tournament, although originally, it did not come into effect until the 13th inning.<ref>{{cite web |agency=Associated Press |title=WBC adopts extra-inning rule |url=https://www.espn.com/mlb/worldclassic2009/news/story?id=3870558 |website=ESPN|date=January 30, 2009 }}</ref> The intention behind the rule is to help ensure extra-inning games end in as timely a manner as possible, reducing the chance of seeing marathon extra-inning games that place undue strain on players, particularly pitchers.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Baer |first1=Bill |title=WBC's extra-innings rule cheapens Puerto Rico's win, sadly |url=https://mlb.nbcsports.com/2017/03/21/wbcs-extra-innings-rule-cheapens-puerto-ricos-win-sadly/ |website=NBCSports.com|date=March 21, 2017 }}</ref> As no extra-inning games in either the 2009 or 2013 WBCs reached the point where the rule came into play, it took until the 2017 WBC for it to affect a game's outcome. There were three such games in 2017, and all three were decided in the 11th inning.

In 2023, the rule was changed to bring the WBC in line with [[Major League Baseball]].<ref name=2023rules/>

=== Video replay review ===
Beginning in the [[2023 World Baseball Classic]], video review is available [[Instant replay in Major League Baseball#Procedure|for all situations]] as it would be during a Major League Baseball regular season game.<ref name=2023rules>{{Cite web|url=https://www.mlb.com/news/world-baseball-classic-rules-and-regulations-2023|title=2023 World Baseball Classic rules and regulations|website=MLB.com}}</ref>

=== Run differential ===
Unlike regular season play, where the number of runs by which a team wins a game is not relevant, the number of runs by which a WBC team wins may be relevant if a tie later develops in the standings. In such cases, teams are ranked by their [[Team Quality Balance]], which rewards them for scoring by as many runs as possible, and for winning with as few of their batters getting out as possible when batting in the bottom of the inning.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Major changes coming to international baseball and softball, World Cups|url=https://www.wbsc.org/news/major-changes-international-baseball-softball-world-cups|access-date=January 2, 2021|website=wbsc.org|language=en|quote=Following the WBSC World Cup/Tournament Commission’s recommendation, the team with the best Team Quality Balance (TQB) will advance or place higher in the final standings. The TQB is calculated this way: runs scored/inning played at bat-runs allowed/innings playing on defense.}}</ref> This caused problems during the 2013 WBC, where one game spawned a bench-clearing brawl between the Canadian and Mexican teams (Canadian hitter [[Chris Robinson (baseball)|Chris Robinson]] had bunted for a base hit after Canada had already taken a large lead, causing Mexican pitcher [[Arnold Leon]] to throw three consecutive pitches at the next hitter, [[Rene Tosoni]]).

These tiebreakers were changed starting in the 2017 WBC to be "fewest runs allowed per inning of defense in head-to-head games", which still places an emphasis on scoring as many runs as possible (whilst also allowing the fewest runs as possible).

==Participation==
{{See also|2026 World Baseball Classic}}
[[File:WBSC_flag.svg|thumb|Flag of the [[World Baseball Softball Confederation]] (WBSC)]]

The first two iterations of the Classic featured the same 16 teams, chosen by invitation. A qualifying round was added leading into the 2013 tournament and takes place in the year before the WBC proper. [[Brazil national baseball team|Brazil]] and [[Spain national baseball team|Spain]] were the first new countries to earn berths in the WBC via qualification, and so far the addition of qualifying has allowed seven nations to play in the tournament who were not part of the original 16.

The qualification setup for the 2013 and 2017 WBCs featured the top 12 finishing teams from the previous WBC being automatically entered in the following edition, while the four lowest finishers (the teams that finished in last place in their first-round pools) were relegated to the qualifying round. Qualifying consisted of four four-team [[Double-elimination tournament|modified double-elimination]] tournaments, with the winners earning the last four slots in the main tournament.

With the 2023 WBC expanding to 20 teams, the qualifying format changed as well. All 16 participants from the 2017 WBC received automatic bids. The restructured qualifying round consisted of a pair of six-team double-elimination tournaments, from which the winners and runners-up advanced to play in the 2023 WBC.

==Trophy==
{{See also|World Baseball Classic Trophy}}

==Broadcasting and promotion==
{{See also|World Baseball Classic television ratings}}
The tournament is one of the world's most viewed baseball events.<ref name="auto1"/><ref name="auto2">{{cite web |date=March 22, 2023 |title=How World Baseball Classic may have helped MLB, Cubs grow |url=https://allchgo.com/2023/03/22/world-baseball-classic-mlb-cubs/ |access-date= |website=allchgo.com |publisher=}}</ref><ref name="auto">{{cite web |date=March 20, 2023 |title=When is the World Baseball Classic final? Date, start time, and TV listings |url=https://www.sportskeeda.com/baseball/news-when-world-baseball-classic-final-date-start-time-tv-listings |access-date= |website=www.sportskeeda.com |publisher=}}</ref> The 2023 tournament was broadcast in 163 territories through 63 media partners, and it was broadcast in 13 languages around the globe.<ref>{{cite web |title=2023 World Baseball Classic reaches 163 territories
|website=broadcastnow.co.uk|url=https://www.broadcastnow.co.uk/broadcasting/2023-world-baseball-classic-reaches-163-territories/5180528.article|publisher= |access-date= |date=March 24, 2023}}</ref> and received US$100 million in benefits,<ref>{{cite web |title=WBC delivers emphatic turnout, as much as $100M in revenue
|website=sportsbusinessjournal.com |url=https://www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/Daily/Issues/2023/03/23/Events-and-Attractions/world-baseball-classic-revenue.aspx|publisher= |access-date= |date=March 23, 2023}}</ref> In [[Japan]], nearly 100 million people watched the WBC in 2023,<ref name="auto4">{{cite web |title=平日WBC決勝の視聴者数は延べ約1億人 生中継テレ朝系5463万9000人、録画TBS系4183万8000人|url=https://news.yahoo.co.jp/articles/fc3f3c73055b2aa7a62cfbe90569e686f4a6c8c4|website=news.yahoo.co.jp |publisher= |access-date= |date=March 23, 2023}}</ref> and 55+ million people watched the end of the tournament, as [[Shohei Ohtani]] struck out [[Mike Trout]]. The tournament is one of the most popular events in the [[Caribbean]], [[Central America|Central]] and [[South America]], particularly in [[Baseball in Venezuela|Venezuela]], part of Northern [[Colombian Professional Baseball League|Colombia]] and is called the "''Clásico Mundial''".<ref>[https://www.diariolibre.com/deportes/beisbol/2023/03/22/anuncian-equipo-estrella-del-clasico-mundial-de-beisbol-2023/2262547 Ni un dominicano en el anunciado Equipo Todos Estrellas del Clásico Mundial 2023]</ref><ref>[https://soyreferee.com/deportes/2023/2/21/clasico-mundial-2023-por-tv-abierta-canal-horarios-para-ver-los-juegos-de-mexico-18325.html Clásico Mundial 2023: ¡Por TV abierta! Canal y horarios para ver los juegos de Méxicoc]</ref><ref>[https://piodeportes.com/cantidad-de-dinero-dado-al-equipo-campeon-del-clasico-mundial-2023/ Cantidad de dinero dado al equipo campeón del Clásico Mundial 2023]</ref> The match between the [[Dominican Republic]] and [[Puerto Rico]] is considered a strong rivalry, called "''El Clásico''". In 2023, the Pool D game between [[Puerto Rico national baseball team|Puerto Rico]] and the [[Dominican Republic national baseball team|Dominican Republic]] was viewed by 62% of households in Puerto Rico.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://nypost.com/2023/03/22/world-baseball-classic-championship-ratings-make-massive-jump-from-2017/ |title=World Baseball Classic championship ratings make massive jump from 2017 |date=March 23, 2023 |access-date=March 25, 2023 |archive-date=March 23, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230323030053/https://nypost.com/2023/03/22/world-baseball-classic-championship-ratings-make-massive-jump-from-2017/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Attendance==
{{See also|List of sports attendance figures}}
World Baseball Classic attendance:
{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders sortable" style="text-align: center;"
|-
!scope="col"| Year
!scope="col"| Total attendance
!scope="col"| # games
!scope="col"| Avg attendance
|-
!scope="row" | [[2006 World Baseball Classic|2006]]
| 737,112 || 39 || 18,900
|-
!scope="row" | [[2009 World Baseball Classic|2009]]
| 801,408 || 39 || 20,549
|-
!scope="row" | [[2013 World Baseball Classic|2013]] 
| 781,438 || 39 || 20,037
|-
!scope="row" | [[2017 World Baseball Classic|2017]]
| 973,699 || 40 || 24,342
|-
!scope="row" | [[2023 World Baseball Classic|2023]]
| 1,165,857 || 47 ||  24,805
|-
|}

World Baseball Classic qualifier attendance:

{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders sortable" style="text-align: center;"
|-
!scope="col"| Year
!scope="col"| Total attendance
!scope="col"| # Games
!scope="col"| Avg attendance
|-
!scope="row" | [[2013 World Baseball Classic qualification|2013]]
| 103,774  || 24 || 4,324 
|-
!scope="row" | [[2017 World Baseball Classic qualification|2017]]
| 111,795  || 24 || 4,658 
|-
!scope="row" | [[2023 World Baseball Classic qualification|2023]]
| 26,080  || 18 || 1,449 
|-
!scope="row" | [[2026 World Baseball Classic qualification|2026]]
| 157,799 || 14 || 11,271
|-
|}

==Venues==
While comparable tournaments traditionally have had one host country, each WBC has used multiple hosts spread around different parts of the world. Thus far, seven different countries have hosted at least one WBC pool, with each edition of the tournament featuring games played in Asia, Latin America, and the United States. However, the championship round has always been held at [[Major League Baseball stadiums]] in the United States.

{{location map+|Earth
| float = center
| width = 900
| caption = {{nowrap|{{Legend|Blue|Qualifier}} {{Legend|Red|WBC venue}} '''Bold:''' Championship venue}}
| places=
{{Location map~|Earth|position=right|lat=35.705658|long=139.751914|label=<small>[[Tokyo]]</small>}}
{{Location map~|Earth|position=right|lat=25.11|long=121.60 |mark = Blue pog.svg |marksize=6 |label=<small>{{nowrap|[[Taipei City]]}}</small>}}
{{Location map~|Earth|position=right|lat=25.00|long=121.26 |mark = Blue pog.svg |marksize=6 |label=<small>{{nowrap|[[New Taipei City]]}}</small>}}
{{Location map~|Earth|position=bottom|lat=24.08|long=120.40|label=<small>[[Taichung]]</small>}}
{{Location map~|Earth|position=right|lat=40.26|long=-74.00 |mark = Blue pog.svg |marksize=6 |label=<small>[[New York City]]</small>}}
{{Location map~|Earth|position=right|lat=26.55|long=-80.6 |mark = Blue pog.svg |marksize=6 |label=<small>[[Jupiter, Florida|Jupiter]]</small>}}
{{Location map~|Earth|position=right|lat=32.39|long=-115.28 |mark= Blue pog.svg |marksize=6 |label=<small>[[Mexicali]]</small>}}
{{Location map~|Earth|position=top|lat=33.29|long=-111.35|label=<small>[[Phoenix, Arizona|Phoenix]]</small> }}
{{Location map~|Earth|position=top|lat=28.32|long=-81.22 |label=<small>[[Orlando, Florida|Orlando]]</small>}}
{{Location map~|Earth|position=bottom|lat=25.78|long=-80.21|label=<small>'''[[Miami]]'''</small>}}
{{Location map~|Earth|position=left|lat=37.46|long=-122.24|label=<small>'''[[San Francisco]]'''</small>}}
{{Location map~|Earth|position=bottom|lat=32.42|long=-117.09|label=<small>'''[[San Diego]]'''</small>}}
{{Location map~|Earth|position=left|lat=34.03|long=-118.15|label=<small>'''[[Los Angeles]]'''</small>}}
{{Location map~|Earth|position=bottom|lat=29.45|long=-95.22|label=<small>[[Houston]]</small>}}
{{Location map~|Earth|position=right|lat=18.24|long=-66.3|label=<small>[[San Juan, Puerto Rico|San Juan]]</small>}}
{{Location map~|Earth|position=left|lat=8.59|long=-79.31 |mark = Blue pog.svg |marksize=6 |label=<small>[[Panama City]]</small>}}
{{Location map~|Earth|position=top|lat=49.1|long=12.5 |mark = Blue pog.svg |marksize=6 |label=<small>[[Regensburg]]</small>}}
{{Location map~|Earth|position=top|lat=-33.52|long=151.12 |mark = Blue pog.svg |marksize=6 |label=<small>[[Sydney]]</small>}}
{{Location map~|Earth|position=left|lat=43.44|long=-79.22|label=<small>[[Toronto]]</small>}}
{{Location map~|Earth|position=bottom|lat=19.26|long=-99.13|label=<small>[[Mexico City]]</small>}}
{{Location map~|Earth|position=left|lat=33.35|long=130.24|label=<small>[[Fukuoka]]</small>}}
{{Location map~|Earth|position=left|lat=37.33|long=126.59|label=<small>[[Seoul]]</small>}}
{{Location map~|Earth|position=left|lat=20.43|long=-103.24|label=<small>[[Zapopan]]</small>}}
{{Location map~|Earth|position=right|lat=32.25|long=110.97 |mark = Blue pog.svg |marksize=6 |label=<small>{{nowrap|[[Tucson]]}}</small>}}
}}
{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders"
! scope="col"| Round
! scope="col"|[[2006 World Baseball Classic|2006]]
! scope="col"|[[2009 World Baseball Classic|2009]]
! scope="col"|[[2013 World Baseball Classic|2013]]
! scope="col"|[[2017 World Baseball Classic|2017]]
! scope="col"|[[2023 World Baseball Classic|2023]]
! scope="col"|[[2026 World Baseball Classic|2026]]
|-
!scope="row"| [[World Baseball Classic qualification|Qualification]]
!
!
|{{flagicon|GER}} [[Regensburg]]<br />{{flagicon|PAN}} [[Panama City]]<br />{{flagicon|TWN}} [[New Taipei City]]<br />{{flagicon|USA}} [[Jupiter, Florida|Jupiter]] || {{flagicon|AUS}} [[Sydney]]<br />{{flagicon|PAN}} [[Panama City]]<br />{{flagicon|MEX}} [[Mexicali]]<br />{{flagicon|USA}} [[New York City]] || {{flagicon|GER}} [[Regensburg]]<br />{{flagicon|PAN}} [[Panama City]] || {{flagicon|TWN}} [[Taipei]]<br />{{flagicon|USA}} [[Tucson, Arizona|Tucson]]
|-
!scope="row"| Pool stage
| {{flagicon|JPN}} [[Tokyo]]<br>{{flagicon|PUR}} [[San Juan, Puerto Rico|San Juan]]<br>{{flagicon|USA}} [[Orlando, Florida|Orlando]]<br>{{flagicon|USA}} [[Phoenix, Arizona|Phoenix]]<br />{{flagicon|USA}} [[Scottsdale, Arizona|Scottsdale]] || {{flagicon|CAN}} [[Toronto]]<br>{{flagicon|JPN}} [[Tokyo]]<br>{{flagicon|MEX}} [[Mexico City]]<br>{{flagicon|PUR}} [[San Juan, Puerto Rico|San Juan]] || {{flagicon|JPN}} [[Fukuoka]]<br>{{flagicon|PUR}} [[San Juan, Puerto Rico|San Juan]]<br>{{flagicon|TWN}} [[Taichung]]<br>{{flagicon|USA}} [[Phoenix, Arizona|Phoenix]]<br />{{flagicon|USA}} [[Scottsdale, Arizona|Scottsdale]] || {{flagicon|JPN}} [[Tokyo]]<br>{{flagicon|MEX}} [[Zapopan]]<br>{{flagicon|KOR}} [[Seoul]]<br>{{flagicon|USA}} [[Miami]] || {{flagicon|JPN}} [[Tokyo]]<br>{{flagicon|TWN}} [[Taichung]]<br>{{flagicon|USA}} [[Miami]]<br />{{flagicon|USA}} [[Phoenix, Arizona|Phoenix]] || {{flagicon|JPN}} [[Tokyo]]<br>{{flagicon|PUR}} [[San Juan, Puerto Rico|San Juan]]<br>{{flagicon|USA}} [[Miami]]<br>{{flagicon|USA}} [[Houston]] 
|-
!scope="row"| Knockout stage
| {{flagicon|PUR}} [[San Juan, Puerto Rico|San Juan]]<br>{{flagicon|USA}} [[Anaheim]]|| {{flagicon|USA}} [[San Diego]]<br />{{flagicon|USA}} [[Miami]]|| {{flagicon|JPN}} [[Tokyo]]<br>{{flagicon|USA}} [[Miami]]|| {{flagicon|JPN}} [[Tokyo]]<br>{{flagicon|USA}} [[San Diego]] || {{flagicon|JPN}} [[Tokyo]]<br>{{flagicon|USA}} [[Miami]] ||{{flagicon|USA}} [[Houston]] <br>{{flagicon|USA}}  [[Miami]] 
|-
!scope="row"| Championship
| {{flagicon|USA}} [[San Diego]]|| {{flagicon|USA}} [[Los Angeles]]|| {{flagicon|USA}} [[San Francisco]]|| {{flagicon|USA}} [[Los Angeles]]|| {{flagicon|USA}} [[Miami]]|| {{flagicon|USA}}  [[Miami]] 
|}

==Results==
{{small div|
;Keys
* F/''N'': result/match won after [[extra innings]] or [[Mercy rule#Baseball and softball|mercy rule]], where ''N'' is the total number of innings in the match
* TBD: to be determined}}
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="font-size:90%; text-align:center; width:75%;"
|-
! scope="col" rowspan=2 style="width:2%;" | {{abbr|Ed.|Edition}}
! scope="col" rowspan=2 style="width:3%;" | Year
! scope="col" rowspan=2 style="width:5%;" | Hosts
|width="1%" rowspan=21 style="background-color:#ffffff;border-top-style:hidden; border-bottom-style:hidden;"|
! scope="col" colspan=3 | First place game
|width="1%" rowspan=21 style="background-color:#ffffff;border-top-style:hidden; border-bottom-style:hidden;"|
! scope="col" colspan=2 | Semi-finalists
|width="1%" rowspan=21 style="background-color:#ffffff;border-top-style:hidden; border-bottom-style:hidden;"|
! scope="col" rowspan=2 style= "width:5%;" | {{abbr|T|Number of teams}}
|-
!  style="width:7.5%; |Champions
!  style="width:10%; |Score
!  style="width:7.5%; |Runners-up
!  style="width:7.5%; |Third place
!  style="width:7.5%; |Fourth place
|-
!1
|scope="row"|[[2006 World Baseball Classic|2006]]
|align=left|{{flag|United States}} <br/>{{flag|Japan}} <br /> {{flag|Puerto Rico}} 
|'''{{bb-big|Japan}}'''
|'''[[2006 World Baseball Classic championship|10–6]]'''<br /><small>[[Petco Park]], [[San Diego]] </small>
|{{bb-big|Cuba}}
|{{bb-big|South Korea|1997}}
|{{bb-big|Dominican Republic}}
|16
|-
!2
|scope="row"|[[2009 World Baseball Classic|2009]]
|align=left|{{nowrap|{{flag|United States}}}}<br/>{{flag|Canada}}<br />{{flag|Japan}}<br />{{flag|Mexico}}<br />{{flag|Puerto Rico}}
|'''{{bb-big|Japan}}'''
|'''[[2009 World Baseball Classic championship|5–3]]'''<br /><small>'''([[Extra innings|F/10]])'''</small><br><small>[[Dodger Stadium]], [[Los Angeles]] </small>
|{{bb-big|South Korea|1997}}
|{{bb-big|Venezuela}}
|{{bb-big|United States}}
|16
|-
!3
|scope="row"|[[2013 World Baseball Classic|2013]]
|align=left|{{flag|United States}} <br/>{{flag|Japan}}<br />{{flag|Puerto Rico}}<br />{{bb|Taiwan}}
|'''{{bb-big|Dominican Republic}}'''
|'''[[2013 World Baseball Classic championship|3–0]]'''<br><small>[[Oracle Park|AT&T Park]], [[San Francisco]] </small>
|{{bb-big|Puerto Rico}}
|{{bb-big|Japan}}
|{{bb-big|Netherlands}}
|16
|-
!4
|scope="row"|[[2017 World Baseball Classic|2017]]
|align=left|{{flag|United States}} <br/>{{flag|Japan}}<br />{{flag|Mexico}}<br />{{flag|South Korea}}
|'''{{bb-big|USA}}'''
|'''[[2017 World Baseball Classic championship|8–0]]'''<br><small>[[Dodger Stadium]], [[Los Angeles]] </small>
|{{bb-big|Puerto Rico}}
|{{bb-big|Japan}}
|{{bb-big|Netherlands}}
|16
|-
!5
|scope="row"|[[2023 World Baseball Classic|2023]]
|align="left"|{{flag|United States}} <br/>{{flag|Japan}}<br />{{bb|Taiwan}}
|'''{{bb-big|JAP}}'''
|'''[[2023 World Baseball Classic championship|3–2]]'''<br /><small>[[LoanDepot Park]], [[Miami]]</small>
|{{bb-big|USA}}
|{{bb-big|MEX}}
|{{bb-big|CUB}}
|20
|-
!''6''
|scope="row"|''[[2026 World Baseball Classic|2026]]''
|align="left"|{{flag|United States}} <br/>{{flag|Japan}}<br />{{bb|Puerto Rico}}
|colspan="3"|''To be determined''
|colspan="2"|''To be determined''
|20
|}

===Performance of nations===
{{see also|National team appearances in the World Baseball Classic}}
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; font-size:90%;"
!scope="col"|Team
!scope="col"|[[2006 World Baseball Classic|2006]]<br>(16)
!scope="col"|[[2009 World Baseball Classic|2009]]<br>(16)
!scope="col"|[[2013 World Baseball Classic|2013]]<br>(16)
!scope="col"|[[2017 World Baseball Classic|2017]]<br>(16)
!scope="col"|[[2023 World Baseball Classic|2023]]<br>(20)
!scope="col"|[[2026 World Baseball Classic|2026]]<br>(20)
!scope="col"|Total
|- align=center
| align=left| {{bb|AUS}}
| R1<br>{{small|13th}} || R1<br>{{small|12th}} || bgcolor=#ffcccc|R1<br>{{small|16th}} || R1<br>{{small|9th}} || QF<br>{{small|7th}} || Q ||  '''6'''
|- align=center
| align=left| {{bb|BRA}}
| × || × || bgcolor=#ffcccc|R1<br>{{small|14th}} || • || • || Q ||  '''2'''
|- align=center
| align=left| {{bb|CAN}}
| R1<br>{{small|9th}} || bgcolor=#ffcccc|R1<br>{{small|13th}} || R1<br>{{small|12th}} || R1<br>{{small|15th}} || R1<br>{{small|12th}} || Q ||  '''6'''
|- align=center
| align=left| {{bb|CHN}}
| R1<br>{{small|15th}} || R1<br>{{small|11th}} || R1<br>{{small|13th}} || R1<br>{{small|16th}} || bgcolor=#ffcccc|R1<br>{{small|20th}} || • ||  '''5'''
|- align=center
| align=left| {{bb|TPE}}
| R1<br>{{small|12th}} || bgcolor=#ffcccc|R1<br>{{small|14th}} || R2<br>{{small|8th}} || R1<br>{{small|14th}} || bgcolor=#ffcccc|R1<br>{{small|17th}} || Q ||  '''6'''
|- align=center
| align=left| {{bb|COL}}
| × || × || • || R1<br>{{small|11th}} || bgcolor=#ffcccc|R1<br>{{small|18th}} || Q ||  '''3'''
|- align=center
| align=left| {{bb|CUB}}
| bgcolor=silver| 2nd || R2<br>{{small|6th}} || R2<br>{{small|5th}} || R2<br>{{small|7th}} || bgcolor=#9acdff| 4th || Q ||  '''6'''
|- align=center
| align=left| {{bb|CZE}}
| × || × || • || • || R1<br>{{small|14th}} || Q ||  '''2'''
|- align=center
| align=left| {{bb|DOM}}
| bgcolor=#9acdff| 4th || R1<br>{{small|9th}} || bgcolor=gold| 1st || R2<br>{{small|5th}} || R1<br>{{small|10th}} || Q ||  '''6'''
|- align=center
| align=left| {{bb|GBR}}
| × || × || • || • || R1<br>{{small|15th}} || Q || '''2'''
|- align=center
| align=left| {{bb|ISR}}
| × || × || • || R2<br>{{small|6th}} || R1<br>{{small|16th}} || Q || '''3'''
|- align=center
| align=left| {{bb|ITA}}
| R1<br>{{small|10th}} || R1<br>{{small|10th}} || R2<br>{{small|7th}} || R1<br>{{small|12th}} || QF<br>{{small|8th}} || Q || '''6'''
|- align=center
| align=left| {{bb|JPN}}
| bgcolor=gold| 1st || bgcolor=gold| 1st || bgcolor=#cc9966| 3rd || bgcolor=#cc9966| 3rd || bgcolor=gold| 1st || Q || '''6'''
|- align=center
| align=left| {{bb|MEX}}
| R2<br>{{small|6th}} || R2<br>{{small|8th}} || bgcolor=#ffcccc|R1<br>{{small|11th}} || R1<br>{{small|13th}} || bgcolor=#cc9966| 3rd || Q || '''6'''
|- align=center
| align=left| {{bb|NED}}
| R1<br>{{small|11th}} || R2<br>{{small|7th}} || bgcolor=#9acdff| 4th || bgcolor=#9acdff| 4th || R1<br>{{small|11th}} || Q || '''6'''
|- align=center
| align=left| {{bb|NCA}}
| × || × || • || • || bgcolor=#ffcccc|R1<br>{{small|19th}} || Q || '''2'''
|- align=center
| align=left| {{bb|PAN}}
| R1<br>{{small|14th}} || bgcolor=#ffcccc|R1<br>{{small|15th}} || • || • || R1<br>{{small|13th}} || Q ||  '''4'''
|- align=center
| align=left| {{bb|PUR}}
| R2<br>{{small|5th}} || R2<br>{{small|5th}} || bgcolor=silver| 2nd || bgcolor=silver| 2nd || QF<br>{{small|6th}} || Q ||  '''6'''
|- align=center
| align=left| {{bb|RSA}}
| R1<br>{{small|16th}} || bgcolor=#ffcccc|R1<br>{{small|16th}} || • || • || • || • ||  '''2'''
|- align=center
| align=left| {{bb|KOR}}
| bgcolor=#cc9966| 3rd || bgcolor=silver| 2nd || R1<br>{{small|9th}} || R1<br>{{small|10th}} || R1<br>{{small|9th}} || Q || '''6'''
|- align=center
| align=left| {{bb|ESP}}
| × || × || bgcolor=#ffcccc|R1<br>{{small|15th}} || • || • || • || '''1'''
|- align=center
| align=left| {{bb|USA}}
| R2<br>{{small|8th}} || bgcolor=#9acdff| 4th || R2<br>{{small|6th}} || bgcolor=gold| 1st || bgcolor=silver| 2nd || Q || '''6'''
|- align=center
| align=left| {{bb|VEN}}
| R2<br>{{small|7th}} || bgcolor=#cc9966| 3rd || R1<br>{{small|10th}} || R2<br>{{small|8th}} || QF<br>{{small|5th}} || Q || '''6'''
|- style="background:#cccccc;" align=center
!scope="col"|Team
!scope="col"|[[2006 World Baseball Classic|2006]]<br>(16)
!scope="col"|[[2009 World Baseball Classic|2009]]<br>(16)
!scope="col"|[[2013 World Baseball Classic|2013]]<br>(16)
!scope="col"|[[2017 World Baseball Classic|2017]]<br>(16)
!scope="col"|[[2023 World Baseball Classic|2023]]<br>(20)
!scope="col"|[[2026 World Baseball Classic|2026]]<br>(20)
!scope="col"|Total
|}
;Legend
*{{bg|gold|1st}} – Champions
*{{bg|silver|2nd}} – Runners-up
*{{bg|#cc9966|3rd}} – Third place
*{{bg|#9acdff|4th}} – Fourth place
*QF – Quarterfinals (2023–present)
*R2 – Round 2 (2006–2017: second round)
*R1 – Round 1 (2006–2017: first round, 2023–present: pool stage)
*{{bg|#ffcccc|&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;}} – Relegated to qualification tournament
*Q – Qualified
*{{border|width=1px|color=gray|&nbsp;•&nbsp;}} – Did not qualify
*{{border|width=1px|color=gray|&nbsp;×&nbsp;}} – Did not enter

=== Debut of national teams ===
{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="font-size: 90%"
|-
! scope="col" | Year
! scope="col" | Debutants
! scope="col" | Total
! scope="col" | {{tooltip|CT|Cumulative total}}
|-
| align=left|[[2006 World Baseball Classic|2006]]
| {{bb|AUS}}, {{bb|CAN}}, {{bb|CHN}}, {{bb|TPE}}, {{bb|CUB}}, {{bb|DOM}}, {{bb|ITA}}, {{bb|JPN}}, {{bb|MEX}}, {{bb|NED}}, {{bb|PAN}}, {{bb|PUR}}, {{bb|KOR}}, {{bb|RSA}}, {{bb|USA}}, {{bb|VEN}}
| 16
| 16
|-
| align=left|[[2009 World Baseball Classic|2009]]
| None
| 0
| 16
|-
| align=left|[[2013 World Baseball Classic|2013]]
| {{bb|BRA}}, {{bb|ESP}}
| 2 
| 18
|-
| align=left|[[2017 World Baseball Classic|2017]]
| {{bb|COL}}, {{bb|ISR}}
| 2
| 20
|-
| align=left|[[2023 World Baseball Classic|2023]]
| {{bb|GBR}}, {{bb|CZE}}, {{bb|NCA}}
| 3
| 23
|-
| align=left|''[[2026 World Baseball Classic|2026]]''
| None
| 0
| 23
|}

=== Overview ===
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align: center"
|-
!scope="col" |Team
!scope="col" width=50px | {{tooltip|Apps|Appearances}}
!scope="col" width=50px | Record <br> streak
!scope="col" width=50px | Active <br> streak
!scope="col" width=50px | Debut
!scope="col" width=50px | Most <br> recent
!scope="col"|Best result
|-
| align=left| {{bb|AUS}}
| 6 || 6 || 6 || [[2006 World Baseball Classic|2006]] || [[2026 World Baseball Classic|2026]]
|data-sort-value="6"| Quarterfinals ([[2023 World Baseball Classic|2023]])
|-
| align=left| {{bb|CAN}}
| 6 || 6 || 6 || [[2006 World Baseball Classic|2006]] || [[2026 World Baseball Classic|2026]]
|data-sort-value="6"| Pool stage
|-
| align=left| {{bb|TPE}}
| 6 || 6 || 6 || [[2006 World Baseball Classic|2006]] || [[2026 World Baseball Classic|2026]]
|data-sort-value="5.3"| Quarterfinals ([[2013 World Baseball Classic|2013]])
|-
| align=left| {{bb|CUB}}
| 6 || 6 || 6 || [[2006 World Baseball Classic|2006]] || [[2026 World Baseball Classic|2026]]
|data-sort-value="2.2" bgcolor="silver"|Runners-up ([[2006 World Baseball Classic|2006]])
|-
| align=left| {{bb|DOM}}
| 6 || 6 || 6 || [[2006 World Baseball Classic|2006]] || [[2026 World Baseball Classic|2026]]
|data-sort-value="1.2" bgcolor="gold"|Champions ([[2013 World Baseball Classic|2013]])
|-
| align=left| {{bb|ITA}}
| 6 || 6 || 6 || [[2006 World Baseball Classic|2006]] || [[2026 World Baseball Classic|2026]]
|data-sort-value="5.2"| Quarterfinals ([[2013 World Baseball Classic|2013]], [[2023 World Baseball Classic|2023]])
|-
| align=left| {{bb|JPN}}
| 6 || 6 || 6 || [[2006 World Baseball Classic|2006]] || [[2026 World Baseball Classic|2026]]
|data-sort-value="1" bgcolor="gold"|Champions ([[2006 World Baseball Classic|2006]], [[2009 World Baseball Classic|2009]], [[2023 World Baseball Classic|2023]])
|-
| align=left| {{bb|MEX}}
| 6 || 6 || 6 || [[2006 World Baseball Classic|2006]] || [[2026 World Baseball Classic|2026]]
|data-sort-value="5.1" bgcolor="#cc9966"|Third place ([[2023 World Baseball Classic|2023]])
|-
| align=left| {{bb|NED}}
| 6 || 6 || 6 || [[2006 World Baseball Classic|2006]] || [[2026 World Baseball Classic|2026]]
|data-sort-value="4" bgcolor="#9acdff"|Fourth place ([[2013 World Baseball Classic|2013]], [[2017 World Baseball Classic|2017]])
|-
| align=left| {{bb|PUR}}
| 6 || 6 || 6 || [[2006 World Baseball Classic|2006]] || [[2026 World Baseball Classic|2026]]
|data-sort-value="2.1" bgcolor=silver|Runners-up ([[2013 World Baseball Classic|2013]], [[2017 World Baseball Classic|2017]])
|-
| align=left| {{bb|KOR}}
| 6 || 6 || 6 || [[2006 World Baseball Classic|2006]] || [[2026 World Baseball Classic|2026]]
|data-sort-value="2.3" bgcolor=silver|Runners-up ([[2009 World Baseball Classic|2009]])
|-
| align=left| {{bb|USA}}
| 6 || 6 || 6 || [[2006 World Baseball Classic|2006]] || [[2026 World Baseball Classic|2026]]
|data-sort-value="1.3" bgcolor=gold|Champions ([[2017 World Baseball Classic|2017]])
|-
| align=left| {{bb|VEN}}
| 6 || 6 || 6 || [[2006 World Baseball Classic|2006]] || [[2026 World Baseball Classic|2026]]
|data-sort-value="3" bgcolor=#cc9966|Third place ([[2009 World Baseball Classic|2009]])
|-
| align=left| {{bb|CHN}}
| 5 || 5 || 0 || [[2006 World Baseball Classic|2006]] || [[2023 World Baseball Classic|2023]]
|data-sort-value="6"| Pool stage
|-
| align=left| {{bb|PAN}}
| 4 || 2 || 2 || [[2006 World Baseball Classic|2006]] || [[2026 World Baseball Classic|2026]]
|data-sort-value="6"| Pool stage
|-
| align=left| {{bb|COL}}
| 3 || 3 || 3 || [[2017 World Baseball Classic|2017]] || [[2026 World Baseball Classic|2026]]
|data-sort-value="6"| Pool stage
|-
| align=left| {{bb|ISR}}
| 3 || 3 || 3 || [[2017 World Baseball Classic|2017]] || [[2026 World Baseball Classic|2026]]
|data-sort-value="5.4"| Quarterfinals ([[2017 World Baseball Classic|2017]])
|-

| align=left| {{bb|BRA}}
| 2 || 1 || 1 || [[2013 World Baseball Classic|2013]] || [[2026 World Baseball Classic|2026]]
|data-sort-value="6"| Pool stage
|-
| align=left| {{bb|CZE}}
| 2 || 2 || 2 || [[2023 World Baseball Classic|2023]] || [[2026 World Baseball Classic|2026]]
|data-sort-value="7"| Pool stage
|-
| align=left| {{bb|GBR}}
| 2 || 2 || 2 || [[2023 World Baseball Classic|2023]] || [[2026 World Baseball Classic|2026]]
|data-sort-value="7"| Pool stage
|-
| align=left| {{bb|NCA}}
| 2 || 2 || 2 || [[2023 World Baseball Classic|2023]] || [[2026 World Baseball Classic|2026]]
|data-sort-value="7"| Pool stage
|-
| align=left| {{bb|RSA}}
| 2 || 2 || 0 || [[2006 World Baseball Classic|2006]] || [[2009 World Baseball Classic|2009]]
|data-sort-value="6"| Pool stage
|-
| align=left| {{bb|ESP}}
| 1 || 1 || 0 || [[2013 World Baseball Classic|2013]] || [[2013 World Baseball Classic|2013]]
|data-sort-value="6"| Pool stage
|}

==Honors==
===Most Valuable Player===
[[File:WBC2006 Daisuke Matsuzaka (cropped).jpg|thumb|upright|[[Daisuke Matsuzaka]] is the only player to twice win the WBC MVP]]
The inaugural winner of the award in 2006 was Japan's [[Daisuke Matsuzaka]], who pitched 13 [[inning]]s and finished with a 3–0 record. Soon after this performance, Matsuzaka received a multi-million dollar contract to join the [[Boston Red Sox]] of America's [[Major League Baseball]].<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20060206212234/http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/worldclassic2006/index The first World Baseball Classic in history] ESPN. Retrieved on February 19, 2010</ref> Again in the 2009 World Baseball Classic, Matsuzaka received the world classic MVP, finishing with a record of 3–0 and an [[Earned run average|ERA]] of 2.54. In 2013, [[Robinson Canó]] won MVP after hitting .469 with two home runs and six RBI over the course of the tournament.<ref>[http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseball/whitesox/ct-spt-0320-rogers-wbc-baseball--20130320,0,5373594.column Cano dominates center stage of WBC]. chicagotribune.com (March 20, 2013). Retrieved on 2013-07-23.</ref> [[Toronto Blue Jays]] pitcher [[Marcus Stroman]] took home the award in 2017 for the United States. Stroman posted a 2.35 ERA over three starts and no-hit Puerto Rico through six innings in an 8–0 win in the Finals.<ref>{{cite web|title=Marcus Stroman's masterful outing gets U.S. over hump for first World Baseball Classic title|url=http://www.sportingnews.com/mlb/news/world-baseball-classic-2017-champion-united-states-puerto-rico-highlights-marcus-stroman/36vfk91pysxj161p5of3x96t8|website=Sporting News}}</ref> In 2023, [[Los Angeles Angels]] [[Two-way player#Baseball|two-way]] superstar [[Shohei Ohtani]] claimed MVP honors after [[Glossary of baseball terms#slash line|slashing]] .435/.606/.739 as a hitter and posting a 1.86 ERA and 11 strikeouts in 9{{2/3}} innings as a pitcher, also pitching the final inning of Japan's win over the US in the final.<ref name="Axisa">{{cite news|url=https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/world-baseball-classic-shohei-ohtani-awarded-wbc-mvp-after-closing-out-championship-in-japans-win-over-usa/ |title=World Baseball Classic: Shohei Ohtani awarded WBC MVP after closing out championship in Japan's win over USA |first=Mike |last=Axisa |website=CBS Sports |date=March 21, 2023 |access-date=March 24, 2023}}</ref>

{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders sortable" summary="Year (sortable), Player (sortable), Position (sortable), and Nationality (sortable)"
|-
!scope="col"| Year
!scope="col"| Player
!scope="col"| Position
!scope="col"| Nationality
|-
|[[2006 World Baseball Classic|2006]]
!scope="row" | {{sortname|Daisuke|Matsuzaka}}
| [[Starting pitcher]]
| {{flagicon|JPN}} [[Japan]]
|-
|[[2009 World Baseball Classic|2009]]
!scope="row" | {{sortname|Daisuke|Matsuzaka}}
| [[Starting pitcher]]
| {{flagicon|JPN}} Japan
|-
|[[2013 World Baseball Classic|2013]]
!scope="row" | {{sortname|Robinson|Canó}}
| [[Second baseman]]
| {{flagicon|DOM}} [[Dominican Republic]]
|-
|[[2017 World Baseball Classic|2017]]
!scope="row" | {{sortname|Marcus|Stroman}}
| [[Starting pitcher]]
| {{flagicon|USA}} [[United States]]
|-
|[[2023 World Baseball Classic|2023]]
!scope="row" | {{sortname|Shohei|Ohtani}}
| [[Starting pitcher]]<br>[[Designated hitter]]
| {{flagicon|JPN}} [[Japan]]
|}

===All-WBC teams===
At the end of each edition of the World Baseball Classic, an [[all-star]] team is selected based on their play in the tournament.  Three pitchers, eight other position players (one each at each position, including three outfielders), and a designated hitter are named to the team. Japanese pitcher [[Daisuke Matsuzaka]], Puerto Rican catcher [[Yadier Molina]] and Puerto Rican shortstop [[Javier Báez]] are the only players to be named to the All–WBC team twice. Japanese two-way player [[Shohei Ohtani]] is the only player to be named to the All-WBC team at two separate positions, having been named to the 2023 team as both a designated hitter and a pitcher.

{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders"
|-
! scope="col"| {{abbr|Pos.|Position}}
! scope="col"| [[2006 World Baseball Classic#2006 All-World Baseball Classic team|2006]]
! scope="col"| [[2009 World Baseball Classic#2009 All-World Baseball Classic team|2009]]
! scope="col"| [[2013 World Baseball Classic#2013 All-World Baseball Classic team|2013]]
! scope="col"| [[2017 World Baseball Classic#2017 All-World Baseball Classic team|2017]]
! scope="col"| [[2023 World Baseball Classic#2023 All-World Baseball Classic team|2023]]

|-
! scope="row" | [[Catcher|C]]
| {{flagicon|JPN}} [[Tomoya Satozaki]] || {{flagicon|PUR}} [[Iván Rodríguez]] || {{flagicon|PUR}} [[Yadier Molina]] || {{flagicon|PUR}} [[Yadier Molina]] || {{flagicon|VEN}} [[Salvador Pérez]]
|-
! scope="row" | [[First baseman|1B]]
| {{flagicon|KOR|1997}} [[Lee Seung-yuop|Seung-yuop Lee]] || {{flagicon|KOR|1997}} [[Kim Tae-kyun (baseball, born 1982)|Tae-kyun Kim]] || {{flagicon|DOM}} [[Edwin Encarnación]] || {{flagicon|US|1960}} [[Eric Hosmer]] || {{flagicon|TPE}} [[Yu Chang]]
|-
! scope="row" | [[Second baseman|2B]]
| {{flagicon|CUB}} [[Yulieski Gourriel]] || {{flagicon|VEN}} [[José López (first baseman)|José López]] || '''{{flagicon|DOM}} [[Robinson Canó]]''' || {{flagicon|PUR}} [[Javier Báez]] || {{flagicon|PUR}} [[Javier Báez]]
|-
! scope="row" | [[Third baseman|3B]]
| {{flagicon|DOM}} [[Adrián Beltré]] || {{flagicon|KOR|1997}} [[Lee Bum-ho|Bum-ho Lee]] || {{flagicon|US|1960}} [[David Wright]] || {{flagicon|PUR}} [[Carlos Correa]] || {{flagicon|CUB}} [[Yoán Moncada]]
|-
! scope="row" | [[Shortstop|SS]]
| {{flagicon|US|1960}} [[Derek Jeter]] || {{flagicon|US|1960}} [[Jimmy Rollins]] || {{flagicon|DOM}} [[José Reyes (shortstop)|José Reyes]] || {{flagicon|PUR}} [[Francisco Lindor]] || {{flagicon|US|1960}} [[Trea Turner]]
|-
! scope="row" rowspan=3| [[Outfielder|OF]]
| {{flagicon|US|1960}} [[Ken Griffey Jr.]] || {{flagicon|JPN}} [[Norichika Aoki]] || {{flagicon|DOM}} [[Nelson Cruz]] || {{flagicon|NED}} [[Wladimir Balentien]] || {{flagicon|MEX}} [[Randy Arozarena]]
|-
|{{flagicon|KOR|1997}} [[Lee Jong-beom|Jong-beom Lee]] || {{flagicon|CUB}} [[Frederich Cepeda]] || {{flagicon|PUR}} [[Ángel Pagán]] || {{flagicon|DOM}} [[Gregory Polanco]] || {{flagicon|US|1960}} [[Mike Trout]]
|-
|{{flagicon|JPN}} [[Ichiro Suzuki]] || {{flagicon|CUB}} [[Yoenis Céspedes]] || {{flagicon|CAN}} [[Michael Saunders]] || {{flagicon|US|1960}} [[Christian Yelich]] || {{flagicon|JPN}} [[Masataka Yoshida]]
|-
! scope="row" | [[Designated hitter|DH]]
| |{{flagicon|CUB}} [[Yoandy Garlobo]] || {{flagicon|KOR|1997}} [[Hyun-soo Kim]] || {{flagicon|JPN}} [[Hirokazu Ibata]] || {{flagicon|PUR}} [[Carlos Beltrán]] || {{flagicon|JPN}} '''[[Shohei Ohtani]]'''
|-
! scope="row" rowspan=3|[[Pitcher|P]]
| {{flagicon|CUB}} [[Yadel Martí]] || {{flagicon|KOR|1997}} [[Bong Jung-keun|Jung-keun Bong]] || {{flagicon|PUR}} [[Nelson Figueroa]] || {{flagicon|JPN}} [[Kodai Senga]] || {{flagicon|JPN}} '''[[Shohei Ohtani]]'''
|-
|{{flagicon|JPN}} '''[[Daisuke Matsuzaka]]''' || {{flagicon|JPN}} [[Hisashi Iwakuma]] || {{flagicon|JPN}} [[Kenta Maeda]] || '''{{flagicon|US|1960}} [[Marcus Stroman]]'''|| {{flagicon|MEX}} [[Patrick Sandoval]]
|-
|{{flagicon|KOR|1997}} [[Chan Ho Park]] || {{flagicon|JPN}} '''[[Daisuke Matsuzaka]]''' || {{flagicon|DOM}} [[Fernando Rodney]] || {{flagicon|ISR}} [[Josh Zeid]] || {{flagicon|CUB}} {{sortname|Miguel |Romero |dab=baseball}}
|}
Overall, players representing 12 countries have been named to an All-WBC team, with Japan leading the way with 12 representatives.
	
[[File:Yadier Molina (cropped).jpg|thumb|upright|Puerto Rico's [[Yadier Molina]] is tied for the most All-WBC Team selections (2)]]

{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="font-size:90%; text-align:center"
|-
!scope="col"| Rank
!scope="col"| [[2006 World Baseball Classic#2006 All-World Baseball Classic team|2006]]
!scope="col"| [[2009 World Baseball Classic#2009 All-World Baseball Classic team|2009]]
!scope="col"| [[2013 World Baseball Classic#2013 All-World Baseball Classic team|2013]]
!scope="col"| [[2017 World Baseball Classic#2017 All-World Baseball Classic team|2017]]
!scope="col"| [[2023 World Baseball Classic#2023 All-World Baseball Classic team|2023]]

!scope="col"| Total
|-
!scope="row"| {{bb|JPN}}
| 3 || 3 || 2 || 1 || 3 || '''12'''
|-
!scope="row"| {{bb|PUR}}
| 0 || 1 || 3 || 5 || 1 || '''10'''
|-
!scope="row"| {{bb|US|1960}}
| 2 || 1 || 1 || 3 || 2 || '''9'''
|-
!scope="row"| {{bb|DOM}}
| 1 || 0 || 5 || 1 || 0 || '''7'''
|-
!scope="row"| {{bb|KOR}}
| 3 || 4 || 0 || 0 || 0 || '''7'''
|-
!scope="row"| {{bb|CUB}}
| 3 || 2 || 0 || 0 || 2 || '''7'''
|-
!scope="row"| {{bb|MEX}}
| 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 2 || '''2'''
|-
!scope="row"| {{bb|VEN}}
| 0 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 1 || '''2'''
|-
!scope="row"| {{bb|CAN}}
| 0 || 0 || 1 || 0 || 0 || '''1'''
|-
!scope="row"| {{bb|ISR}}
| 0 || 0 || 0 || 1 || 0 || '''1'''
|-
!scope="row"| {{bb|NED}}
| 0 || 0 || 0 || 1 || 0 || '''1'''
|-
!scope="row"| {{bb|TPE}}
| 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 1 || '''1'''
|}

===Statistical leaders===
All-time WBC individual leaders in various statistical categories through the end of the 2023 tournament, excluding qualifier games.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.mlb.com/news/world-baseball-classic-all-time-stats-leaders|title=The World Baseball Classic's all-time stat leaders|website=MLB.com}}</ref>
{{col-begin}}
{{col-2}}

'''Batting'''
{|class="wikitable plainrowheaders
|-
!scope="col"|Statistic
!scope="col"|Player
!scope="col"|Total
|-
!scope="row"|[[Hit (baseball)|Hits]]
| {{flagicon|CUB}} [[Frederich Cepeda]] ||align=center| 32
|-
!scope="row"|[[Home run]]s
| {{flagicon|CUB}} [[Alfredo Despaigne]] ||align=center| 7
|-
!scope="row"|[[Runs batted in]]
| {{flagicon|CUB}} [[Frederich Cepeda]] ||align=center| 23
|-
!scope="row"|[[Run (baseball)|Runs scored]]
| {{flagicon|CUB}} [[Frederich Cepeda]] ||align=center| 19
|-
!scope="row"|[[Double (baseball)|Doubles]]
| {{flagicon|CUB}} [[Frederich Cepeda]]<br>{{flagicon|CAN}} [[Justin Morneau]] ||align=center| 8
|-
!scope="row"|[[Triple (baseball)|Triples]]
| {{flagicon|CUB}} [[Yoenis Cespedes]] ||align=center| 3
|-
!scope="row"|[[Strikeout]]s
| {{flagicon|PUR}} [[Carlos Beltrán]] ||align=center| 20
|-
!scope="row"|[[Stolen base]]s
| ''5 tied with'' ||align=center| 5
|-
!scope="row"|[[Games played]]
| {{flagicon|PUR}} [[Carlos Beltrán]] ||align=center| 28
|-
!scope="row"|[[At-bats]]
| {{flagicon|PUR}} [[Carlos Beltrán]] ||align=center| 95
|}

{{col-2}}

'''Pitching'''
{|class="wikitable plainrowheaders
|-
!scope="col"|Statistic 
!scope="col"|Player
!scope="col"|Total
|-
!scope="row"|[[Win (baseball)|Wins]]
| {{flagicon|JPN}} [[Daisuke Matsuzaka]] ||align=center| 6
|-
!scope="row"|[[Loss (baseball)|Losses]]
| {{flagicon|TPE}} [[Chen Hung-wen|Hung-wen Chen]] ||align=center| 3
|-
!scope="row"|[[Games played|Games]]
| {{flagicon|DOM}} [[Fernando Rodney]] ||align=center| 15
|-
!scope="row"|[[Games started|Starts]]
| {{flagicon|JPN}} [[Daisuke Matsuzaka]]<br>{{flagicon|DOM}} [[Edinson Volquez]] ||align=center| 6
|-
!scope="row"|[[Save (baseball)|Saves]]
| {{flagicon|DOM}} [[Fernando Rodney]] ||align=center| 8
|-
!scope="row"|[[Innings pitched]]
| {{flagicon|NED}} [[Diegomar Markwell]] ||align=center| 28.0
|-
!scope="row"|[[Hit (baseball)|Hits allowed]]
| {{flagicon|NED}} [[Diegomar Markwell]] ||align=center| 30
|-
!scope="row"|[[Run (baseball)|Runs allowed]]
| {{flagicon|RSA}} [[Barry Armitage]] ||align=center| 14
|-
!scope="row"|[[Earned run|Earned runs allowed]]
| {{flagicon|RSA}} [[Barry Armitage]]<br>{{flagicon|NED}} [[David Bergman (baseball)|David Bergman]] ||align=center| 12
|-
!scope="row"|[[Walk (baseball)|Walks]]
| {{flagicon|DOM}} [[Edinson Volquez]] ||align=center| 11
|-
!scope="row"|[[Strikeout]]s
| {{flagicon|JPN}} [[Daisuke Matsuzaka]] ||align=center| 23
|}

{{col-end}}

==See also==
{{Portal|Baseball|Sports|World}}
{{Commons category|World Baseball Classic}}
* [[World Baseball Classic Inc.]]
* [[World Baseball Classic Trophy]]
* [[World Baseball Softball Confederation]]
* [[WBSC Americas]] 
* [[WBSC Asia]] 
* [[WBSC Europe]] 
* [[WBSC Oceania]] 
* [[WBSC Africa]] 
* [[MLB International]]
* [[Kodak World Baseball Classic]], a 1972 minor league tournament with the same name
*{{section link|Baseball awards|World}}

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{reflist|30em}}

==External links==
*{{Official website|https://www.mlb.com/world-baseball-classic}}

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