World Baseball Classic power rankings: How do the globe’s best stack up?
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Nick Groke
Mar 8, 2023
It’s the tournament that drew Canada and Mexico into a benches-clearing brawl. The tournament that enticed Nolan Arenado to bunt. The tournament that saw a bleached-blond Javier Báez slap a no-look tag and Daisuke Matsuzaka mow down an entire bracket.
The World Baseball Classic exists in a realm of its own, a showcase of the globe’s best players and a chance for them to show off their roots.
“It’s just different,” Mariners and Dominican Republic star Julio Rodríguez said. “You’re playing for everything you represent … everything that made (you) who you are.”
In the early years of the WBC, rosters were a scattershot collection of available players. Not anymore. The tournament has grown to be a legitimate display of baseball on an international stage, a true test of primacy in the game.
Before the 2023 edition gets fully underway, here is the current global hierarchy as best we can tell, the incoming ladder of teams in the WBC based on their current rosters and past success.
1. Dominican Republic
2017 WBC finish: 5th
Rodney Linares, the Rays’ bench coach pushed into duty skippering the Dominican Republic, must be losing sleep. Not because one of his sluggers, Vladimir Guerrero Jr., pulled out of the WBC last week with a knee injury. That certainly didn’t help matters. But Linares was probably more stressed trying to figure out in what order he should set his ridiculous lineup.
He’s got Juan Soto, Manny Machado and Julio Rodríguez. And Rafael Devers and Willy Adames combined for 58 homers last year. What’re they, the 8-9 hitters in this lineup? Yeesh.
These are the kinds of details that count as problems for the most stacked roster in the WBC.
“They’re without a doubt the team to beat,” Blue Jays pitcher Chris Bassitt told The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal. “It probably will go down as the best lineup ever. One to nine is an MVP candidate — I mean, literally. We’ll compare it to other lineups in like 20 years and say this is still the best one ever.”
Rock, paper, scissors to see who hits first.
2. Japan
2017 WBC finish: 3rd
When Shohei Ohtani stepped off a private plane at Haneda Airport in Tokyo last week, after a long flight from Phoenix, he was greeted by a throng of flashing cameras. That just doesn’t happen when the Angels star arrives in Tempe for spring training. But this was no common homecoming.
If we were ranking countries by those that care most about the WBC — those most interested in winning, those most disappointed by losing in the tournament — Japan would likely be No. 1. They really want to win.
And with Ohtani, they have a better-than-average chance. But the Samurai, as they’re known in Japan, will also line up Yu Darvish, Masataka Yoshida, Lars Nootbaar and slugging sensation Munetaka Murakami, the “Babe Ruth of Higo.” The Eastern side of the bracket is theirs to lose.
3. USA
2017 WBC finish: 1st
As defending champions, Team USA can glean an important lesson from their last time out, in 2017. In that WBC, Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic probably fielded better teams on paper. But in the end, behind Marcus Stroman, Christian Yelich and Eric Hosmer, the U.S. was the most effective at gelling into the best team.
Their roster this year is better. They have three MVPs on the roster in Mike Trout, Mookie Betts and Paul Goldschmidt. Nolan Arenado and Trea Turner round out the infield. J.T. Realmuto will catch. This lineup is no joke.
But can their pitching hold? America’s rotation will be led by some combination of Adam Wainwright, Merrill Kelly, Lance Lynn and Miles Mikolas. But that’s irrelevant anyway, since most teams will be bullpenning.
Team USA is both the defending champ and not exactly the team to beat.
4. Puerto Rico
2017 WBC finish: 2nd
As the winningest team in WBC history without a title, Puerto Rico enters the 2023 tournament after consecutive second-place finishes. It will be a tall task to return to the final. Their roster isn’t as stout as in years past.
But Puerto Rico has a new angle. They will be managed for the first time by ex-Cardinals catcher and future Hall of Famer Yadier Molina. Don’t presume this is some stunt. Molina first started managing Puerto Rico’s U-23 team in 2018. And he led Navegantes del Magallanes in the Venezuelan winter league last season.
Molina’s appointment was not met with universal approval. Some thought the job should have gone to Astros bench coach Joe Espada. It turned into a quiet controversy. But Molina played with Puerto Rico in 2013 and ’17. He knows the disappointment of falling short. And knows how to improve. His experience with the Cardinals as a two-time World Series winner suggests he has an idea of how to capture a title.
5. Venezuela
2017 WBC finish: 8th
Over the years, Venezuela threw some stellar rosters into the WBC and yet they don’t have a lot to show for it. They’ve mostly faded in the tournament with down-rank finishes. They only reached the semifinals once, in 2009. And only one Venezuela player ever landed on an all-tournament team, second baseman José López in 2009.
And yet, they’ll continue to throw out a stellar roster. This year’s version of Venezuela is its best and deepest yet, with more than enough — on paper — to push the field. Ronald Acuña Jr., Jose Altuve, Luis Arraez and Eduardo Escobar all form the core. Future Hall of Famer Miguel Cabrera will lead the way.
They can pitch, too, with Pablo Lopez, Jesús Luzardo, Martín Pérez, Luis Garcia and Eduardo Rodriguez all in the wings. Germán Márquez may rejoin them in later rounds after dropping out with a hamstring injury.
This is both Venezuela’s best WBC roster and their toughest path. Their pool includes three of the top five teams. Ouch.
6. Mexico
2017 WBC finish: 13th
With an MLB-ready rotation led by Julio Urías, Patrick Sandoval, Taijuan Walker and José Urquidy, Mexico easily could be a top-five team in these rankings. They’re that close. But they’ve never finished among the top five in a WBC and fell all the way to 13th in 2017.
Two legends of Mexican baseball will guide the team: manager Benji Gil and bench coach Vinny Castilla. At least within the clubhouse, expectations will be set more by reputation than past WBC results, so that helps. Rowdy Tellez is around to hit home runs. Randy Arozarena and Luis Urías, playing in their first WBC, provide pop. And Austin Barnes has plenty of experience behind the plate.
Now’s the time for Mexico to show what it’s got.
7. Netherlands
2017 WBC finish: 4th
The Netherlands is not messing around. They reached the semifinals in each of the past two WBCs, along with Japan and the U.S. Xander Bogaerts is their best player. Wladimir Balentien is back; he made the all-tournament team in 2017. They know how to construct runs, even if they don’t overpower teams from the mound. The Dutch just always show up in the WBC.
“We always compete,” Netherlands manager Hensley “Bam Bam” Meulens recently told The Athletic. “We manage to pitch very well even though we don’t have a lot of major-league pitching. And we hit the crap out of the ball in 2017. I expect some of the same things. It’s all about getting the team to come together.”
And, what do you know, the Netherlands has perhaps the easiest path in the tournament. They are the favorites in Pool A in Taiwan and if they advance from the top, they most likely would play Korea. And, doncha know, the Dutch have never lost to Korea in the WBC.
8. Korea
2017 WBC finish: 10th
Korea is almost perfectly aligned for the WBC, geometrically. In a line from the backstop out to the bullpen: catcher Yang Eui-ji is a five-time KBO Gold Glove winner; Ha-seong Kim and Tommy Edman patrol the middle of the infield; center fielder Lee Jung-hoo was KBO’s MVP last season; closer Woo-suk Go is coming off a season with a 1.48 ERA with 42 saves; and set-up man Cheol-won Jeong was named rookie of the year.
That’s the kind of roster core that should give Korea a shot to reach the semifinals, at least. In the early years of the WBC, Korea was dominant. They finished third in 2006 and as runners-up in 2009, falling to Japan both times. In the past two WBCs, they’ve fallen to ninth and 10th.
In Tokyo’s Pool B, Korea will once again face their rival Japan in what should be the best matchup of the first round. The outcome won’t guarantee or ruin anything for either team, but it will set a tone for the tournament. If Korea can reach the quarterfinals in Tokyo, as they should, another line will point them toward Miami.
9. Canada
2017 WBC finish: 15th
On paper, Canada has what it takes to make a run deep into the WBC. They have an MVP in Freddie Freeman, a Gold Glover in Tyler O’Neill, and a long-established starter in Cal Quantrill. While right-hander Nick Pivetta had to bow out due to illness, there are other arms in play, too. And their coaching staff, led by ex-Blue Jays catcher Ernie Whitt and Hall of Famer Larry Walker, have long been atop Canada’s WBC teams.
Canada, though, has only once finished among the WBC’s Top 10, in the inaugural year in 2006. They’re certainly ready to rumble. Example:
But in that brawl year of 2013, Canada was mercy-ruled by Italy and stung by the U.S. and never made it out of the group stage. In 2017, they failed to win a game. Canada should be better than that. Let’s see.
10. Colombia
2017 WBC finish: 11th
Colombia first qualified for the WBC last time out, in 2017. But their strong roster is an indication of the country’s quick rise in the global game. Caimanes de Barranquilla took down Dominican side Gigantes del Cibao in 2022, the first Colombian team to win the historic Caribbean Series. That Alligators team featured, among other established players, Rays outfielder Harold Ramírez.
Ramírez is back this year, one of eight current major leaguers on a roster that is also packed with prospects. If Colombia was slow to gain on the Caribbean powerhouse teams, they’ve caught up quickly. As political issues continue to afflict Venezuela, a lot of lower-level baseball camps moved to nearby Colombia, where it’s easier to travel and scouts can get a closer look at young players. That activity simmered upward and now Colombia is boiling with baseball talent.
This WBC, then, gives Colombia a chance to challenge the heavyweights of the Western Hemisphere. José Quintana was a late scratch, so Nabil Crismatt will lead them from the mound, Gio Urshela and Jordan Díaz from the field, and Elías Díaz and Jorge Alfaro will be stationed behind the dish.
11. Cuba
2017 WBC finish: 7th
Cuban baseball can be so fun sometimes.
Allowed, for the first time, to assign U.S.-based players from the major leagues to its roster, Cuba added only two: White Sox teammates Luis Robert and Yoán Moncada. Other MLB players weren’t extended an invitation and some refused one — it’s complicated. Maybe Cuba doesn’t need your stars. They know how to play the game, thank you. And they have a not-so-secret weapon. Yoenis Céspedes was a 22-year-old star on the island playing for Alazanes de Granma in 2009 when he broke out in the WBC, hitting two homers, three triples, a double and five RBI in just six games for Cuba. It was his coming out party. Two years later, he defected to America and became one of MLB’s top prospects.
Céspedes is 37 now and he knows better than anyone that when he played on some other level and Cuba finished sixth in that ’09 run, it was all considered a disappointment on the island. Cuba is accustomed to — expects to — dominate every international competition.
12. Panama
2017 WBC finish: Did not qualify
This could be the year for Panama to break through. They failed to qualify in the past two WBCs and finished as high as 14th in 2006. But this roster is more fully rounded.
Panama’s bullpen is jammed with major leaguers: the Angels’ Jaime Barría, Brewers’ Javy Guerra, Rockies’ Justin Lawrence, among others. And in a tournament that will probably see pitching stints of one or two innings a pop, the more arms that are tuned to that role, the better.
And ex-Mets middle infielder Rubén Tejada, who is somehow only 33 despite playing for what seems like decades (he made his MLB debut when he was just 20), will patrol shortstop for Panama.
13. Israel
2017 WBC finish: 6th
What does it look like to be a “Cinderella” team in the World Baseball Classic? Look back to 2017. Israel was playing in its first WBC, in a tough draw in Seoul. But with an undermanned squad, they swept the first round, taking down host South Korea, the Netherlands and Chinese Taipei. Suddenly, fans were forced to pay attention to Israel.
Eventually they faded, with the Netherlands exacting some revenge to advance out of the second round with Japan. But in the format of this year’s WBC, Israel would not have to face a team they left behind in the group stage.
And, better still, they have a better team now. Israel sports nine big-leaguers on its roster, headed up by All-Star Joc Pederson. And Ryan Lavarnway and Ty Kelly return from 2017 with helpful experience.
14. Chinese Taipei (Taiwan)
2017 WBC finish: 14th
With a well-established professional league in Taiwan and a long history of baseball fandom and development, Chinese Taipei (as they’re referred to in the WBC) regularly ranks among the top teams in the world. They most recently triumphed in 2019, winning the Asian Baseball Championship in Taichung after taking down powerhouse Japan.
The WBC, though, is a whole other ballgame. What the team from Taiwan will need to do is chip away at opposing pitchers. At the top of their lineup, Li Lin, MVP of Taiwan’s pro league the CPBL, and Kungkuan Giljegiljaw, who led the league in homers, give them a 1-2 punch. And utilityman Yu Chang, who recently signed a deal with the Red Sox, bolsters their infield defense.
15. Italy
2017 WBC finish: 12th
“We’ve always been able to bite some people and surprise some teams in the Classic,” Italy manager Mike Piazza told his team after they gathered in Rome recently. “But it’s not going to happen this year. Everybody knows who we are and what we have. So we have to be ready.”
Italy is routinely an underdog in the WBC, even if they sit near the top of the European heap. In 2013, their best showing in the WBC, Italy rallied in the ninth inning to take down Mexico. And they mercy-ruled Canada, before getting trounced by traditional powers Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic.
They will be underdogs again, but Piazza is correct. They’re not sneaking up on anybody. They’ve got a couple of Royals infielders in Vinnie Pasquantino and Nicky Lopez, and left-side defender David Fletcher from the Angels. And Matt Harvey is available on the mound.
“My father was so proud to be Italian,” Piazza said about his first joining the team in 2006. “So when I had the opportunity, I was like, absolutely.”
16. Australia
2017 WBC finish: 9th
Don’t make the mistake of thinking the WBC doesn’t matter.
Ex-Brewers All-Star catcher Dave Nilsson helms the team from Australia. They’ve created a roster full of veterans with deep WBC experience. This is one of the few teams that has played in every WBC. And they have ace right-hander Tim Atherton, 33, who led the Brisbane Bandits to back-to-back Australia Baseball League titles in 2018-19 and twice won championship series MVP awards.
17. Nicaragua
2017 WBC finish: Did not qualify
Nicaragua, the home country of Dennis “El Presidente” Martínez — author of a perfect game in 1991, four-time All-Star, Canadian Baseball Hall of Famer — is as baseball-mad as any in this tournament. They just happen to be on the smaller size, by population.
And their talent finally caught up to their ambition. Nicaragua will play in its first WBC after routing Pakistan and edging Brazil in the qualifying rounds to reach the final 20.
A couple of major-league right-handers will pitch for Nicaragua: Jonathan Loáisiga of the Yankees and Erasmo Ramírez of the Nationals. Neither of them was on the team’s qualifying roster. In other words, reinforcements have arrived as Nicaragua looks to step up.
18. Great Britain
2017 WBC finish: Did not qualify
The team from Great Britain features Dodgers outfielder Trayce Thompson and Reds right-hander Ian Gibaut, their only two big leaguers. But the roster is otherwise peppered with minor leaguers, top to bottom. Pros abound.
Maybe you live outside of Seattle and don’t know that Harrison “Harry” Ford is the Mariners’ top prospect, a 20-year-old first-round pick who, even as a catcher, is quick enough to be a plus baserunner and athletic enough to move to center field.
Anyway, Great Britain knows about Ford. He’s on their roster, too. The Brits have never factored as a WBC threat, but why not now?
19. Czech Republic
2017 WBC finish: Did not qualify
If you’re looking for a fun underdog to root for and Australia and Nicaragua don’t quite do it for you, might we offer the team from the Czech Republic? They burned bright to even get through qualifying, with an exciting 3-1 victory over Spain to clinch a berth.
And their best player, Martin Schneider, is a two-way star in the Czech Extraliga, a slugger-pitcher who has led the league in homers and ERA. And, in his day job, Schneider works as a firefighter. He’s pure adrenaline.
20. China
2017 WBC finish: 16th
The story behind how ex-Mets manager Terry Collins wound up managing China in the 2009 WBC is — well, actually it’s kinda boring. He was assigned to them. At the time, MLB — specifically Ed Burns, then the vice president of baseball administration — was overseeing the team from China.
Collins was coming off a stint managing the Orix Buffaloes in Japan and trying to get back into MLB. And he helmed China, with a lone win over Taiwan, to an 11th-place finish that year, their best showing.
Anyway, China hasn’t excelled much at baseball over the years. And their manager this year is 75-year-old minor-league lifer Dean Treanor. Baseball is a tough game. You can’t just show up and win.
Nick Groke is a staff writer for The Athletic covering the Colorado Rockies and MLB since 2018. He previously spent more than five years reporting on MLB for The Denver Post and also wrote on all sorts of sports, especially boxing, as well as music, food, crime and politics. Follow Nick on Twitter @Nickgroke
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