Last night, the World Baseball Classic roster came out. I’m really excited to see this, especially considering how interesting that last one was. The roster is dotted with current and former Nationals players and coaches. I wanted to understand some of the national team’s connections to this amazing event.
The national team’s current roster doesn’t have many players. Only two players will leave major league training camp for the event. Harry Ford will play for Great Britain and Matt Mervath will play for Israel. Both players participated in the previous WBC, so they are no strangers to this.
Although both players were born in the United States, they are inextricably linked to the countries they represent. Ford’s parents are British and has been representing the national team for some time. Mervay represents Israel because of his Jewish faith.
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It’s an interesting time for them, though. Mervis and Ford will both leave training camp as they compete for roster spots. Mervis was part of an open first base game. As a left-handed bat, his main competition may be Abimelek Ortiz. Mervis leaving camp could provide Ortiz an opportunity to lock down the job. The same goes for Cabot Ruiz, who will get a chance to show what he’s capable of without Ford.
Harry Ford is one of the most famous figures on the British list. He will co-captain the team with Yankees star Jazz Chisholm. Ford was one of the standout stars of the last edition. The event boosted his stock prospects and Ford brandished the hot rod. His signature moment came when he hit a clutch home run against Colombia.
However, these current players were not the only ones with national team connections to attend the event. There were many former national team players participating in the tournament. Team USA has several of those guys, including Bryce Harper and Kyle Schwarber. Other big-name stars such as Juan Soto will also participate in the event.
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There are also some lesser-known former Nats in the WBC. Cult hero Joey Menezes will represent Mexico and Erasmo Ramirez will represent Nicaragua. Some coaches are also linked to the national team. Two 2019 Nationals will serve as coaches at the event. Gerardo Parra will serve as Venezuela’s first base coach and Yan Gomes will serve as Brazil’s catching coach. Below is a list of past and current WBC Nats.
There are a lot of forgotten Nats on the list! The WBC is a very special event and I have a great time watching it in 2023. Hopefully this WBC will be as exciting as the last one. However, I support the United States coming out on top this time.
Who is your favorite former or current Nat at the event? Are there any other attendees that you totally forgot about? Please tell me below. In addition, who do you think will win the WBC this year? Can Japan repeat, or will Team USA or the Dominican Republic be too strong? The WBC begins in about a month, with the finals taking place in Miami on March 17.