The 2023 World Baseball Classic wrapped up Tuesday night time, with Japan successful its 3rd championship in pageant historical past and Shohei Ohtani taking house MVP honors. Japan has received 3 of the 5 WBCs since the tournament began in 2006, and the nation may not have to attend too lengthy to protect its identify. Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred showed forward of the championship recreation that the next WBC will happen in 2026 — or two decades after the tournament used to be first presented to the scene.
“Maybe the best testimony to it, after the unfortunate injury [Edwin] DÃaz had, how the players came out & spoke in support of the tournament,” Manfred told reporters, including James Wagner of the New York Times. “It’s an indication that they really, really care.”
The WBC is typically held each 4 years. The international pandemic led to the tournament to take a longer absence, with six years passing between occasions. It’s to be observed if, after the 2026 version, MLB and the WBC resume to an every-four-years cadence, or in the event that they elect to carry the tournament extra steadily.
While we may not know information about the place the swimming pools can be performed or who can be in them for a while, we do know that 16 groups have robotically certified for the 2026 WBC according to their play on this tournament. Only the last-place finishers in every pool must try to re-qualify. Those 4 groups are Chinese Taipei, China, Colombia, and Nicaragua.
As for the ones 16 groups who’ve certified, let’s print them in checklist shape (do notice that the groups are introduced in no specific order):
- United States
- Japan
- Mexico
- Cuba
- Italy
- Netherlands
- Panama
- Australia
- Korea
- Czech Republic
- Canada
- Great Britain
- Puerto Rico
- Dominican Republic
- Israel
You can learn extra on Japan’s exciting identify recreation win right here.