Excitement grows in Okinawa with WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup opening on Friday
Anticipation is growing with two days to go to the start of the WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup 2025 presented by RAXUS in the Okinawa Prefecture, Japan with the best of international youth baseball set to make their mark.
The Baseball Federation of Japan (BFJ) and NPB Enterprise will co-host the tournament with the support of the Japan High School Baseball Federation at the Okinawa Cellular Stadium, a 15,000-seat venue in Naha, which is the main field, and the 12,000-seat Nishizaki Stadium in Itoman the second venue.
The tournament will open on Friday, September 5, and fans responded with enthusiasm to the warm-up games Samurai Japan played on August 31 and September 2.
The fact that Okinawa Shogaku High School won their first Summer Koshien (the Japanese High School National Championship) just weeks before the tournament became one more motivation for the local fans.
Group A
World No. 1 Japan is the favourite in Group A. Manager Masayoshi Ogura assembled a roster of high school stars headlined by right-handed fireballer Ishigaki Genki. Left-hander Ryosuke Sueyoshi got the final out of the 2025 Koshien.
According to the skipper, pitching "will be the key". Ogura selected nine pitchers and sought players who could help at multiple positions. "I think the players will get results if they don't fear the results," Ogura commented.
No. 4 Korea is a strong candidate for a spot in the Super Round with manager Soo Chul Sok selecting a competitive team. Hard-throwing right-hander Jun-hyun Park is the ace of a strong pitching staff. Hyunseung Ha is a two-way phenom who already represented Korea at the U-15 level.
Manager Eddie Gonzalez had No. 7 Puerto Rico compete in the domestic Collegiate Summer League. "We looked for players who can field different positions and pitchers who can start and pitch out of the bullpen," commented Gonzalez. "We are competing at the highest level, and we need to have as many options as possible. The roster features right-hander Pablo Figueroa, whom scouts believe is the best Puerto Rican pitching prospect in years.
No. 12 Cuba has a pair of standout prospects, like shortstop and captain Jonathan Moreno and catcher Yaidel Ruiz. They both have already competed in the National League (Serie Nacional). Veteran manager Abeicy Pantoja selected only seven pitchers, and the staff may not have the depth of the other powerhouses.
Manager Guglielmo Trinci said that No. 14 Italy will compete but will field a young roster. He has talent, like left-handed power hitter Patrick Silva, but doesn't look like a competitor for the Super Round.
No. 26 South Africa completes the group. Manager Dean McKinnon believes his team will showcase "resilience and passion". He said that his players "together they form a unit that reflects the true spirit of South African baseball."
Group B
No. 2 Chinese Taipei and No. 3 USA appear to be the superpowers in Group B.
USA Manager Rick Eckstein said that the talent level he has seen during the selection process has been "incredible." Infielder Grady Emerson projects as the overall No. 1 Major League Baseball (MLB) Draft pick in 2026. Infielder Jacob Lombard and left-handed pitcher and power hitter Giovanni Rojas also project as first-round Draft picks.
Chinese Taipei's manager Hung-Yuan Liao will count on depth and quality in his pitching staff. Left-hander Chung Yi-en, the No. 1 Draft pick of the Rakuten Monkeys of the Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL), has a five-pitch arsenal, including a splitter. Right-hander Lai Qianfan is a reliever with a fastball topping 152 kilometres (94.4 miles) per hour.
No. 9 Panama is also ambitious. Manager Carlos Maldonado can count on two professional players. Catcher Juan Rujano played 35 games for the St. Louis Cardinals in the Dominican Summer League and posted a .279 batting average with three home runs. Infielder Michael Nieto played shortstop, second base and third base for the Philadelphia Phillies in the Dominican Summer League. He committed only three errors in 25 games. José Serva, a 16-year-old left-hander, will be the opening day starter.
Manager Jason Pospishil, who selected eight pitchers and 12 position players, believes No. 10 Australia has a "very versatile team”. Left-hander Mitch Evans signed a professional contract with the Detroit Tigers of Major League Baseball (MLB) in July. Utility Matt Trainor was the MVP of the U-18 National Championship.
Germany Manager Georg Bull says his world No. 18 side will play the U-18 Baseball World Cup with "high ambitions". He added: "We must remain realistic. In most of the participating countries, baseball is one of the top sports, and the competition will be challenging."
Manager Guojun Lai, a former international pitching star, will lead a young No. 19 China that can count on talents like catcher Zhao Xin. He will need solid pitching from finesse right-hander Zheng Zijian and Li Xiaobo, a power right-handed pitcher, to stay competitive.
The WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup 2025 presented by RAXUS follows the traditional WBSC Baseball World Cup format, with 12 participating teams divided into two groups. The top three finishers of each group will advance to the Super Round, and the first and second-place finishers in the Super Round will compete for the title in the World Championship Final, while the third and fourth-place finishers will play for bronze.
The WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup is the oldest Youth Baseball World Cup. Newark (USA) hosted the first edition in 1981, with the event held every other year since 1997. Canada has hosted the WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup a record 13 times, while the USA has hosted six editions.
Historically, Cuba leads the honour roll with 11 titles (most recently in 2004), followed by USA with 10, Korea with five, Chinese Taipei with three, and Canada and Japan with one each. After four previous runner-up finishes, Japan captured its first crown in 2023, defeating Chinese Taipei in the final to win the XXXI WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup.
The WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup has long been the stage where legends are born. MLB stars Shohei Ohtani and Roki Sasaki first represented Japan at this tournament in 2012 and 2019, respectively, while rising MLB stars Tyler Soderstrom and Pete Crow-Armstrong both played for USA in 2019.
Travis Bazzana, now ranked among MLB’s top prospects, also wore his country’s colours at the U-18 level in 2022 before advancing rapidly through the professional ranks. He has already represented his country at the WBSC Premier12 2024, and the Cleveland Guardians recently promoted him to Triple-A.
Korean submarine closer Byung-hyun Kim, who competed in the MLB, NPB and Korea Baseball Organisation (KBO) League, played in the Baseball World Cup 1998 as a teenager. Meanwhile, Samuel Aldegheri, the first Italian pitcher to reach the MLB level, competed in the WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup 2017, and Alex Liddi, the first-ever MLB player developed in Italy, played in two U-18 World Cups: 2004 and 2006.