5 must-watch World Baseball Classic pool play matchups, including Team USA vs Mexico

Before the 2026 MLB season gets underway, the World Baseball Classic has returned to determine who the best national team in the world is. 

There will be 20 teams vying for that title, and pool play begins this week with the final set for March 17 at loanDepot Park in Miami, Florida – the home of the Miami Marlins. 

The tournament will feature baseball powerhouses, including Team USA, which will have the likes of Aaron Judge, Paul Skenes, Cal Raleigh, Bryce Harper, Kyle Schwarber and many more leading the way to what the U.S. hopes is more victories in 2026, especially after how the Milan Cortina Games finished. 

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But others like Japan, the reigning WBC champions, and the Dominican Republic, want bragging rights for the next three years until the tournament returns. Only two teams from each of the four pools will advance to the quarterfinals, and there’s some amazing matchups already in store for this year’s tournament. 

With that in mind, let’s take a look at the top five pool play matchups that are can’t-miss games for all baseball lovers, starting in Tokyo. 

Time to set those alarms, because Shohei Ohtani and the reigning WBC winners in Japan are hosting Korea, and these two rivals have delivered some epic games in this tournament in the past. 

In 2009, these two battled in an extra-innings championship, and they’ve been playing against each other since 1954. However, while Japan has cemented itself as the team to beat in this tournament, Korea hasn’t been able to capture that glory from earlier years, failing to make it out of the group stage since the WBC in 2009. 

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Korea has some solid players on its roster, including a veteran in big-game scenarios as Hyun-Jin Ryu, the ex-Los Angeles Dodgers and Toronto Blue Jays pitcher, will take the bump at 38 years old. It also features big leaguers like Hyeseong Kim, Jung Hoo Lee, Shay Whitcomb and Jahmai Jones. 

But Japan it loaded once more, as Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Yusei Kikuchi and Tomoyuki Sugano are recognizable names on the pitching staff, while Munetaka Murakami, Seiya Suzuki, and Masataka Yoshida join Ohtani in the lineup. 

You may not view this as a rivalry, but these teams certainly have a feud considering many players are from Curaçao – a constituent island country within the kingdom. Think Kenley Jensen, Ozzie Albies, Xander Bogaerts (Aruba), Jurickson Profar and Ceddanne Rafaela. Even Didi Gregorius, who was actually born in Amsterdam, will be on the field to face a stacked Dominican team over the weekend. 

Take one look at the D.R.’s roster, and you’ll find All-Star after All-Star, from Manny Machado to Vladimir Guerrero Jr., to Juan Soto, to Fernando Tatis Jr., and the list goes on and on. It’s arguably the best lineup in the tournament considering the star power out there, and there’s no doubt every one of them wishes to get out of the group stage after not doing so last time out. 

While Team USA has quite the roster, it’s Mexico who has been the victor in each of their last three matchups, and it wasn’t close in 2023 when El Tri took down the Stars and Stripes, 11-5. 

Nonetheless, the U.S. made the championship, only to lose to Japan in the end. As a result, the team’s roster is quite literally the best it’s ever been, sporting a rotation that will feature Tarik Skubal (who is only expected to pitch in a pool play game against Great Britain), Skenes, Nolan McLean, Logan Webb and others. 

In the bullpen, Mason Miller is set to close out games, while Garrett Whitlock, Griffin Jax, and others bring electric stuff in high-leverage situations. 

And in the field, while the aforementioned Judge will captain this Team USA squad, the likes of Gunnar Henderson, Bobby Witt Jr., Alex Bregman, Pete Crow-Armstrong, and Byron Buxton make for a deep roster that manager Mark DeRosa can play with throughout the tournament. 

But Mexico has a solid bunch once more, with Jonathan Aranda, Randy Arozarena, Jarren Duran, and Luis Urias as notable bats in the lineup. On the mound, Taj Bradley, Taijuan Walker and electric closer Andrés Muñoz highlight the pitching staff. 

For the first time since 2013, Puerto Rico is a host site for WBC pool play, and San Juan is sure to be raucous when its national team takes the field against a Canadian squad that is bursting with talent as well. 

Jameson Taillon, Cal Quantrill, and Mike Soroka are in the rotation, while the Naylor brothers, Josh and Bo, will be playing together for their country. The slugging Tyler O’Neill makes his return to the team as well, and Abraham Toro, Otto Lopez and Edouard Julien are just some of the big leaguers on the squad. 

But it’s hard not to expect Puerto Rico to handle business in their capital, as it features a deep pitching staff, with closer Edwin Diaz hoping for redemption after his freak 2023 accident that led to a season-ending injury while with the New York Mets. Seth Lugo, Fernando Cruz, Jorge Lopez, and Jose Espada make for scary depth, and the position players are recognizable names.

The biggest one, however, is Nolan Arenado, who helped the U.S. win gold in 2017 and silver in 2023. Though growing up around a large Cuban family, his maternal grandmother is Puerto Rican and he noted wanting to play for Puerto Rico in the past. This is his moment to do so, as the newest Arizona Diamondbacks Platinum Glove third baseman will hope to add some solid play there like he has with the U.S. in the past. 

This could be the best pool play game in the entire first round of this WBC, as star power galore will be on full display. 

We’ve already mentioned what the D.R. brings to the table, but Venezuela is also loaded in all areas. Salvador Perez will return behind the plate, but William Contreras is also there to catch alongside his first-base brother, Willson. Luis Arraez, Eugenio Suarez, Andres Gimenez, and Gleyber Torres highlight the infield, while Ronald Acuña Jr., Wilyer Abreu and Jackson Chourio hold down the outfield for Venezuela. 

There’s a chance these two teams end up as the first- and second-place squads out of Pool D. And we might want them to, considering this pool play game could have a championship vibe when they take the field in Miami. 

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