OPINION: Team USA's 2026 WBC run was their most disappointing ever.
- Om Brown
- 18 hours ago
- 5 min read
The United States was widely predicted to win the World Baseball Classic, or at the very least come in second for the second straight tournament. They did come in second, losing to Venezuela 3-2 in the Final. However, it was an embarrassing, pathetic, and flat out disappointing result for what may have been the best baseball team ever assembled. Here are my thoughts and opinions on the 2026 Team USA baseball squad and their poor result in the WBC.
Note: Throughout the entirety of the tournament, I was in India, so I did not watch any games live.
The 2023 Team USA was a much different team than the one we saw in 2026. For starters, they were the defending champs, as the US won the 2017 tournament. They also boasted veteran stars like OF Mike Trout, OF Mookie Betts, 3B Nolan Arenado, and 2022 NL MVP 1B Paul Goldschmidt. However, their pitching was underwhelming to say the least. The ace of the staff was an aging RHP Adam Wainwright, who retired after the 2023 MLB season.
In 2023, the US went 3-1 in pool play and made it to the championship game, ultimately losing to Japan in a 3-2 thriller. In 2026, the US went 3-1 in pool play, and made it to the championship game, ultimately losing to Venezuela in another 3-2 thriller.
So why is the 2026 team an embarrassment by many? Simple; it was their conduct, their overall energy, their lack of cohesion, and the overall expectations of the roster.
The Roster:
The 2026 team was loaded to say the least. As good as the 2023 team was, the 2026 team was far better. The main difference between the two teams was the pitching. The 2026 team brought in back-to-back AL Cy Young winner LHP Tarik Skubal and 2025 NL Cy Young winner RHP Paul Skenes, as well as Giants ace righty Logan Webb. Their bullpen featured possibly the best closer in the game, RHP Mason Miller, as well as proven relievers in RHPs David Bednar, Garrett Whitlock, and Griffin Jax.
Their lineup was spearheaded by the best hitter on the planet, Captain OF Aaron Judge, the best SS in the league in Bobby Witt Jr, as well as the 2025 home run king C Cal Raleigh. They also had other stars in the infield like 3B Alex Bregman, 1B Bryce Harper, INF Gunnar Henderson, C Will Smith, and postseason hit leader INF Ernie Clement. In the outfield with Judge, the US boasted 2x All-Star Byron Buxton, 2025 Gold Glove winner (and possibly the best defensive OF in the MLB) Pete Crow-Armstrong, as well as the Red Sox' 21-year-old star Roman Anthony.
This roster was the best all-around on paper. But, there was one thing that I found extremely arrogant of Team USA in their roster construction, which was having retired LHP Clayton Kershaw on the roster to start the tournament. I love Kershaw and he is one of the best pitchers ever, but it was clear that he spent his first offseason away from the game relaxing. Why couldn’t he have been a coach? Or advisor? I thought it was very cocky of the US to just put him on the roster as an emergency pitcher when they could have had an actual MLB player in their prime. Kershaw nearly had to pitch in pool play as well, which made this decision incredibly funny. Kershaw was removed from the roster before the knockout round in favor of Blue Jays closer Jeff Hoffman, but I still question the original choice of having him on the team.
My Honest Thoughts on the Team:
By the end of the tournament, I wasn’t even rooting for the US. It was clear that for them, the WBC was more about business and winning the trophy rather than representing their country and playing with a kind of passion that you just can’t replicate with MLB play. Their energy was pathetic, they never truly got going on offense, and it seemed like they thought that they would win no matter what just because of their talent level.
I fell in love with teams like Venezuela and the Dominican Republic since they had energy. Every home run or big out was life or death for them. They wore their hearts on their sleeves and it made for some of the most electric moments in baseball history.
Team USA never played like that. It was like they were playing not to lose instead of playing to win. They looked way too business-like. The WBC is essentially a meaningless tournament in the grand scheme of things for these players. They don’t get paid for these games. They could get a career-altering injury or miss their team’s season. But most of the guys don’t care about that. They love having fun, playing with pride and passion for their country, but I just didn’t see that level of joy from the Americans.
Check out these 3 home runs from the DR:
Check out a home run from Venezuela:
Check out a home run from the US:
Notice anything? The Dominican and Venezuelan players went absolutely nuts, the type of energy that most teams in this tournament had, while for the US, it was just business as usual. The WBC is about the energy and passion that teams like the DR and Venezuela play with. This may just be me, but the lack of enthusiasm from the US just rubbed me the wrong way.
The final nail in the coffin for me not rooting for the US was the manager Mark DeRosa’s comments after their loss to Italy on how he thought that the US had advanced to the knockout round, when in reality, they could get eliminated due to run differential.
What he said:
A reaction from Chris Rose:
This was concerning. Yes, the rules with run differential are confusing, but that is literally part of DeRosa’s job. In the game vs. Italy, he sat Raleigh, Harper, Buxton, and usual starting 2B Bryce Turang. While yes, the US lineup was still great, it looked like DeRosa was just throwing a random lineup out there because he thought that the US had made it through to the knockout stage. That was simply pathetic. DeRosa has no coaching experience, and it shows. He sucks as a manager, and not knowing a key rule made it very clear.
Why did the US not have a real coach leading the team? Former Cubs manager David Ross was on the staff. Why was he not the manager? It gave off the vibe that Team USA felt they were too good to need a real manager.
Yes, the US still had a solid finish, but it was disappointing. They seemed to think that the bats would wake up just because they had the most talent, but they never did. Their pathetic levels of energy, virtually no passion for the game, and overall attitude just rubbed me the wrong way, while all the other teams, most notably the DR and champions Venezuela, showed immense energy and love for the game.
DeRosa's cluelessness and misunderstanding of a key rule that every manager needs to know was the final straw for me. As a Red Sox fan, I rooted for all the Boston guys. Seeing OF Wilyer Abreu hit big homers for Venezuela was awesome, and so was seeing Whitlock and Anthony play well for the US. DH Masataka Yoshida, OF Ceddanne Rafalea, OF/INF Nate Eaton, LHP Ranger Suarez were also some other Sox players that I pulled for. Another nice thing as a Boston fan was seeing Judge go 0-4 with 3 K’s in the championship game.
The next WBC is set to take place in 2030. I will root for the US again that year. I hope they learn from this experience and come back with a team that actually wants to be there and have fun and play in some of the most electric environments possible.
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