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What you need to know about the 2026 World Baseball Classic final (8 p.m. ET, FOX)

@ByJasonFoster
43 minutes ago

The 2026 World Baseball Classic final is upon us. Team USA punched its ticket Sunday night with a win over the Dominican Republic and will face Venezuela, which defeated Italy on Monday night. The U.S. and Venezuela will match up in the WBC championship tonight at 8 p.m. ET on

3 big lineup decisions facing Team USA

@Theo_DeRosa
March 16, 2026

Managers often have to pull exactly the right strings to win a big game, and Tuesday’s World Baseball Classic final will be no exception. Ahead of Team USA’s championship clash with Venezuela at 8 p.m. ET on FOX, U.S. manager Mark DeRosa must make some major decisions when it comes

Who's available -- and who's not -- out of Team USA 'pen in title game?

10:40 AM EDT

MIAMI -- The delicate balance between going for the gold and getting ready for the regular season impacted Team USA’s pitching plans for the World Baseball Classic final. And it will be fascinating to watch how manager Mark DeRosa and the Americans try to piece together the 27 outs that

Venezuela finds right pitching formula in semis, but final test looms large

1:52 AM EDT

MIAMI – When Venezuela starter Keider Montero walked consecutive lefty batters in the second inning against Italy, manager Omar López knew he was going to have his work cut out for him in the semifinals of the World Baseball Classic on Monday night. “That,” he said, “was a red flag

Acuña making up for lost World Series in World Baseball Classic 

1:20 AM EDT

MIAMI -- "When we went to the World Series," Ronald Acuña Jr. said earlier this week, "I wasn't there. Thank God I'm living this great moment in my career." When the Atlanta Braves won the World Series in 2021, Acuña was reduced to spectator. A torn ACL had relegated the

McLean raring to go in Classic title tilt: 'I'm built for this'

1:00 PM EDT

MIAMI -- When the United States assembled its super team for this World Baseball Classic, the selections were skewed toward established stars not just because of their talent but because of the guaranteed contracts that make them more prone to participate.

Venezuela rallies past Italy to reach first Classic final

12:54 AM EDT

MIAMI -- Outside, it was one of those relentless South Florida rains. But still, the hundreds of Venezuelan baseball fans who remained long after the last pitch of the World Baseball Classic semifinals had been thrown were in ecstasy. Thoroughly soaked but swept up in the moment, they sang, danced,

Roman's monster Classic doesn't surprise his teammates in the slightest

March 16, 2026

FORT MYERS, Fla. -- Another magical moment by Roman Anthony in the World Baseball Classic -- this one a go-ahead solo shot that led Team USA to a thrilling 2-1 victory over Team Dominican Republic in the semifinals on Sunday night -- left his teammates at Red Sox camp in

The 'crazy hour' dance that has carried Venezuela through the Classic

March 16, 2026

Before each game in the World Baseball Classic, Team Venezuela gathers in a circle in its dugout. As pitcher Eduard Bazardo pounds upon a special drum – known as el tambor – the players take turns jumping into and out of the circle to show off their moves. This isn’t

Cole slated to make spring debut Wednesday against Red Sox

an hour ago

PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. -- Yankees ace Gerrit Cole will see his first Grapefruit League action of the spring on Wednesday, when he’s scheduled to start against the Red Sox at George M. Steinbrenner Field. The right-hander is slated to throw one inning in his first game action since undergoing Tommy

Benge's bid to make Mets' Opening Day roster coming down to wire

3:30 PM EDT

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. -- The friends and lockermates that used to surround Carson Benge are mostly gone. Those who once joined Benge on the clubhouse couches for chess matches or simple conversations -- A.J. Ewing, Nick Morabito, Jacob Reimer, Ryan Clifford and the like -- have all been reassigned

USA wins coin flip and will be home team in final vs. Venezuela

March 16, 2026

MIAMI -- When MLB instituted its current postseason format in 2022, there was no longer a need for coin flips or tiebreaker games, because a new, mathematical tiebreaker system was instituted. But lovers of the coin toss will be pleased to know it can still happen in the World Baseball

Here are the new rules coming to the Minors this season

@jared_greenspan
3:25 PM EDT

Several experimental rule changes are coming to Minor League Baseball ahead of the upcoming 2026 season. The new rules will be implemented in various ways across different levels of the Minors. They are designed to further improve the pace of play, increase action and provide additional opportunities for players to

Butera talks fatherhood and infamous espresso machine in Part 2 of exclusive Q&A

1:10 PM EDT

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – On Monday, we brought you Part 1 of MLB.com’s one-on-one Q&A with Nationals manager Blake Butera, where he talked about growing up in a sports family. Today, we bring you Part 2. Learn more about Butera off the field, from fatherhood to cooking skills to

Mariners evaluating SS options with Crawford's Opening Day status uncertain

Miller reports no issues after full bullpen session of about 30 pitches
3:23 PM EDT

PEORIA, Ariz. -- As the sand in the Spring Training hourglass gets ever closer to running out, with Opening Day just more than a week away, Mariners shortstop J.P. Crawford is still dealing with a right shoulder issue that has caused him to miss five consecutive Cactus League games.

The prospects with the most interesting Statcast data this spring

12:00 AM EDT

You're about to see the most exciting prospects in baseball take the field during Spring Breakout this week -- but a lot of those prospects have already been putting on a showcase this spring. And with Statcast tracking now available for all 30 teams' Spring Training ballparks, it's easier than

Run to Classic semifinals has huge impact across Italy 

1:20 AM EDT

MIAMI – Team Italy has heard the jabs. They understand that people look at them not as an Italian ballclub, but a group of guys from America masquerading as an Italian team. But this team doesn’t care. “There's a lot of stereotypical Italians on this team,” captain Vinnie Pasquantino joked.

MLB Together, former players pitch in at Miami Beach cleanup

2:47 PM EDT

MIAMI BEACH, Fla. – On a beautiful sunny day in South Florida, Major League Baseball took steps to ensure more great beach days were in the future for the host city of the 2026 World Baseball Classic final. The league organized the MLB Together beach cleanup with Clean Miami Beach,

Ohtani back with Dodgers, likely to pitch before spring slate ends

@sonjamchen
March 16, 2026

GLENDALE, Ariz. -- The Dodgers weren't expecting to welcome Shohei Ohtani back to the fold quite this soon. Ohtani, along with newly anointed Opening Day starter Yoshinobu Yamamoto, was away from Dodgers camp for most of Spring Training while playing for Samurai Japan in the World Baseball Classic. Japan had

Back from Classic, Marlins ace Alcantara shifts focus fully to Opening Day

18 minutes ago

JUPITER, Fla. -- If things had played out differently, Marlins ace Sandy Alcantara would have taken the mound to start the World Baseball Classic final on Tuesday night instead of a Grapefruit League game.

Star lefty-righty duo headlines a loaded Mariners farm 

March 16, 2026

PEORIA, Ariz. -- The Mariners are rolling. They've posted five consecutive winning seasons, the longest streak in franchise history, and made their deepest playoff run ever last October, coming within a game of the World Series. They also have one of the strongest farm systems in baseball and used some

History of the World Baseball Classic title game

@hellapalattella
March 16, 2026

Every time, the World Baseball Classic championship seems to create another legend. He may be best remembered in America for his days with the Red Sox, but Daisuke Matsuzaka rose to the occasion in the WBC's biggest moments, winning the tournament MVP Award twice. Before Edwin Encarnación was known as

Intentionality the word for Martinez as he ingratiates himself with Rays

8:25 AM EDT

This story was excerpted from Adam Berry’s Rays Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.