He's crushed some of the longest home runs on the Major League's biggest stage (and unexpectedly stole America a taco, too), but now, Phillies outfielder Kyle Schwarber has turned his attention to the international game. On Tuesday, Team USA announced that the left-handed slugger was "All in" for the upcoming World Baseball Classic.
Schwarber led the National League with 46 home runs this past year and his 78 dingers over the last two seasons is fourth-most in the Major Leagues behind just Aaron Judge, Shohei Ohtani and Vlad Guerrero Jr. With Bryce Harper expected to be unavailable for the tournament because of his recent UCL surgery, Schwarber will provide the squad with some necessary thump in the heart of the lineup.
Though rosters won't be finalized until later this offseason, here is how Team USA looks so far:
C: J.T. Realmuto, Will Smith
1B: Pete Alonso, Paul Goldschmidt
2B: Trevor Story
SS: Tim Anderson, Bobby Witt Jr.
3B: Nolan Arenado
OF: Mookie Betts, Cedric Mullins, Mike Trout, Kyle Tucker
SP: Nestor Cortes, Kyle Freeland, Merrill Kelly, Brady Singer, Adam Wainwright, Logan Webb
RP: David Bednar, Ryan Pressly, Dillon Tate, Devin Williams
Team USA will begin its title defense on March 11 in Phoenix, taking on Mexico, Colombia, Canada and Great Britain in Pool C.
