Cubs fans won't believe the reason behind Javy Baez's suspension from World Baseball Classic

There's something of a new-age adage about Major League Baseball and how the sport seemingly can never get out of its own way. Between Rob Manfred failing to properly punish the Houston Astros for their cheating scandal, a looming lockout that is threatening the entire 2027 season, or the general state of baseball parity, it always feels like the game is going one step backward every time it takes a couple forward.

Alas, yet another such occurrence has rocked the sport, though at least this one wasn't handed down by the league's offices. Instead, the World Baseball Softball Confederation (which runs the World Baseball Classic) has barred Javier Báez from participating in the 2026 WBC due to a failed drug test... in 2023.

And these weren't performance-enhancing drugs. This was a positive test for marijuana, which is now legal for recreational use in half of all states (and is, at least medically, legal in Báez's home of Puerto Rico). Alas, El Mago won't be allowed to continue building upon his awesome WBC legacy this year.

Javier Báez's WBC absence will rob Team Puerto Rico of its most electric player

Báez's suspension is just the latest in a series of bad news for Team Puerto Rico, which will also be without Francisco Lindor, José Altuve, and Carlos Correa after all three were denied insurance policies for the tournament.

Cubs fans hardly need to be reminded of how electric Báez is on the big stage. He was building quite the WBC legacy for himself to this point, having made the all-WBC team in 2017 as the starting second baseman. He also hit .368/.368/.667 in the 2023 tournament for Puerto Rico.

Now a utility man for the Detroit Tigers, Baéz isn't quite the same player who dominated those events in his younger days, but he's El Mago for a reason. He managed to make an All-Star team in 2025 after years of struggles, and his raw talent deserves to be on display for the whole world to see.

Oh well. I suppose a three-year-old suspension for a drug that Major League Baseball itself no longer tests for is as good a reason as any to prevent one of the most electric players in the sport from taking a worldwide stage.

Sigh.

For what it's worth, 11 current members of the Cubs will participate in this year's WBC: Pete Crow-Armstrong, Matthew Boyd, and Alex Bregman for Team USA; Seiya Suzuki for Team Japan; Jameson Taillon for Team Canada; Jonathon Long for Team Chinese Taipei; Daniel Palencia for Team Venezuela; Javier Assad for Team Mexico; BJ Murray Jr. for Team Great Britain; Yacksel Rios for Team Puerto Rico; and Miguel Amaya for Team Panama.