11 Chicago Cubs' Players Will Be Playing in the World Baseball Classic

The World Baseball Classic (WBC) begins on March 8th. With twenty separate countries competing, the Chicago Cubs will have some of their own playing and representing eight different countries. The World Baseball Classic took a hiatus due to the pandemic, but it is making a return in 2023. The last WBC took place in 2017 which featured the United States taking the gold over Puerto Rico. Current Cubs' pitcher Marcus Stroman took home the tournament MVP award for his championship game performance.

The cool thing about the World Baseball Classic is the tournament allows minor league baseball players to be seen on a bigger level rather than the normal minor league spring training. Because the WBC begins March 8th and can run through March 21st, it can also be a more competitive spring training for some of the major league-ready players. The schedule of the WBC can be found here.

The Cubs will be sending 11 of their players to the WBC. One thing to note is new Cubs' first baseman/ designated hitter Trey Mancini was supposed to play for Italy, but he has since decided to forego the WBC and focus on creating a relationship with his new teammates. Here is a breakdown of the 11 other players taking part in the tournament.