SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — The Giants’ clubhouse at Scottsdale Stadium has slowly thinned out over the last week, and it hasn’t been due to the first round of cuts.
The 2026 World Baseball Classic officially begins on Wednesday evening, beginning with a matchup between Australia and Chinese Taipei at the Tokyo Dome, and the Giants will be very well-represented during this year’s tournament.
San Francisco has seven players from its 40-man roster currently slated to play this year’s WBC: Logan Webb (United States), Luis Arraez (Venezuela), Heliot Ramos (Puerto Rico), Jung Hoo Lee (Korea), Harrison Bader (Israel), Tristan Beck (Great Britain) and José Buttó (Venezuela). Lee, playing in his second tournament, will captain Korea.
Reiver Sanmartin (Colombia) was supposed to pitch in the tournament as well, but sustained a right hip injury in Colombia’s exhibition on Tuesday against the Pirates that will keep him out of the WBC. Bader has been dealing with a right hand contusion that prevented him from swinging for several days, but the 31-year-old outfielder still plans on playing in the tournament.
The Giants’ representatives only begin with those players. Vice president of medical and performance Dave Groeschner will be Team USA’s head trainer, serving the same role he held in 2017 and ’23 for Team Netherlands. Ron Wotus (bench coach), Dave Righetti (pitching coach) and Lipso Nava (third base coach) will work for Team Italy.
There’s also Dusty Baker, currently a special advisor to baseball operations, who will manage Team Nicaragua. Marvin Benard, who Baker managed in San Francisco, and long-time friend George Santiago both helped convince Baker to manage Team Nicaragua in this year’s tournament.
“I played in Latin America — Venezuela, Mexico and Puerto Rico — and it was the most exciting time, the most exciting baseball that I’ve ever (played),” Baker said during MLB’s Winter Meetings.
Jacob Cruz, the Giants’ minor league assistant hitting coordinator, will be Team México’s hitting coach. Chris Walsh, Triple-A Sacramento’s athletic trainer, will serve that role for Team Canada, and minor league outfielder Dayson Croes will play for Team Netherlands.
Webb did not pitch in Team USA’s one-sided 15-1 victory against the Giants on Tuesday at Scottsdale Stadium, instead watching the Bednar brothers each throw scoreless innings, but the two-time All-Star will start the United States’ first game of pool play against Brazil on Friday.
“It’s an honor just to play for the team, let alone pitch the first game. It’s kind of my job to set the tone, so I’m excited about it,” Webb said.
Webb has so far enjoyed his time with Team USA, a stacked roster featuring MVPs like Aaron Judge and Bryce Harper and Cy Youngs like Tarik Skubal and Paul Skenes. Webb has also had his share of talks with future Hall of Famer and former rival Clayton Kershaw, who temporarily came out of retirement for the tournament.
“Honestly, last year I met him at the All-Star Game and he was open there, so it’s kind of just building off of that,” Webb said. “It’s a lot of shooting the [expletive] right now, but hopefully once we start getting into more serious games we’ll have more conversations.”
Assuming Team USA advances as expected, Webb’s second appearance of the tournament will be in the quarterfinals on either March 13 or March 14. The tournament has pitch count restrictions, and Groeschner will be present to monitor San Francisco’s ace throughout the tournament.
“We’ve certainly talked to Webby, and he’s really excited about this opportunity,” said general manager Zack Minasian. “It’s something that he’s earned, given the type of player and the type of person he is. Not going to say we won’t be holding our breath when he pitches, but certainly happy for him that he’s getting this opportunity to show his ability on the world stage.”
Ramos won’t just be playing in the tournament for the first time, but he’ll also have the opportunity to play on his home turf. Team Puerto Rico, otherwise known as “Team Rubio” in reference to everyone going blonde, will have its pool play games at Hiram Bithorn Stadium in San Juan. For Ramos, the tournament allows him to play in front of friends and family on the world stage.
“It’s a proud moment for me and my family,” Ramos said. “When my mom, my dad, my family and friends found out, they were all excited about it. Everybody’s waiting for it. It’s something that I never imagined would happen. Representing Puerto Rico at my house, it’s tight. Out of this world.”
