MIAMI – Pool Play at the 2026 World Baseball Classic concludes on Wednesday.
Among the three games scheduled for Wednesday, the standout matchup will be at Miami’s loanDepot Park, where the Dominican Republic and Venezuela will square off to determine the winner of Pool D. Both teams have already advanced to the quarterfinals, but the Pool D winner will face South Korea, while the team that loses Wednesday night’s game will face defending champion Japan, making their road to the semifinals much more difficult.
Divided by pools, here is where each team stands, how they got there, and what their road ahead looks like.
Pool A – San Juan, Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico (3-0) – At 3-0, Puerto Rico will advance to the semifinals in Houston against an opponent to be determined. They’ve beaten Colombia 5-0, Panama 4-3, and Cuba 4-1, and will face Canada in their finale Tuesday night at 7 p.m. EDT.
A win against Canada would give them first place in Pool D and get them a matchup against the second-place team from Pool B, which will be either the United States, Mexico, or Italy in the quarterfinals.
Cuba (2-1) – Cuba is in a good position to earn a quarterfinal berth, but they don’t completely control their own destiny. They’ve beaten Panama 3-1, Colombia 7-4, and lost to Puerto Rico 4-1 on Monday night. They’ll face Canada at 3 p.m. EDT on Wednesday in their pool play finale.
Regardless of who wins today’s game between Puerto Rico and Canada, Cuba will be in a win-or-go-home scenario. Ernie Whitt’s team would then be 2-1 going into Wednesday afternoon’s game, and a win by Canada against Cuba on Wednesday would give them the Pool A title and send Cuba home. If Puerto Rico wins Tuesday’s game, Canada would be 1-2, and a win against Cuba would give them identical 2-2 records, but Canada would advance as the head-to-head winner, meaning the finale is a must-win for German Mesa’s club if they want to play in Houston.
Canada (1-1) – Canada beat Colombia 8-2 and lost to Panama 4-3. If they win their two remaining games against Puerto Rico on Tuesday and Cuba on Wednesday, they’ll advance out of pool play for the first time at the WBC. If they lose either game, they’ll go home.
Colombia (1-3) – Colombia won their finale against Panama 4-3 on Monday, ensuring they won’t have to qualify for the next World Baseball Classic. They lost to Puerto Rico 5-0, Canada 8-2, and Cuba 7-4. Starter Jose Quintana was limited in how much he could throw by the Colorado Rockies, and Julio Teheran was scratched from his scheduled start on March 8 against Cuba at the last minute before announcing his retirement from baseball. In a tournament where pitching depth largely dictates how far a team will go, the limit on Quintana and Teheran bein unable to go severely hampered their chances.
Panama (1-3) – With the loss to Colombia yesterday, Panama finished last in Pool A and will have to go through the World Baseball Classic Qualifier to be in the next tournament, a disappointing finish for a team that has played in four of the six WBC’s.
Pool B – Houston, Texas
United States (3-0) – The United States beat Brazil 15-5, Great Britain 9-1, and Mexico 5-3. They’ll face Italy in their pool play finale Tuesday night at 9 p.m. EDT.
With a 3-0 record, Team USA is likely to advance, but hasn’t clinched because Italy is 2-0. A win against Italy would clinch first place in Pool B, while a loss to Italy combined with a win by Mexico over Italy on Wednesday would get the U.S. to a quarterfinal matchup against the Pool A winner. A loss to Italy and an Italy win against Mexico gives Italy first place in Pool B and sends the U.S. on via the tiebreaker, as they beat Mexico head-to-head.
Italy (2-0) – With an undefeated record and two games in hand, Italy controls its future. The dugout espresso machine powered the Azzurri to an 8-0 win against Brazil and a 7-4 win against Great Britain. They’ll face the United States tonight at 9 p.m. and Mexico on Wednesday afternoon at 3 p.m. EDT to finish out pool play.
A pair of wins gives Italy the Pool B title and a quarterfinal game against the second-place team in Pool A. A win against the United States and a loss to Mexico gets them into the quarterfinals against the Pool A winner. A loss in both games ends Italy’s run.
Mexico (2-1) – Mexico beat Great Britain 8-2, Brazil 16-0 in six innings, and lost to the United States 5-3. They’re still alive, but to advance, they need Italy to beat the U.S. Tuesday night and they need to beat Italy in the finale.
Great Britain (1-3) – Great Britain lost 8-2 to Mexico, 9-1 to the United States, and 7-4 to Italy, but beat Brazil on Monday in their pool play finale 8-1 to stave off relegation.
Brazil (0-4) – Just happy to be in the World Baseball Classic, Brazil lost all four of its pool play games and will have to qualify for the next WBC. But they did put 17-year-old Joseph Contreras on the world stage, and son of former Major League Jose Contreras responded with a memorable moment, getting Aaron Judge to ground into a double play in between homework assignments. If Brazil is in the next WBC, look for Contreras to take on a starring role.
Pool C – Tokyo, Japan
Japan (4-0) – The defending champions won all four pool play games, beating Chinese Taipei 13-0, South Korea 8-6, Australia 4-3, and Czechia 9-0. They’re on their way to Miami, where they’ll face the winner of Wednesday’s marquee matchup between Venezuela and the Dominican Republic.
South Korea, Australia, Chinese Taipei (2-2) – South Korea lost to Japan 8-6 and Chinese Taipei 5-4, but won their other two pool play games, beating Czechia 11-4 and Australia 7-2.
Australia lost 7-2 to South Korea and 4-3 to Japan and beat Chinese Taipei 3-0 and Czechia 5-1.
Chinese Taipei lost 13-0 to Japan and 3-0 to Australia and beat Czechia 14-0 and South Korea 5-4 in 10 innings.
South Korea advanced to the quarterfinal via the run quotient tiebreaker, and will face the loser of the Wednesday night game between Venezuela and the Dominican Republic.
Czechia (0-4) – Ondrej Satoria threw 4 1/3 electrifying innings against Japan in his final start for the Czechia national team. The electrician famously struck out Shohei Ohtani at the 2023 WBC, and gave the Czech fans one last great outing on the mound. They’ll have to qualify for the next WBC, having finished last in the pool with losses to Japan 9-0, South Korea 11-4, Australia 5-1, and Chinese Taipei 14-0.
Pool D – Miami, Florida
Dominican Republic, Venezuela (3-0) – The Dominican Republic beat Nicaragua 12-3, the Netherlands 12-1, and Israel 10-1, showcasing what has been the WBC’s most potent offense thus far.
Venezuela has beaten the Netherlands 6-2, Israel 11-3, and Nicaragua 4-0.
Both teams have advanced to the quarterfinals, Wednesday’s head-to-head matchup between the two Caribbean powers will determine the pool winner. Whoever wins the game will face South Korea at 6:30 p.m. EDT in Friday’s quarterfinal, while the loser will face Japan on Saturday night at 9 p.m. EDT.
Israel, The Netherlands (1-2) – Israel beat Nicaragua 5-0 and lost to the Dominican Republic 10-1 and Venezuela 11-3. The Netherlands lost to the Dominican Republic 12-1, Venezuela 4-0, and beat Nicaragua 4-3 on Ozzie Albies’ three-run homer in the bottom of the ninth. They’ll face each other in Tuesday night at 7 p.m. at loanDepot Park in a game that will determine third place in Pool D, but neither team will advance. Both will be in the field at the next WBC.
Nicaragua (0-4) – For the second WBC in a row, Nicaragua finished 0-4 in pool play in Miami and will have to qualify for the next World Baseball Classic. They were one out away from a 3-1 win against the Netherlands, which wouldn’t necessarily have staved off a return to the World Baseball Classic Qualifier but would have given the Central American country its first win at the World Baseball Classic. Dusty Baker and his staff were limited by their pitching depth, and perhaps they should have started Ronald Medrano against Israel rather than the Dominican Republic. But the team scored just six runs over four games, so the offense wasn’t producing either.
Photo: Brazil’s Joseph Contreras pitches to a United States batter during the third inning of a World Baseball Classic game, Friday, March 6, 2026, in Houston. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
