Spain started their World Baseball Classic Qualifiers in Taipei, Taiwan, with a huge upset of the hosts, Chinese Taipei. Spain scored 12 runs against the reigning Premier12 champions and could have World Baseball Classic legend Adam Jones to thank.
Manager Nelson Prada hired Adam Jones as the hitting coach for Spain. Jones was hired before Spain started camp in Barcelona to prepare for the World Baseball Classic Qualifiers. Jones is a five-time All-Star, Silver Slugger, and four-time Gold Glover.
Jones represented the United States in the World Baseball Classic in 2013 and 2017. In 2017, he made a memorable catch against the Dominican Republic to take a home run away from Manny Machado. The United States would advance to the semi-finals and win the World Baseball Classic for the first time.
Jones already has one Gold Medal and is now looking to help lead Spain to the World Baseball Classic in 2026. Spain failed to qualify for the 2023 World Baseball Classic. If they can follow their upset win over Chinese Taipei with a win over Nicaragua, they will just need Chinese Taipei to beat South Africa to qualify.
In 2022, Spain lost to the Czech Republic 3-1. They had beaten the Czech Republic 21-7 the first time they met but failed to come through with a chance to punch their ticket.
Fans can watch the qualifiers all weekend on Youtube, Facebook, and the World Baseball Classic website.
