Canada will enter the 2026 World Baseball Classic looking to finally advance out of pool play for the first time ever.
They are the only nation that has played in the WBC since the inaugural edition in 2006 that has never got out of the pool play. Fortunately for them, this is the first time that they are not in the same pool as the United States, and will play in San Juan, Puerto Rico in Pool A. This pool is the most wide open of any pool and Canada is looking to break through at last.
Offensively, there’s no question Freddie Freeman is going to be the man. American-born with Canadian parents, Freeman competed in the prior two WBCs and played first base. That should be the case once again in 2026. In 2025, Freddie Freeman is on pace for one of best seasons of his career at age 35. He’s hitting .368/.434/.632 and a wRC+ of 192. That would be a career high. He’s on pace for about 7.5 fWAR. That would be second to his 7.8 fWAR in 2023. The ageless first baseman is showing he’s got plenty left in the tank.
Josh Naylor should be on this roster after declining in 2023. He’ll arguably be the second best hitter on the team and is having another solid year in 2025. He’s hitting .298/.354/.451 with six home runs and an OPS+ of 122. While he is a natural first baseman, he won’t be starting ahead of Freddie Freeman for that role. He’ll be the DH and provide protection for Freeman that he didn’t have 2 years ago.
Canada’s starting catcher in 2023 was Bo Naylor, who has struggled since the start of 2024 after a really good rookie season where he hit .237/.339/.470 with a 121 OPS+. His OPS+ in 2025 is 93. With him struggling with the bat, it has opened the door for Marlins catcher Liam Hicks. Hicks, a rule 5 selection this past offseason, has had a breakout 2025. He’s hitting .275/.350/.473 with four homers. Known for his plate discipline, he has nine walks with 14 strikeouts while his defense behind the plate has been better than advertised. With his success, he looks primed to be Canada’s No. 1 behind the plate in 2026.
Tyler O’Neill has struggled in 2025 and is currently on the IL with a shoulder injury. If he’s healthy, he should still be Canada’s starting left fielder. In the 2023 WBC, O’Neill had a 1.491 OPS with four RBIs. He had a strong 2024 with Boston where he had an OPS of .847 and 31 home runs. Canada will need that version of O’Neill next March with him being one of the few established major leaguers in the lineup.
Canada’s starting right fielder should once again be Owen Caissie. At the 2023 WBC, Caissie had a .748 OPS and 1 home run. The #3 prospect in the Chicago Cubs’ organization is hitting .238/.341/456 with seven home runs for Triple-A Iowa in 2025. Caissie, a soon-to-be major leaguer, will provide some much needed pop in the lineup that doesn’t possess a ton of power outside of Freeman/O’Neill and Josh Naylor.
The starting center fielder is very likely to be Denzel Clarke. A speedy outfielder whose best attribute is his defense. He has hit .286/.436/.419 for Triple-A Las Vegas in 2025. He was promoted to MLB with the Athletics earlier this month but has struggled significantly. He has 16 strikeouts in 23 plate appearances in his first taste of MLB action. His defense and plate discipline should give him the starting center fielder and Canada will hope he’s able to adjust to MLB-caliber pitching as the season goes on.
One of Canada’s top players in 2023 was second baseman Edouard Julien. He led Canada in OPS at 1.821 and home runs with two. The last couple years has seen him really struggle at Triple-A and in MLB. In 2025 he has a .607 OPS with the Twins and .696 in Triple-A. He has shown pop in the past, but has just three home runs in 49 games in 2025. This has opened the starting second base spot. One of the leaders to take that spot is Red Sox utility player Abraham Toro. He played third base for Canada in 2023 and had a really solid .812 OPS. With the Red Sox in 2025, he has an OPS+ of 109 and a line of .255/.255/.511 with three homers.
The likely starting shortstop for Canada should be Otto López. The Dominican-Canadian has finally established himself as a Major League infielder. Defense is his calling card. For the Marlins in 2025, López has posted a .236/.313/.361 line with four home runs. He is in the 92nd percentile for fielding run value on Baseball Savant. He’s in the 98th percentile in outs above average. So, while the bat won’t blow you away, his high level defense is gonna be huge for this team up the middle.
Third base spot should be wide open but right now Brewers prospect Tyler Black seems to be the leader. He made his debut and had some struggles as a rookie with a .561 OPS. He hit .258/.374/.429 with 14 home runs for Triple-A Nashville in 2024. An injury has set him back to start the year but he should be back in AAA in the next few days. One of Canada’s top prospects, he should have a starting role on this team.
The bench should see a few new faces on the roster compared to 2023. One of those new faces could be Matt Lloyd. The former Reds’ minor leaguer, saw himself in Indy ball in 2023 and earned a contract with the Cardinals in 2024. Since then, all he’s done has hit. He’s hitting .283/.379/.455 with three homers for Triple-A Memphis. He’s suddenly given himself a chance at a potential call-up. He has also put himself on the radar for Baseball Canada for the 2026 WBC. With some players struggling for Canada in the minors, his rise in the last year has given himself a real shot at playing some third base and OF for Canada.
Another outfielder that is playing himself into a shot is Noah Myers. Much like Lloyd, he was in independent ball in 2023. He has since then reached High-A in 2025 and been mashing for Bowling Green. He’s hitting .314/478/.430 with two homers. He has 15 stolen bases and has yet to be caught. He has walked 37 times to 42 strikeouts. His speed and plate discipline will make him a very intriguing player for Canada at the 2026 WBC.
Tristan Peters is another outfielder who has a good shot to make this roster. The 25-year-old from Winkler, Manitoba, Canada, is having a solid May for Triple-A Durham. He’s hitting .279/364/.430 with two homers with nearly a 1:1 BB/K ratio with 12 walks and 13 strikeouts.
Starting pitching has always been the big issue for Canada in the World Baseball Classic. The 2023 saw some high end bullpen arms in the mix but the starting pitching left a lot to be desired. Several MLB starting pitchers either declined because of injury or decided to stay in spring training. That very well may have been why Canada did not get out of group play. Cal Quantrill was the lone MLB starter for Canada and he got rocked by Great Britain in their opener.
This time around, Canada has significantly more depth in MLB and in the high minors on the mound to call on. Even if they don’t get all their top names, they’ll have a rotation that is leaps and bounds better than their rotation in 2023.
Nick Pivetta had Covid in the spring of 2023 and was unable to pitch for Canada, this time around, he should be Canada’s ace as long as he’s healthy. In 2025, Pivetta is having a career season. He has a 2.58 ERA and 69 strikeouts in 59 1/3 innings. He’s on pace for nearly a 4 fWAR season and will give Canada a true ace.
Jameson Taillon pitched in the 2013 World Baseball Classic for Canada against the United States. He went four innings and allowed one earned run with three strikeouts. He had never pitched higher than Double-A before that tournament. He declined invitations in 2017 and 2023 but was interested in pitching in 2023. He would be a solid addition to the rotation for Canada. In 2025, Taillon has a 3.86 ERA and 51 strikeouts in 63 innings.
The rest of the rotation will very likely be featuring Canada’s top pitching prospects.
Jonah Tong has emerged as one of the best pitching prospects in all of baseball. The 21-year-old righty from Markham, Ontario, Canada, has thrown 44 innings in 2025 for Double-A Binghamton and has 72 strikeouts. He only has allowed more than three hits in a game twice in nine starts. If he pitches for Canada, he would give Canada much needed depth in the rotation while also possessing a front of the rotation type of arsenal.
Another pitching prospect to expect in the rotation in Mitch Bratt. Bratt was on the Canadian roster at the 2023 WBC and started against the US and was understandably shelled by a lineup with future hall of famers. He went just 1/3 of an inning and allowed six runs as a 19-year-old that had never faced competition above Class-A ball. He’ll be back, having now pitched in Double-A, where he’s having a ton of success in 2025. He has a 1.94 ERA in 2025 with 51 strikeouts in 41 2/3 innings. His 30.5% strikeout rate is a career-high and a 3.6% walk rate, also a career-high. The 21-year-old has blossomed into one of Texas’ best pitching prospects and is better positioned to pitch at a high level at the 2026 WBC.
In the bullpen, Cade Smith is the biggest name. In 2023 as a minor leaguer, Smith threw one inning in two games against Mexico and the United States and allowed two runs and struck out one. Since then, he has become one of the best relievers in MLB. He has a 2.84 ERA and 39 strikeouts in 25 1/3 innings in 2025 for Cleveland. He should be Canada’s closer in 2026.
Matt Brash missed 2024 with Tommy John surgery, but is back and healthy in 2025. He has thrown 7 1/3 innings with eight strikeouts and has yet to give up a run. He was on Canada’s roster in 2023. There’s an existing injury rule for players who have spent more than 60 days on the IL in the most recent MLB season. Because of this, MLB teams can refuse to release a player for the tournament. Since Bratt has not been on the IL for 60 days or more, he is still eligible to pitch for Canada without needing club approval. If he pitches, he’ll be one of Canada’s top relievers.
Michael Soroka has been both a starter and reliever in MLB. After long being a starter in MLB, Soroka was transitioned into the bullpen in 2024 for the Chicago White Sox and was dominant. He posted a 2.75 and 60 strikeouts in 36 innings. He has been used as a starter in 2025 for Washington and posted a 5.61 ERA in 25 2/3 innings. He has shown as a reliever is where he has a higher ceiling and should be a reliever for Canada in 2026.
Canada in 2026 should boast one of the best bullpens in the tournament and a high level rotation as they look for a historic quarterfinal berth.
Projected lineup
CF Denzel Clarke
C Liam Hicks
1B Freddie Freeman
LF Tyler O’Neill
DH Josh Naylor
RF Owen Caissie
3B Tyler Black
2B Abraham Toro
SS Otto López
Bench
C Bo Naylor
IF Edouard Julien
OF Tristan Peters
OF Noah Myers
OF/IF Matt Lloyd
IF Jared Young
Starting rotation
RHP Nick Pivetta
RHP Jameson Taillon
RHP Jonah Tong
LHP Mitch Bratt
Bullpen
RHP Cade Smith
RHP Matt Brash
RHP Jordan Balazovic
RHP Michael Soroka
RHP Cal Quantrill
LHP Rob Zastryzny
RHP Eric Cerantola
RHP Garrett Hawkins
RHP Carter Loewen
LHP Adam Macko
RHP Jordan Marks
Photo: Edouard Julien, right, celebrates with third base coach Tim Leiper as he runs the bases after hitting a home run against Great Britain during the first inning of a World Baseball Classic game in Phoenix, Sunday, March 12, 2023. (AP Photo/Godofredo A. Vásquez)
