Curaçao Looking to Form Independent Team for Next World Baseball Classic

Curaçao is looking to compete in the World Baseball Classic as an independent nation for the first time, it was reported last week by Dutch media. To do so, it would need to enter qualifiers for the next tournament, which are expected to be held in either 2029 or 2030. Curaçao previously attempted to receive an invitation to the 2026 World Baseball Classic, but those efforts were unsuccessful.

There is optimism that, for the next WBC, Curaçao will be able to compete independently and field a roster made up of top players from the Caribbean island. The idea is supported by 2026 Hall of Fame inductee and the greatest player to come from Curaçao, Andruw Jones. Jones, who managed the Netherlands during the World Baseball Classic, would be a leading candidate to take the reins of a potential Curaçao national team.

Curaçao’s efforts to compete for a World Baseball Classic berth have been underway for some time under federation president Jedrek Magdalena. Since being elected in 2020, Magdalena has overseen Curaçao’s participation in the Caribbean Baseball Cup, where the team has won back-to-back championships. The next step will be securing an official invitation to participate in WBC qualifiers.

There are still hurdles to clear, but Curaçao’s entry as an independent team would significantly alter the composition of the Netherlands roster. Players such as Ceddanne Rafaela and Ozzie Albies could have the opportunity to represent their home country in international competition for the first time. The same would apply to Jones’ son, Druw Jones. All three players played prominent roles for the Netherlands in the 2026 World Baseball Classic.

A key question is how the Netherlands roster would be affected in future tournaments if Curaçao both receives an invitation to the qualifiers and advances to the main event. Players from Curaçao have long been among the most impactful contributors to the Netherlands at all levels of international competition. In fact, 16 of the 30 players on the Netherlands’ roster for the 2026 World Baseball Classic were developed in Curaçao.

Another layer to this potential shift is the eligibility of players from Aruba and Sint Maarten, who could also choose to represent Curaçao. However, their participation would not be guaranteed.

Without its top Curaçao talent, the Netherlands roster would be dramatically different. The team has finished in the top four twice in WBC history and advanced past the first round in three consecutive tournaments from 2009 through 2017. Replicating that success would become significantly more difficult and would require increased development of homegrown talent. The 2026 roster featured just three players who were born and developed in the Netherlands, highlighting that challenge. A Curaçao national team would likely force the Netherlands to rely more heavily on players from its domestic Honkbal Hoofdklasse league.

This season, seven players born and raised in the Netherlands are set to play Minor League Baseball. Among the notable prospects is New York Yankees left-hander Tijn Fredrikze, who is making his professional debut this year. While the Netherlands would likely still feature players from the Caribbean, losing top Curaçao-born position players could make it much more difficult to remain competitive and avoid relegation in future WBC tournaments.

Curaçao is one of the premier producers of MLB talent per capita in the world. With a population of just under 186,000, the island has produced 17 major leaguers. However, it was not always considered a baseball hotbed. Prior to 1989, Curaçao had not produced a single MLB player, and few organizations actively scouted the island.

That changed with the debut of Hensley Meulens in 1989 and accelerated after Andruw Jones became the youngest player to hit a home run in the World Series at age 19 in 1996. The sport’s popularity on the island surged, helping inspire future MLB players such as Kenley Jansen, Didi Gregorius and Ozzie Albies.

Despite its rich baseball history and success in producing talent, no current or former MLB player from Curaçao has represented the island at the senior international level beyond the Little League World Series. That could soon change.

Photo: The Netherlands team celebrates after Ozzie Albies hits a three-run home run during the ninth inning of a World Baseball Classic game against Nicaragua, Saturday, March 7, 2026, in Miami. (AP Photo/Marta Lavandier)