MIAMI — The Atlanta Braves’ active roster carries eight Venezuelans. It carries Ozzie Albies from Curaçao, Raisel Iglesias from Cuba, Reynaldo López and Jorge Mateo from the Dominican Republic, Ha-Seong Kim from South Korea, Mauricio Dubón from Honduras (and Team Mexico at the World Baseball Classic), Didier Fuentes from Colombia, and Mike Yastrzemski, who plays for Italy at the WBC. The team that walks into loanDepot park on Monday for a four-game series against the Miami Marlins represents nine countries on the active roster alone.
Venezuela’s Ronald Acuna Jr. reacts during the fifth inning of a World Baseball Classic quarterfinal game against Venezuela, Saturday, March 14, 2026, in Miami. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)
This is the international story the Marlins were built to tell. Sandy Alcántara, Eury Pérez, Otto Lopez, Liam Hicks, Jakob Marsee, Xavier Edwards — Miami sent eleven players to the 2026 World Baseball Classic. They put together a top-five offense by run-scoring on the third-smallest payroll in baseball. And then the team across the dugout this week walks in with the same scouting map running through every position on the field.
The Venezuelan Tide
The Braves’ active roster has more Venezuelans than any team in baseball. Ronald Acuña Jr., currently on the 10-day injured list with a left hamstring strain, is the franchise face. Martín Pérez is the veteran left-hander in the rotation. Robert Suárez anchors the bullpen. José Azócar is the recently-recalled outfielder. Sandy León, signed May 12 after Sean Murphy fractured his finger, is the backup catcher. Anthony Molina is the pitching prospect. Carlos Carrasco is the depth arm at Triple-A Gwinnett.
Atlanta Braves starter Martin Perez delivers a pitch during the first inning of a baseball game against the Seattle Mariners, Wednesday, May 6, 2026, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Stephen Brashear)
That is seven Venezuelan-born players inside the organization at the major-league level. The coaching staff carries two more: third-base coach Eddie Pérez, the longtime Spanish-language voice of the Braves, and bullpen catcher José Yépez. The Venezuelan pipeline has been Atlanta’s organizational signature for a generation. This roster is the most concentrated expression of it.
Curaçao, The Dominican, Cuba
Ozzie Albies has played all 47 games for the Braves at second base. He is from Willemstad, Curaçao, and he plays for the Kingdom of the Netherlands at the World Baseball Classic. In March, in this same ballpark, he hit a three-run home run in the ninth inning of a WBC game against Nicaragua. The Braves built around him.
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)
Reynaldo López, the right-hander from San Pedro de Macorís, Dominican Republic, has been a Braves rotation regular when healthy. Raisel Iglesias, the Cuban-born closer, came off the 15-day injured list on May 5 and is back to setting up his battery work with rookie Drake Baldwin — a 25-year-old American catcher hitting .301 who has emerged as one of the better backstops in baseball this year.
Atlanta Braves pitcher Reynaldo López throws during the first inning of a baseball game against the Washington Nationals, Tuesday, April 21, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Terrance Williams)
Atlanta Braves pitcher Raisel Iglesias celebrates a win over the Chicago Cubs with Drake Baldwin after a baseball game, Wednesday, May 13, 2026, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)
The Reach Beyond Latin America
The story does not end in the Caribbean. Ha-Seong Kim, the 30-year-old South Korean shortstop who came off the 10-day injured list on May 11, is on the active roster. He has started five games at shortstop since his return.
Atlanta Braves shortstop Ha-Seong Kim makes the catch against Chicago Cubs Pete Crow-Armstrong in the ninth inning of a baseball game, Wednesday, May 13, 2026, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)
Boston Red Sox pitcher Aroldis Chapman (44) throws to first tagging out Atlanta Braves shortstop Ha-Seong Kim (7) in the ninth inning of a baseball game Saturday, May 16, 2026, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)
Mauricio Dubón is Honduran-born and was raised in California, where he developed into a major-leaguer. He plays for Team Mexico at the World Baseball Classic. On May 13 he hit a two-run home run against the Cubs in the eighth inning that flipped the game. The Braves have started him at four different defensive positions this season.
Atlanta Braves’ Mauricio Dubón celebrates his two-run home run against the Chicago Cubs in the eighth inning of a baseball game, Wednesday, May 13, 2026, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)
Didier Fuentes is the deepest cut on the list. The 21-year-old Colombian right-hander is one of the youngest players in the major leagues. He has appeared in eight games out of the Atlanta bullpen this season. Colombian-born major-leaguers are rare. The Braves found one and developed him to the bigs before his 22nd birthday.
Atlanta Braves reliever Didier Fuentes delivers a pitch during the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Seattle Mariners, Wednesday, May 6, 2026, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Stephen Brashear)
And A Yastrzemski Wearing Italy Blue
Mike Yastrzemski, grandson of Boston Red Sox legend Carl Yastrzemski, plays for Italy at the World Baseball Classic. He has appeared in 43 games for Atlanta this year, mostly in right field. Even the Braves’ fourth outfielder is a WBC roster contributor — for the Italian national team.
Atlanta Braves’ Mike Yastrzemski celebrates scoring off the bat of Matt Olson in the second inning of a baseball game, Sunday, May 17, 2026, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)
The Map Lands At loanDepot
The Marlins built their offensive engine through Latin America and the Caribbean. The Braves built theirs through Venezuela, the Caribbean, and then kept reaching: Korea, Honduras, Colombia, Italy. Both rosters this week represent the kind of organization-wide international scouting commitment that not every team in baseball has prioritized.
The series itself is not a fair fight. The Braves are 32-15 and the third-best record in the National League. The Marlins are 21-26 and 11 games out in the division. Atlanta is in town for four games at loanDepot park — Monday through Thursday — before the Mets arrive for three. Seven straight against the teams above Miami in the standings.
What the Marlins can control is this: nearly every position player in their everyday lineup hails from outside the United States or carries a WBC roster spot, and the same is true for the team they are about to face. Two organizations, two payroll philosophies, one scouting map. Watch the names on the lineup cards Monday night. The international footprint of this league walks onto the field at 6:40 p.m. ET.
— MT
