Since the introduction of the World Baseball Classic in 2006, we have seen several stacked and talented squads take the diamond globally. It truly has been remarkable to see how baseball has developed and grown internationally as the World Baseball Classic prepares for its sixth edition of the WBC in 2026.
Before the World Baseball Classic began, most of the international competitions that would take place in the sport would be in the Olympic Games, World Cups, Intercontinental Cups, and the Pan American Games. Here are the top five of the best international teams that have played in any sort of global competition.
Capturing their first World Baseball Classic title in 2017, the United States went on an incredible run in 2017. They would be grouped in Pool C with the Dominican Republic, Colombia, and Canada, and would finish 2-1, defeating Colombia in 10 innings, losing to the Dominican Republic, and shutting out Canada. As for the second round, they would finish again at 2-1, defeating Venezuela, losing a close game to Puerto Rico, and getting their revenge on the Dominican Republic.
Advancing to the championship round, the United States would eliminate Japan in a 2-1 victory to face Puerto Rico in the finals. The United States would blank Puerto Rico, shutting them out in an 8-0 victory to secure their first World Baseball Classic title. Some USA squad members that were recognized on the All-World Baseball Classic team were first baseman Eric Hosmer, outfielder Christian Yelich, and starting pitcher Marcus Stroman, who was also crowned the Tournament MVP.
One of the greatest teams to ever be assembled in the history of the World Baseball Classic was the Dominican Republic’s team from the 2013 World Baseball Classic. Led by manager Tony Peña, they would go a perfect 3-0 in Pool C, defeating Puerto Rico, Venezuela, and Spain. In the first round of the WBC, the Dominicans scored 19 runs in just a three-game span. As for the second round, they would go 3-0 again, defeating Italy, the United States, and Puerto Rico to place for seeding in the championship round. After a 4-1 victory in the semifinals against the Netherlands, they would be tasked with facing Puerto Rico in the finals.
The D.R. defeated Puerto Rico in a 3-0 shutout, as Fernando Rodney locked down his seventh save, and Robinson Cano was awarded the tournament MVP after hitting .469. They were also well-represented on the All-World Baseball Classic team that year, as infielders Edwin Encarnacion and Jose Reyes were honored, along with outfielder Nelson Cruz, and both Cano and Rodney were also recognized on the All-WBC team.
One of the most electrifying World Baseball Classics we have seen in a while was just in 2023, with Samurai Japan capturing their third WBC title, the most in World Baseball Classic history. Japan would go a perfect 4-0 in Pool B, defeating Australia, South Korea, the Czech Republic, and China. As for the tournament’s knockout stage, they would beat Italy and Mexico to play the United States in the finals. In what was one of the most watched games in World Baseball Classic history, Japan would defeat the United States 3-2, with Shohei Ohtani coming into the game in the ninth inning, striking out his teammate at the time, Mike Trout for Japan to secure their third WBC title.
Shohei Ohtani was awarded MVP of the tournament, leading the tournament in runs scored along with teammate Kensuke Kondoh, and prompted the WBC in innings pitched with nine and two-thirds innings. Also, Masataka Yoshida led the entire WBC with 13 RBIs.
Another fantastic team and one of the best to take the diamond in World Baseball Classic history was Samurai Japan’s team in 2009, where they captured their second title in just the second edition of the World Baseball Classic. Placed in Pool A, they would win their first game against China and defeat South Korea in their next matchup before losing once again to South Korea in the seeding game in a 1-0 shutout. As for the second round, Japan would blank Cuba to reach the qualifiers, where South Korea would defeat them once again 4-1. After defeating Cuba once again in the lower final, Japan was tasked with facing South Korea again, where they would become victorious this time, defeating South Korea 6-2 to reach the championship round. They would eliminate the United States in the semifinals once again, and for the fifth time, they would face South Korea. Japan would be the away team and win in extra innings to secure their second WBC championship.
Daisuke Matsuzaka was awarded MVP of the tournament, becoming the only player in World Baseball Classic history to be awarded MVP twice. Matsuzaka would also be honored on the All-WBC Team, as teammates Nori Aoki and Hisashi Iwakuma were also selected on the All-WBC team. Aoki, along with Ichiro Suzuki, had the most hits in the WBC, with 12 each. Also, Yu Darvish led the entire WBC in strikeouts with 20.
Going a perfect 9-0 in the 1996 Summer Olympic Games in Atlanta, the Cuban national baseball team would secure their first gold medal in their history. Cuba went a perfect 7-0 in the preliminary round, scoring a whopping 97 runs in those seven games, and advanced to the knockout round along with the United States, Japan, and Nicaragua. Cuba would defeat Nicaragua 8-1 in the semifinals, heading to face Japan in the gold medal game. Cuba would defeat Japan 13-9, capturing their first gold medal in the history of the Olympic Games. Cuba was led by Orestes Kindelan, Omar Linarea, and Antonio Pacheco, who combined for 22 home runs, 49 RBIs, and 53 hits en route to Cuba’s first gold medal. The team would only feature one future major leaguer in right-handed starting pitcher Jose Contreras. Contreras made three appearances for Cuba during the Olympics, going 1-0 with a 6.23 ERA, striking out 16 batters in 13 innings pitched.
