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USA Unveils WBSC Premier12 Roster

 Alex Ortiz - World Baseball Network  |    Oct 21st, 2024 8:30pm EDT

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The United States unveiled who will join their team for this year’s Premier12 Tournament, just a few short weeks away. They will be led by former Los Angeles Angels manager Mike Scioscia, who will return as the USA manager. Here is who will be joining USA’s squad this upcoming November:

PITCHERS:

• –  Eric Adler (Chicago White Sox-AA)
• –  Dan Altavilla* (Free Agent)
• –  Sam Benschoter (Cincinnati Reds-AAA)
• –  Dylan Covey* (Philadelphia Phillies- AAA)
• –  Anthony Gose* (Free Agent)
• –  Zac Grotz* (Acereros de Monclova-LMB)
• –  Rich Hill* (Free Agent)
• –  Casey Lawrence* (Seattle Mariners-AAA)
• –  Antonio Menendez (Tampa Bay Rays- AA)
• –  Zane Mills (St. Louis Cardinals- AA)
• –  Spencer Patton*(Olmecas de Tabasco-LMB)
• –  Evan Sisk (Kansas City Royals-AAA)
• –  Devin Sweet* (Detroit Tigers-AAA)
• –  Touki Toussaint* (Free Agent)
• –  Austin Vernon (Tampa Bay Rays-AA)

CATCHERS:

• –  Drake Baldwin (Atlanta Braves-AAA)
• –  Willie Maclver (Colorado Rockies-AAA)
• –  Chris Okey* (Los Angeles Dodgers- AA)

INFIELDERS:

• –  Cam Devanney (Kansas City Royals-AAA)
• –  Tim Elko (Chicago White Sox-AAA)
• –  Termarr Johnson (Pittsburgh Pirates-AA)
• –  Luke Ritter (New York Mets-AAA)
• –  Matt Shaw (Chicago Cubs-AAA)
• –  Carson Williams (Tampa Bay Rays-AA)

OUTFIELDERS:

• –  Justin Crawford (Philadelphia Phillies-AA)
• –  Chandler Simpson (Tampa Bay Rays- AA)
• –  Colby Thomas (Oakland Athletics-AAA)
• –  Ryan Ward (Los Angeles Dodgers-AAA)

*——denotes MLB experience

USA features a total of nine players who have experience playing in the MLB. Also featured on USA’s roster are four members of MLB Pipeline’s Top 100 Prospects. Those prospects include Termarr Johnson, Matt Shaw, Carson Williams, and Justin Crawford.

Longtime journeyman Rich Hill will bring the most experience to USA’s roster this November. The 44-year-old pitched during the 2024 season, making four appearances to mark his 20th professional season in MLB. Hill made his MLB debut with the Chicago Cubs in 2005. It will be intriguing if Mike Scioscia uses Hill as part of USA’s rotation.

Tons of attention will be paid to second-baseman Termarr Johnson when the tournament kicks off. Johnson was drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the first round of the 2022 MLB Draft as the fourth overall selection. According to MLB Pipeline, he currently ranks as the 75^th-best prospect in baseball. Johnson played 110 games in High-A and was promoted to Double-A towards the end of the year, where he played 14 games. Overall, Johnson hit for a .237 average, belting 15 home runs, 54 RBIs, and stole 22 bases.

In terms of stealing bases for this team, a lot of attention will be in the outfield among speedsters Justin Crawford and Chandler Simpson. Crawford is the son of former MLB outfielder Carl Crawford. Crawford had a stellar season, reaching Double-A in the Phillies organization after starting the year with High-A. Between two levels, Crawford hit .313, nine home runs, and stole 42 bases.

As for Chandler Simpson, he stole 104 bases between High-A and Double-A in the Rays organization, with 73 of those stolen bases coming at the Double-A level. For the season, Simpson played 110 games and hit .355, tallying one home run and 29 RBIs.

USA will begin play on Opening Night, when they will serve as hosts to Puerto Rico on November 9. The game will be played at Santa Teresita Stadium in Tepic, Mexico. First pitch is scheduled for 6 PM EST.

Photo Credit: Manager Mike Scioscia of Team USA looks on during the Olympic Qualifiers Exhibition. (Photo by Rhona Wise/MLB Photos via Getty Images)