Rich Dubroff

Henderson, Kremer, O’Neill, Bradfield lead Orioles’ contingent in World Baseball Classic

Ten Orioles will play in next month’s World Baseball Classic. Team USA will feature shortstop Gunnar Henderson, who announced he’d play during December’s Winter Meetings.

It’s not known what position Henderson will play and Team USA manager Mark DeRosa said with Bobby Witt Jr. also on the team, he’ll move players into different positions.

Starting pitcher Dean Kremer will play for Team Israel for the third straight WBC. Outfielder Tyler O’Neill has joined Team Canada and relievers Jose Espada and Rico Garcia are members of Team Puerto Rico.

CONTINUE READING BELOW

Outfielder Enrique Bradfield Jr., the team’s No. 1 draft choice in 2023 and their fourth overall prospect, will play for Team Panama.

Infielder Luis Vázquez (Puerto Rico) and minor league pitchers Ryan Long (Great Britain), Micah Ashman (Canada) and Naykel Cruz (Cuba)  also will play.

The rosters were revealed on MLB Network on Thursday night.

Several 2025 Orioles are also participating. Starting pitcher Tomoyuki Sugano, who is a free agent, is on Team Japan. Relievers Seranthony Domínguez and Gregory Soto are on Team Dominican Republic. Reliever Matt Bowman will join Kremer on Team Israel.

CONTINUE READING BELOW

Utility players Ramón Urías (Mexico), Emmanuel Rivera (Puerto Rico) Terrin Vavra (Czechia) and catcher Chadwick Tromp (Netherlands) also will play.

The WBC will begin on March 5th. The finals will be played on March 17th in Miami.

The Orioles will host Team Netherlands, managed by newly elected Hall of Famer Andruw Jones, in Sarasota on March 3rd.

Call for questions: I answer Orioles questions most weekdays. Please send yours to: Rich@BaltimoreBaseball.com.

 

Scroll Down to LEAVE A COMMENT

Rich Dubroff

Rich Dubroff grew up in Brooklyn as a fan of New York teams, but after he moved to Baltimore, quickly adopted the Orioles and Colts. After nearly two decades as a freelancer assisting on Orioles coverage for several outlets, principally The Capital in Annapolis and The Carroll County Times, Dubroff began covering the team fulltime in 2011. He spent five years at Comcast SportsNet’s website and for the last two seasons, wrote for PressBoxonline.com, Dubroff lives in Baltimore with his wife of more than 30 years, Susan.

Share
Published by
Rich Dubroff

Recent Posts

  • 2026 MLB Draft

Will the Orioles finally draft a pitcher in the 1st round?

The amateur draft is just over three weeks away, and there are plenty of guesses…

June 18, 2026
  • Mailbag

Orioles should not trade Gunnar Henderson | MAILBAG

Question: Any thoughts on what is plaguing Gunnar Henderson? Is he trying too hard and…

June 18, 2026
  • Rich Dubroff

Manny Machado: ‘I’ll always be an Oriole at heart’

Manny Machado is both one of the greatest and most polarizing players in Orioles history.…

June 17, 2026
  • The Bird Tapes

Bird Tapes Photo Album: Three Birds At A Ballgame

A Bird Tapes subscriber recalls when his classmate, Curt Blefary, and two of Blefary's Oriole…

June 17, 2026
  • Rich Dubroff

Orioles’ injury update: Bassitt, Beavers, Kremer, Povich, Hiraldo

As the Orioles begin a three-game series in Seattle on Tuesday night, they're reporting progress…

June 16, 2026