Power ranking 2021 Olympic baseball teams

3. South Korea

The reigning gold medal winners in baseball, taking home the top prize from Beijing back in 2008 when the sport last appeared in the Olympics, South Korea is among the upper tier of three teams coming into Tokyo. Moreover, this is a nation that has absolutely dominated on the Asian front in recent years.

It should be noted, though, that the roster has drastically changed since their 2008 victory, as one would expect after 13 years. The star for that team’s performance was Hyun Jin Ryu, who is now a reliable starter in MLB. In addition to Ryu, though, there are only two players from the games in Beijing who will be on the roster for the 2021 Olympic games.

South Korea’s entire roster for Tokyo is comprised of players competing in their native league, the KBO. Unfortunately, they are going to be without some surely helpful hands if they were available as a big bat like Ji Man Choi or other arms such as Kwang-Hyun Kim would be valuable in this tournament.

Nonetheless, having a group of high-end professionals from their home league should benefit the South Korean contingent and allow them to perform at a high and, more importantly, consistent level. That should be good enough to earn them a medal, even if they aren’t able to repeat by getting another gold.