Despite the most star-studded roster in American baseball history, despite a revenge tour that inspired a cavalcade of stars to put spring training aside and finally buy in to playing for their country at the World Baseball Classic, the result was almost exactly the same for Team USA as it was in 2023: a humbling 3-2 loss in the final, this time to Venezuela.
The U.S. has still one just one WBC out of six, and none since 2017. That would be a stain under any circumstances, but it stings even worse because of just how many big names USA Baseball managed to recruit to the roster this time around. Unfortunately, when the chips were down, those big names came up small.
But while there's plenty of blame to go around for a failure like this, who should get the most of it? That's what we're here to figure out — and before you ask, no, the answer is not Aaron Judge.
1. LHP Tarik Skubal
This obviously isn't about Skubal's performance on the field; he was his usual self in an easy win over Great Britain. But that start was his lone appearance for Team USA at the World Baseball Classic, despite the fact that fellow aces Logan Webb and Paul Skenes — who presumably have the same concerns about workload and buildup as any other pitcher — each made two.
I don't want to be too hard on Skubal here. It's a difficult decision to make, especially just a few months removed from a potentially historic free agency. Still, the fact remains that he very well could have taken the ball in one of the knockout-stage games and been more or less on track with his throwing program. He opted not to, and as a result, the U.S. was left relying on Nolan McLean and his grand total of eight MLB starts in the final against Venezuela.
McLean didn't acquit himself too badly all things considered, and the offense deserves most of the blame for what happened on Tuesday night (more on that in just a minute). But it's hard not to wonder whether things could've turned out differently if Skubal had been the one making that start, and his tortured public response didn't help matters.
2. 3B Alex Bregman
Bregman was a complete no-show at the plate all tournament, slashing .143/.364/.214 across five games at the WBC (including an 0-for-3 effort in the title game). But it's not just that he failed to perform — it's that he continued to occupy such a crucial place on the U.S. roster.
Most of Team USA's offense skewed left-handed. So, in the name of balance, manager Mark DeRosa leaned on Bregman frequently as his starter at third base, benching lefty Gunnar Henderson in the process. The problem is that Henderson was consistently one of the best hitters the Americans had, which made Bregman's struggles at the plate loom even larger.
Is that his fault, necessarily? No; it's on DeRosa, who was manifestly underqualified for his role, to put his best team on the field. But Bregman time and again found himself getting important innings, and time and again he failed to live up to his reputation.
3. SS Bobby Witt Jr.
Early on, it seemed like Witt Jr. was headed toward being the breakout star of the entire tournament, flashing some downright absurd leather in pool play. And to be sure, his defense at shortstop remained valuable right up until the very end.
Unfortunately, being a one-dimensional player isn't enough when you're going up against the best competition the world has to offer. And while Witt Jr. repeatedly found himself atop the Team USA lineup, he rarely made good on that vote of confidence, finishing with a .733 OPS after going hitless in the final. He didn't drive in a single run all WBC long, while scoring just three times and managing two extra-base hits in 24 at-bats.
None of that makes Witt Jr. any less of a superstar, of course. But he was relied on as one of the Americans' primary offensive engines, and he simply didn't play like it at any point.
4. OF Aaron Judge
I understand the criticisms, I really do. Judge was largely invisible during Team USA's most important games, going 2-for-11 with zero homers and five strikeouts during the knockout rounds. Multiple times against Venezuela he came up in potentially crucial spots, only to whiff three times in four plate appearances.
That's not good enough for the putative best hitter in the world, point blank. And yet, Judge also finished fifth on the team in OPS, with a healthy .364 OBP and .481 SLG. He almost singlehandedly got the U.S. past Mexico, thereby saving them from the humiliation of failing to make it out of their own pool. And while his bat was absent in the biggest spots, his defense in right field was consistently impactful.
Add it all up, and it's obvious that Judge has earned a place here; he's the face of the U.S., and he deserves to rise or fall based on their result. But, as always seems to be the case with him, a kernel of truth seems to have given rise to a disproportionate amount of hate.
5. C Cal Raleigh
Case in point: The runner-up for AL MVP last year was considerably worse. Raleigh failed to record a single hit over just nine at-bats in the entire tournament, struggling so much at the plate that DeRosa felt compelled to make Will Smith the team's every-day catcher.
Was that a bit of an overreaction? Almost surely; Raleigh is still a very, very dangerous hitter, and the U.S. sure could have used his pop against Venezuela. But he also did very little to earn the confidence of his manager, and that's nobody's fault but his own. Of all the American hitters who slumped through the WBC, Raleigh was probably the most disappointing relative to expectations.