Team USA’s already packed roster for the World Baseball Classic received further reinforcements on Wednesday, with starters Nathan Eovaldi and Lance Lynn confirming their participation in the event to be played next March.
Eovaldi, the hero of the 2018 World Series with the Red Sox, is currently on the free market after an injury-plagued season in which he went 6-3 with a 3.87 ERA over 20 starts.
Lynn, who has finished in the top six at the Cy Young Award three times since 2019, returned from knee surgery last June and posted a 3.99 ERA in 121.2 stretches in 2022. Sox starter Blancas is one of the most durable pitchers out there when healthy. Between 2019 and 2021, Lynn’s 499.1 innings pitched was the fifth most among all major league starters.
The roster won’t be officially announced for a few weeks, but this is how USA is shaping up.
C: JT Realmuto, Will Smith
1B: Pete Alonso, Paul Goldschmidt
SS: Tim Anderson, Bobby Witte Jr.
OFF: Mookie Bates, Cedric Mullins, Mike Trout, Kyle Tucker
Family: Nestor Cortes, Nathan Eovaldi, Kyle Freeland, Meryl Kelly, Lance Lynn, Miles Mikolas, Brady Singer, Adam Wainwright, Logan Webb
Relevance IN: Daniel Bard, David Bedner, Nick Martinez, Ryan Pressley, Dillon Tate, Devin Williams
Team USA will begin its title defense on March 11 in Phoenix, facing Mexico, Colombia, Canada and Great Britain in Pool C.
