Just two weeks after Team USA and Team Canada delivered an electric gold medal showdown at the Olympics, the sports world is being treated to another international tournament.
Team USA opened pool play Friday night against Brazil in what was expected to be a routine tune-up. The final score suggests exactly that — a 15–5 win — but the game was tighter than it looked. After eight innings, the Americans held just a three-run lead before pulling away late.
Team USA captain and Yankees slugger Aaron Judge made noise in the first inning. Just 11 months after committing to Team USA, he wasted no time showing off his power on the international stage.
With a runner on first and a 3–0 count, Judge made former Diamondbacks prospect Bo Takahashi pay for leaving a sweeper over the heart of the plate. The three-time MVP hammered the pitch 405 feet to left-center, giving Team USA the early lead.
Judge’s two-run blast immediately made it feel like Team USA had the game in hand and that it might just be a matter of time before the mercy rule came into play. Under World Baseball Classic rules, first-round and quarterfinal games end early if a team leads by 15 runs after five innings or 10 runs after seven.
“It has been great,” Judge said of the atmosphere at the ballpark. “I can go back to the first inning. Bobby Witt [Jr.]is up there and they are chanting 'USA.' My heart was pounding in the on-deck circle.
“It was an unreal atmosphere. And looking forward to more moments like that as the tournament goes on. We have a squad that is excited. We are gelling pretty early, which has been great. And it is time to take care of business.”
AARON JUDGE GOES YARD 🇺🇸 #WorldBaseballClassic pic.twitter.com/rHI5uO5p6m— World Baseball Classic (@WBCBaseball) March 7, 2026
Fans didn’t have to wait long for another big moment. In the bottom of the first, Manny Ramirez’s son, Lucas Ramirez, took the second pitch he saw from Team USA starter Logan Webb and launched it over the right-field wall.
Lucas hits left-handed, but he clearly has the same flair for the dramatic in big moments. His 392-foot blast trimmed Team USA’s lead to one run.
“I think it kind of locked me in a little bit,’’ Webb said. “You know, only playing in the playoffs once, the two games I pitched, (Dodgers All-Star) Mookie (Betts)got hits off me. I feel like both times kind of locked me in. Luckily, those two times they were singles.
“This one obviously wasn’t.’’
Webb would immediately settle down, dominating Brazil’s lineup, he ended his outing on Friday night striking out six of the 10 batters he faced, with the last nine hitters failing to hit the ball out of the infield.
“I thought Logan took an inning to lock in,’’ USA manager Mark DeRosa said following the win, “then he was nasty for three. He didn't have command of his off-speed early. I give credit to Manny's son for jumping on one, getting him involved.’’
Webb threw 33 of his 52 pitches for strikes, setting the tone and keeping Brazil’s lineup in check. Former Red Sox starter Michael Wacha followed with three scoreless innings, striking out five, including the side in one frame. Gabe Speier added two strikeouts in the eighth, and Mason Millerfanned three in the ninth.
Ramirez delivered another big swing in the bottom of the eighth, launching a solo homer off Speier to cut the lead to three runs. At 20 years, 49 days old, he became the second-youngest player to hit his first World Baseball Classic home run.
BRAZIL WASTES NO TIME TO RESPOND. 🇧🇷 pic.twitter.com/DcBdnEqaIy— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) March 7, 2026
Ramirez also went deep earlier this week, taking Rangers ace Jacob deGromout in his first at-bat during Wednesday’s exhibition game in Surprise, Arizona. The younger Ramirez — who bats left-handed, unlike his father, by design — was selected by the Angels in the 17th round of the 2024 draft.
"I say you go out there with confidence, you can do anything," Ramirez said. "If you say it out loud, it will happen. I am telling you. It will happen."
Roman Anthonywasted no time introducing himself, going 2-for-4 with two RBI, two walks, and a run scored. He looked poised in his World Baseball Classic debut. On his two singles, Anthony recorded exit velocities of 95.2 mph and 82.7 mph, and he also squared up a ball at 100.9 mph on a 378-foot flyout.
Anthony also came up big earlier in the week during Team USA’s exhibition game against the Giants. The Red Sox outfielder crushed a 394-foot, two-run homer in that contest.
ROMAN ANTHONY DOES NOT FEAR THIS STAGE (Also, very weird to see him bring Aaron Judge home) pic.twitter.com/OnJuMh4FQe— Tyler Milliken (@tylermilliken_) March 7, 2026
Team USA added Anthony to its roster late after Diamondbacks outfielder Corbin Carrollsuffered a broken hamate bone. Despite having just 71 big league games under his belt, Anthony is embracing the chance to share the stage with some of the game’s best players.
Another bright spot for Team USA was Brewers second baseman Brice Turang, who gave Brazil fits at the plate all night. With one out in the fifth inning, Turang broke the game open by slicing a bases-clearing double to left field. Judge’s blast in the first set the tone for Team USA’s lineup, but Turang quietly finished with three of the team’s 10 hits and drove in four runs.
When Team Brazil turned to its bullpen early, it called on a 17-year-old high school pitcher to face Team USA’s loaded lineup.
Joseph Contreras emerged from the right-field bullpen in the second inning and became the youngest player to appear in a World Baseball Classic game since 2013. At 17 years, 291 days old, Contreras also carries a familiar name — his father, José Contreras, pitched in plenty of big games during his career with the Yankees.
The 6-foot-4 right-hander is ranked as the No. 47 draft prospect and is committed to play college baseball at Vanderbilt.
“He could fit into the top two rounds as one of the higher-ceiling arms in the high school class, though teams will have to sign him away from a Vanderbilt commitment,” Contreras’ MLB.comprospect profile says. “He still has room to pack plenty of muscle on his lanky frame, so he could add more power to his heater and his secondary offerings.”
In one of the game’s cooler moments, Judge stepped in to face Contreras with the bases loaded and one out in the second inning. Adrenaline was surely pumping for the 17-year-old, but he looked calm on the mound against the Yankees’ slugger. Contreras fired a 94.4 mph fastball that Judge rolled on the ground, resulting in a 5–4–3 double play to escape the jam.
The 17-year old Joseph Contreras gets the reigning MVP Aaron Judge to roll into a double play to end the inning! 😳 What a moment. pic.twitter.com/QQ3hS1Yen0— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) March 7, 2026
“Impressive,” Judge said following the game. “I know I wasn't doing that at that age. Just great stuff. I know he had some poise on the mound. He's throwing up to 100 miles an hour. He's facing Team USA, a lot of guys he has seen on TV.
“It was just impressive, impressive just seeing him control himself out there and get out of a big jam. And he had some good stuff.”
Team USA will continue Pool B play Saturday night, sending two-time American League Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubalto the mound against Great Britain. It will be Skubal’s only start of the World Baseball Classic, as the Tigers ace will return to spring training afterward to continue building up for the MLB season.
Skubal will look to keep the United States’ momentum going before passing the baton to his National League Cy Young counterpart, Paul Skenes, for a marquee matchup against Mexico on Monday.
Masataka Yoshida Red Hot
Masataka Yoshidalooked sharp in his latest outing for Team Japan. The Red Sox DH went 2-for-3 with a double, an RBI, and a walk in Japan’s 13–0 win over Chinese Taipei, batting cleanup in the lineup.
Japan allowed just one hit in the game, while Dodgers' superstar Shohei Ohtaniwent 3-for-5 with a grand slam and a 117.1 mph double.
On Saturday morning, Yoshida kept swinging a hot bat for Japan, going 2-for-4 with a three-run homer in an 8–6 win over Korea at the World Baseball Classic. Yoshida was a key figure in Japan’s 2023 WBC championship run, hitting .409/.531/.727 with two home runs and 13 RBIs.
Ohtani continues to punish pitching around the globe, launching a grand slam as part of a 10-run outburst for Japan to open WBC play Friday night.
SHOHEI OHTANI GRAND SLAM! #WORLDBASEBALLCLASSIC pic.twitter.com/z0BXjlYInF— World Baseball Classic (@WBCBaseball) March 6, 2026
The two-time World Series champion jumped on a hanging curveball from Chinese Taipei starter H.C. Changand drove it over the right-field wall. The second-inning blast wasn’t the most towering shot — it cleared the fence by only a few feet — but it still broke the game open.
Ohtani has picked up right where he left off in the World Baseball Classic after leading Japan to the title in 2023. In that tournament, he hit .435 with eight RBIs while posting a 1.86 ERA across 9 2/3 innings on the mound. He will not pitch in this year’s WBC.
More From the WBC
Manny Machadomade incredible back-to-back defensive plays at third base for the Dominican Republic on Friday night. Both plays quickly went viral on social media, highlighting his athleticism and elite defensive instincts.
No, this is not a replay 😮 Manny Machado did this TWICE IN A ROW! pic.twitter.com/Y0ch4LWf6H— World Baseball Classic (@WBCBaseball) March 7, 2026
Wilyer Abreuwent 2-for-4 with an RBI for Team Venezuela in Friday’s 6–2 win over the Netherlands in the World Baseball Classic.
Prior to the WBC, Abreu appeared in six Grapefruit League games for Boston, going 2-for-14 with three walks. The Red Sox would like to see the left-handed hitter establish himself as an everyday right fielder against both righties and lefties. Abreu had just three plate appearances against left-handers (0-for-3) during spring play.
IT'S GONE 😤 JUNIOR CAMINERO IS AN ELECTRIC FACTORY ⚡️ pic.twitter.com/SCOYIV7yg4— World Baseball Classic (@WBCBaseball) March 7, 2026
Junior Caminero delivered one of the most electrifying home run trots you’ll see all year on Friday night. The Rays’ All-Star third baseman demolished a changeup from Nicaragua pitcher Stiven Cruz, sending the ball screaming off his bat at 111.6 mph for a two-run homer in the sixth inning that broke the game open.
Around the League
• Former longtime Pirates outfielder Andrew McCutchen agreed to a minor league deal with the Rangers on Friday. If he makes Texas’ 26-man roster, he is expected to platoon at designated hitter with Joc Pederson.
Last season, the 39-year-old McCutchen hit .239/.333/.367 (95 OPS+) with 22 doubles, 13 home runs, 57 RBI, and 51 runs scored across 551 plate appearances.
• Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murrayis expected to be released when the NFL’s new league calendar begins. While Murray does not appear to have any plans to leave football, the Athletics remain open to the idea of him returning to baseball. Oakland drafted Murray in the first round of the 2019 MLB Draft and still retains his rights.
“Kyler is an elite NFL quarterback, and I’m sure there are plenty of opportunities for him to continue his football career,” A’s general manager David Forst told MLB.com. “That said, he and his baseball representatives know that we’re always open to him exploring a return to baseball with the A’s if that time ever comes.”
The last time Murray played competitive baseball was during the 2018 season at Oklahoma. In 51 games for the Sooners, he hit .296/.398/.556 with 13 doubles, three triples, 10 home runs, 47 RBI, 46 runs scored, and 10 stolen bases.
Kyler Murray was selected 9th overall in the 2018 MLB Draft by Oakland 👀 pic.twitter.com/s4A7oa9fFW— Milb Central (@milb_central) March 4, 2026
It doesn’t sound like Murray will be heading back to the diamond anytime soon, and he should still have a market once he becomes an NFL free agent. I guess the real question is: what sounds better — playing for the A’s or the Jets?
• In last Sunday’s notebook, I highlighted Pirates top prospect Konnor Griffin. While he has the talent to make Pittsburgh’s Opening Day roster, the club could still send him to the minors to gain an extra year of control.
• Another infield prospect to watch this season is Cardinals prospect JJ Wetherholt, who has a clearer path to St. Louis’ 26-man roster. Once Nolan Arenadowas traded to Arizona this winter, it signaled the Cardinals were ready to start making room for their top prospect. In 47 games at Triple-A last season, Wetherholt hit .314/.416/.562 with 10 home runs and nine stolen bases.
• Kristian Campbell hit his first home run of the spring off future Hall of Fame pitcher Justin Verlander. Campbell worked a 10-pitch at-bat before taking Verlander deep, sending a 394-foot shot out to give the Red Sox a 2–0 lead in the first inning.
• Johan Oviedois still making his case to become the Red Sox’ No. 5 starter. After an erratic first outing this spring, the right-hander bounced back by striking out four over three scoreless innings, allowing just two hits with no walks. Oviedo is scheduled to make another start Saturday as he continues to build his case for the final rotation spot.
