United States national baseball team

The United States national baseball team is the national baseball team of the United States in international-level baseball competitions. The team is currently ranked 2nd in the world by the World Baseball Softball Confederation. Team USA won the Olympic baseball tournament in 2000, and the World Baseball Classic (WBC) in 2017.[1]

This article is about the men's team. For the women's team, see United States women's national baseball team.
United States national baseball team
Information
Country United States of America
FederationUSA Baseball
ConfederationCOPABE
ManagerScott Brosius
WBSC World Rank2nd
Uniforms

Home

Away

World Baseball Classic
Appearances4 (First in 2006)
Best result 1st (1 time, in 2017)
Olympic Games
Appearances4 (First in 1992)
Best result 1st (1 time, in 2000)
World Cup
Appearances24 (First in 1938)
Best result 1st (4 times, most recent in 2009)
Intercontinental Cup
Appearances16 (First in 1973)
Best result 1st (2 times, most recent in 1981)
Pan American Games
Appearances15 (First in 1951)
Best result 1st (1 time, in 1967)

The United States was an inaugural member of the World Baseball Classic, making its debut in the first edition. In their first three appearances in the WBC, the best finish for the Americans was fourth place in 2009. Finally in 2017, a new team managed by Jim Leyland, and led by the likes of Adam Jones, Marcus Stroman, and Eric Hosmer, won the tournament. The U.S. beat Japan in the semifinals, and topped previously undefeated Puerto Rico in the final by an 8-0 score to win the WBC title for the first time.

Team USA came in fourth in the 12-team 2019 WBSC Premier12 Tournament, in November 2019, missing out on its first opportunity to qualify for the 2020 Olympics. It will next try to qualify at the eight-team Americas Qualifying Event.

Current roster
2019 WBSC Premier 12 roster
PlayersCoaches
Pitchers
 Catchers

Infielders

Outfielders

 Manager

Coaches

Primary national team tournament records

World Baseball Classic
 United States
World Baseball Classic
Tournament Results
United States 20068th
Canada / United States 20094th
United States 20136th
United States 20171st
Medal Tally
Gold		1
Silver		-
Bronze		-

In 2005, Major League Baseball announced the formation of the World Baseball Classic, a 16-nation international competition to be held in March of 2006 for the first time. The tournament was the first of its kind to have the national teams of IBAF's member federations feature professional players from the major leagues around the world, including Major League Baseball.

World Baseball Classic record Qualification record
Year Round Position W L RS RA W L RS RA
2006 Round 2 8th 3 3 33 20 No qualifiers held
2009 Semifinal 4th 4 4 50 54 No qualifiers held
2013 Round 2 6th 3 3 28 19 Automatically qualified
2017 Final 1st 6 2 32 20 Automatically qualified
2021 Automatically qualified
Total 4/4 16 12 127 104 - - - -

Record by team
Team
 Main tournament
GP
 W
 L
 RF
 RA
 Canada 4 3 1 0 0
 Puerto Rico 6 3 3 0 0
 Colombia 1 1 0 0 0
 Italy 1 1 0 0 0
 Netherlands 1 1 0 0 0
 South Africa 1 1 0 0 0
 Japan 3 2 1 0 0
 Mexico 3 1 2 0 0
 Venezuela 4 2 2 0 0
 Dominican Republic 3 1 2 0 0
 South Korea 1 0 1 0 0
Total 28 16 12

2006: Inaugural Classic
See also: 2006 World Baseball Classic rosters § United States

On January 17, 2006, the United States announced its provisional 60-man roster (52 players in all), and whittled down the squad mixed with youth and experience to 30 players on February 14, 2006. Sixteen of the 30 Major League clubs were represented on the 2006 squad, including multiple representatives from the New York Yankees (4), Houston Astros (3), Washington Nationals (3), Atlanta Braves (2), Boston Red Sox (2), Chicago Cubs (2), Colorado Rockies (2), Houston Astros (2), and Texas Rangers (2). The fact that four Yankees were selected for the squad irked Yankees owner George Steinbrenner, who was opposed to the WBC being held in the middle of spring training to the point where at his team's complex in Tampa, Florida, he posted a sign apologizing for their absence and mocking the tournament in the process. Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig promptly ordered him to take down the sign the next day.

Manager Buck Martinez brought his 17 years of professional experience as a major league catcher, and 1+ seasons as Toronto Blue Jays' (2001–2002) skipper to the U.S. team. Former big league managers Davey Johnson and Marcel Lachemann served as hitting coach and pitching coach, respectively.

Along with fellow North American rivals Canada and Mexico, the U.S. hosted the South Africa. Round One games were held at Chase Field in Phoenix, Arizona and Scottsdale Stadium in Scottsdale, Arizona. The top two teams advanced to Angel Stadium of Anaheim in Anaheim, California. Despite a surprising loss to Canada, the United States advanced to the second round via tiebreaker. However, second-round losses to South Korea and Mexico allowed Japan to advance over the Americans via tiebreak.

2006 WBC Results
7 March
1st Round, Pool B – Game 1		 Mexico  0–2  United States United States Chase Field
Attendance: 32,727
Boxscore
8 March
1st Round, Pool D – Game 3		 Canada  8–6  United States United States Chase Field
Attendance: 16,993
Boxscore
10 March
1st Round, Pool D – Game 6		 United States  17–0 (F/5)  South Africa United States Scottsdale Stadium
Attendance: 11,975
Boxscore
12 March
2nd Round, Pool 1 – Game 1		 Japan  3–4  United States United States Angel Stadium of Anaheim
Attendance: 32,896
Boxscore
13 March
2nd Round, Pool 2 – Game 3		 United States  3–7  South Korea United States Angel Stadium of Anaheim
Attendance: 21,288
Boxscore
16 March
2nd Round, Pool 2 – Game 5		 United States  1–2  Mexico United States Angel Stadium of Anaheim
Attendance: 38,284
Boxscore

2009: America's second-best finish
See also: 2009 World Baseball Classic rosters § United States

The United States competed in Pool C of the 2009 World Baseball Classic along with Italy, Venezuela, and host Canada. The U.S. won the pool opener against Canada by a score of 6-, and secured advancement into Round 2 by defeating Venezuela in a 15–6 slugfest. Venezuela, however, came back to defeat the U.S. in the championship game of Pool C, 5–3.

On March 14, in their first match of round 2 against Puerto Rico, in Miami, Florida's Dolphin Stadium, the United States was mercy ruled for the first time in international competition, losing 11–1 in seven innings. Adam Dunn and Captain Derek Jeter were among the ones to voice their distaste with the severe beating. Manager Davey Johnson even stated "I should have stayed there", referencing a wedding he was at earlier in the day.

The United States came on strong the following day against the surprising Netherlands (who had already eliminated a tournament super power: The Dominican Republic), jumping out to a 6–0 lead in the fourth inning, and winning 9–3. With Puerto Rico losing to Venezuela 2–0 the following day, the U.S. would face Puerto Rico once again in the qualifying round. The loser would be eliminated from the tournament. With Puerto Rico leading 5–3 in the 9th inning, singles by Shane Victorino and Brian Roberts and walks by Jimmy Rollins and Kevin Youkilis cut the lead to 5–4 for New York Mets third baseman David Wright, who looped a barely-fair single into right that brought in Roberts and Rollins to win the game, 6–5, advancing to the semifinals while eliminating Puerto Rico. The United States would go on to lose to Japan 9–4 in the second semifinal.

2009 WBC Results
7 March
1st Round, Pool C – Game 1		 Canada  5–6  United States Canada Rogers Centre
Attendance: 42,314
Boxscore
8 March
1st Round, Pool D – Game 3		 United States  15–6  Venezuela Canada Rogers Centre
Attendance: 13,094
Boxscore
11 March
1st Round, Pool D – Game 6		 Venezuela  5–3  United States Canada Rogers Centre
Attendance: 12,358
Boxscore
14 March
2nd Round, Pool 1 – Game 2		 United States  1–11 (F/7)  Puerto Rico United States Dolphin Stadium
Attendance: 30,595
Boxscore
15 March
2nd Round, Pool 2 – Game 3		 Netherlands  3–9  United States United States Dolphin Stadium
Attendance: 11,059
Boxscore
17 March
2nd Round, Pool 2 – Game 5		 Puerto Rico  5–6  United States United States Dolphin Stadium
Attendance: 13,224
Boxscore
18 March
2nd Round, Pool 2 – Game 6		 United States  6–10  Venezuela United States Dolphin Stadium
Attendance: 16,575
Boxscore
22 March
Semifinals		 United States  4–9  Japan United States Dodger Stadium
Attendance: 43,630
Boxscore

2013: Stiffer competition; America misses the finals again
See also: 2013 World Baseball Classic rosters § United States

The United States team competed in Pool D of the 2013 World Baseball Classic along with Italy, Canada, and Mexico. The U.S. team lost to Mexico in the first round 5-2, but later won two games against Canada and Italy, securing their place for the second round, along with Italy, on Pool 2.

On March 12, they beat Puerto Rico 7-1, which then proceeded to face off against the Dominican Republic on March 14, losing 3-1 where they face off Puerto Rico once again the next day, as Puerto Rico beat the American team 4-3 (as revenge for being eliminated from the 2009 World Baseball Classic), thus eliminating them from the tournament.

2013 WBC Results
8 March
1st Round, Pool D – Game C		 Mexico  5–2  United States United States Chase Field
Attendance: 44,256
Boxscore
9 March
1st Round, Pool D – Game 5		 Italy  2–6  United States United States Chase Field
Attendance: 19,303
Boxscore
10 March
1st Round, Pool D – Game 6		 United States  9–4  Canada United States Chase Field
Attendance: 22,425
Boxscore
14 March
2nd Round, Pool 2 – Game 2		 Puerto Rico  1–7  United States United States Marlins Park
Attendance: 32,872
Boxscore
15 March
2nd Round, Pool 2 – Game 4		 Dominican Republic  3–1  United States United States Marlins Park
Attendance: 34,366.
Boxscore
16 March
2nd Round, Pool 2 – Game 5		 Puerto Rico  4–3  United States United States Marlins Park
Attendance: 19,762
Boxscore

2017: First championship

The Americans won their first game over Colombia, 3-2, in 10 innings on a walk-off single by Adam Jones. After losing to the Dominican Republic after having a 5-run lead, the U.S. defeated Canada to reach the Second Round.

In the Second Round the Americans won the first game of the round defeating Venezuela 4-2. In the second game the U.S. was defeated by Puerto Rico 6-5 after giving up 4 runs in the 1st inning. The U.S. then defeated the Dominican Republic to advance to the Championship Round.

In the Championship Round Semifinals on March 21, the Americans defeated Japan 2-1 to advance to their first-ever appearance in the Final. In the Final on March 22, the U.S. once again faced Puerto Rico; the U.S. however, ended up winning 8-0 capturing the first ever World Baseball Classic Title for the United States. Following the conclusion of the tournament, Eric Hosmer, Christian Yelich, and Marcus Stroman were named to the 2017 All-World Baseball Classic team.[2]

2017 WBC Results
10 March
1st Round, Pool C – Game 2		 Colombia  2–3  United States United States Marlins Park
Attendance: 22,580
Boxscore
11 March
1st Round, Pool C – Game 4		 United States  5–7  Dominican Republic United States Marlins Park
Attendance: 37,446
Boxscore
12 March
1st Round, Pool C – Game 6		 Canada  0–8  United States United States Marlins Park
Attendance: 22,303
Boxscore
15 March
2nd Round, Pool F – Game 2		 Venezuela  2–4  United States United States Petco Park
Attendance: 16,635
Boxscore
17 March
2nd Round, Pool 2 – Game 4		 United States  5–6  Puerto Rico United States Petco Park
Attendance: 34,463
Boxscore
18 March
2nd Round, Pool 2 – Game 6		 Dominican Republic  4–3  United States United States Petco Park
Attendance: 43,002
Boxscore
21 March
Semifinals		 United States  4–3  Japan United States Dodger Stadium
Attendance: 33,462
Boxscore
22 March
Finals		 United States  8–0  Puerto Rico United States Dodger Stadium
Attendance: 51,565
Boxscore

Olympic Games
Medal record
Olympic Games
2000 Sydney Team
1996 Atlanta Team
2008 Beijing Team

Although single exhibition games had been played in conjunction with five previous Olympics, the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles was the first to feature a tournament in the program, and also the first time that the sport was played in Olympics held in the United States. Eight teams competed in the tournament held at Dodger Stadium. Cuba, after winning the gold medal at the 1983 Pan American Games, was to participate, but did not as a result of the Soviet-led boycott. The U.S. national team finished second to Japan; however, no medals were given as baseball was a demonstration sport. Professional baseball players were introduced in 2000, though no active players from Major League Baseball have competed since then, and the Americans were forced to rely on minor leaguers. Cuba and some other nations used their strongest players, as they had no commitments with the MLB. The IOC cited the absence of the best players as the main reason for baseball being dropped from the Olympic program.[3]

Baseball was open only to male amateurs in 1992 and 1996. As a result, the Americans and other nations where professional baseball is developed relied on collegiate players, while Cubans used their most experienced veterans, who technically were considered amateurs as they nominally held other jobs, but in fact trained full-time. In 2000, pros were admitted, but the MLB refused to release its players in 2000, 2004, and 2008, and the situation changed only a little: the Cubans still used their best players, while the Americans started using minor leaguers.[4][3]

Summer Olympics record Qualification
Year Host Round Position W L RS RA
1912 Sweden Exhibition only [lower-alpha 1] 1 0 13 3
1936 Germany Exhibition only [lower-alpha 2] 0 1 5 6
1956 Australia Exhibition only 1 0 11 5
1964 Japan Exhibition only 1 0 6 2
1984 United States Final 2nd [lower-alpha 3] 4 1 38 10 Host
1988 South Korea Final 1st [lower-alpha 3] 4 1 36 18
1992 Spain Bronze Match 4th 5 4 53 42
1996 United States Bronze Match 3rd 7 2 93 41 Host
2000 Australia Final 1st 8 1 49 16 1999 Pan American Games
2004 Greece Did not qualify Quarter-finalist, 2004 Americas Olympic Baseball Qualifying Tournament
2008 People's Republic of China Bronze Match 3rd 6 3 50 36 2008 Americas Olympic Baseball Qualifying Tournament
Total [lower-alpha 4] 4/5 26 10 245 135
  1. Team composed of U.S. Olympic team members
  2. Played between two U.S. teams, one of Olympic team members, and a second composed of American amateur baseball players
  3. No medals awarded; tournament was a demonstration sport only
  4. Totals only include years 1992 to 2008, during which baseball was an official medal sport.

2000: The United States wins gold

The United States baseball team won its only gold medal at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia. The team beat Cuba in the Gold Medal game by a score of 4-0.

2008: Most recent appearance for Olympic baseball

The United States qualified for the 2008 Summer Olympics by winning the American Qualifying Tournament. They won the Bronze medal at the Beijing games, finishing behind South Korea (Gold) and Cuba (Silver).

At the International Olympic Committee (IOC) meeting on July 8, 2005, baseball and softball were voted out of the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, becoming the first sports voted out of the Olympics since polo was eliminated from the 1936 Summer Olympics.[5]

2008 USA Baseball Olympic Team roster
PlayersCoaches
Pitchers
 Catchers

Infielders

Outfielders

 Manager

Coaches

2020: competing to qualify

Team USA is being managed by Scott Brosius, and is trying to qualify for baseball at the 2020 Summer Olympics. It failed to qualify at the 2019 WBSC Premier12 Tournament in November 2019.[6]

It will next try to qualify at the Americas Qualifying Event at a time to be determined.[7]

Premier12 Tournament

2015

Team USA came in second in the 2015 WBSC Premier12 Tournament.

2019

Team USA came in fourth in the 12-team 2019 WBSC Premier12 Tournament in November 2019. Two quota spots were allocated from the Tournament, of the spots for six baseball teams at the 2020 Olympic Games, with third-place Mexico as the top finisher from the Americas earning one spot and Team USA not earning a spot.[8] Team USA did not include players who were on their teams' 40-man MLB rosters, being made up of minor league players, including former First Round MLB draft picks Jo Adell, Tanner Houck, and Brent Rooker (2017 MLB draft), Alec Bohm and Xavier Edwards (2018 MLB draft), and Andrew Vaughn (2019 MLB draft). Other teams used their top-level players.[9][10]

Amateur World Series and Baseball World Cup

The U.S. lost the inaugural Amateur World Series in 1938. The U.S. won its first Amateur World Series in 1973, and repeated a year later.

In 1988, the Amateur World Series became the International Baseball Federation's (IBAF) World Cup.

Since 1938, the U.S. has won 15 medals: four gold (1973, 1974, 2007, 2009), seven silver (1938, 1969, 1970, 1972, 1978, 1988, 2001), and four bronze (1939, 1940, 1982, 1984).

The U.S. was usually represented by college players in these tournaments, while Cuba used its best players.

Amateur World Series and Baseball World Cup record
Year Host Round Position W L RS RA Year Host Round Position W L RS RA Year Host Round Position W L RS RA
1938 United Kingdom 2 of 2 1 4 14 20 1974 United States 1 9 1 1994 Nicaragua 8 4 4
1939 Cuba 3 of 3 0 6 1978 Italy 2 9 1 1998 Italy 8 4 3
1940 Cuba 3 9 3 1980 Japan 4 8 3 2001 Taiwan 2 7 3
1941 Cuba 6 2 6 1982 South Korea 3 6 3 2003 Cuba 5 7 2
1942 Cuba 5 1 11 1984 Cuba 3 8 4 2005 Netherlands 7 7 4
1969 Dominican Republic 2 9 1 1986 Netherlands 4 7 4 2007 Taiwan 1 9 1
1970 Colombia 2 10 3 1988 Italy 2 11 2 2009 Italy 1 14 1
1972 Nicaragua 2 13 2 1990 Canada 7 5 4 2011 Panama 4 7 4
1973 Nicaragua 1 10 0 Total 25/39 4   7   4 - - - -
1938 Amateur World Series
13 August Great Britain  3 – 0  United States United Kingdom Wavertree Stadium, Liverpool
15 August Great Britain  8 – 6  United States United Kingdom Kingston upon Hull
17 August Great Britain  0 – 5  United States United Kingdom Spotland Stadium, Rochdale
19 August Great Britain  4 – 0  United States United Kingdom The Shay, Halifax
20 August Great Britain  5 – 3  United States United Kingdom Leeds

2007

The U.S. was in group A of the 2007 IBAF World Cup, along with Republic of China, Japan, Mexico, Panama, Italy, Spain and South Africa. The U.S. went 6–1 to win their group, with their only loss coming on November 9, 2007 against Italy. It was the U.S.'s first loss to Italy in 21 years and the first time it ever lost to Italy with professional players, as the team consisted of minor league prospects.

This one loss, however, would be their only. The U.S. went on to beat Korea, Netherlands, and Cuba to capture the gold.

2009

In Round 1 of the 2009 Baseball World Cup, the U.S. (2–1) finished second in Group E and advanced with first-place Venezuela (3–0). In Round 2, the U.S. was joined by the nine other first- and second-place teams from Round 1, four wild-card teams, and the two principal host teams (Italy and the Netherlands). The 16 teams were divided into Groups F and G. The U.S. (7–0) defeated each of the other seven teams in Group G. In Round 3, the first four teams in Group F were renamed Group 1 and the first four teams in Group G were renamed Group 2. The U.S. finished first in Group 2 with a record of 7–0; Cuba finished first in Group 1, with a 5–2 record. In the Final Round, Group 1 and 2's fourth-place teams competed for overall seventh place; the two third-place teams competed for overall fifth place; and the two second-place teams competed for the bronze medal. In the gold-medal game, the U.S. defeated Cuba, 10–5.

Tournament awards were given to Justin Smoak (MVP) and Todd Redmond (best won/loss average (pitcher)). Smoak (first base) was also named to the tournament All-Star Team, along with Jon Weber (outfield) and Terry Tiffee (designated hitter).

Intercontinental Cup

The Intercontinental Cup is a tournament between the members of the IBAF. It was first held in 1973 in Italy, and was held every other year following until 1999. Since, there has been a competition in 2002 & 2006, both of which, the U.S. has chosen to sit out. The tournament has been dominated by Cuba, who has won ten gold & three silver in the 16 tournaments. Japan is second in medal ranking, with two gold, five silver & five bronze, and the U.S. is third, with two gold, four silver & two bronze. The United States use college players in this tournament, while Cuba sends its best players.

Future big leaguers have competed in the Intercontinental Cup for the U.S. including Joe Carter, Terry Francona, Mickey Morandini, John Olerud, and Robin Ventura.

   

Pan American Games

The U.S. and Cuba have been archrivals at the Pan American Games ever since the event began in 1951. The U.S. has finished second behind Cuba eight of the 12 times they have brought home the gold. Likewise, when the U.S. won the gold medal at the 1967 Pan American Games, Cuba finished second. The U.S. roster is usually composed of promising college players, while Cuba is able to send its best players.

In total, the U.S. has won one gold medal, ten silver medals, and three bronze. The only games the U.S. failed to medal in were 1979 and 1995. For the 1995 games, the U.S. did not send their national team, but instead the St. John's University baseball team, who finished 0–4 against the international all-star teams.

   

Haarlem Baseball Week
Main article: Haarlem Baseball Week

World Port Tournament
Main article: World Port Tournament

Collegiate National Team

USA Baseball also fields a Collegiate National Team which has 22 members of top collegiate baseball players in the country, consisting of five infielders, four outfielders, two catchers, nine pitchers, and a pair of two-way players. The team competes in exhibition games across the U.S. and overseas against teams from across the world, including teams from Canada, Chinese Taipei (Taiwan) and the Netherlands.[11] The 2009 team won the World Baseball Challenge in Canada.

Players who took the field for the Collegiate National Team and have gone on to Major League Baseball success include such notables as Jim Abbott, Kris Bryant, Troy Glaus, Todd Helton, Ryan Howard, Barry Larkin, Tino Martinez, Dustin Pedroia, David Price, Huston Street, Mark Teixeira, Troy Tulowitzki, Trea Turner, Jason Varitek, Carlos Rodon, and Ryan Zimmerman.

Other national teams
Medal record
World Games
1981 Santa Clara Team

The USA won the gold medal in the first ever World Games in 1981 with a roster of college players. Franklin Stubbs, Oddibe McDowell, Spike Owen, and some others would go on to play in the MLB.

USA Baseball also fields 18U, 15U, and 12U national baseball teams. Former national teams include 16U and 14U national teams. USA Baseball also hosts two national team development programs in the age divisions of 17U and 14U. The selection processes for these programs can be found on the official website of USA Baseball.

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See also

Notes
  1. "US routs Puerto Rico 8-0 to win WBC behind dominant Stroman". ABC News. Retrieved 2017-03-24.
  2. "World Baseball Classic: Previous champs, results, medal count, MVPs, All-WBC teams", CBS Sports.
  3. Sydney Organising Committee for the Olympic Games (2001). "Official Report of the XXVII Olympiad" (PDF). 2: Celebrating the Games. Canberra, Australia: Paragon Printers Australasia: 176–9. ISBN 0-9579616-0-X. Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 March 2009. Retrieved 15 September 2010. Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  4. Sports in American History, 2E: From Colonization to Globalization - Gems, Gerald, Borish, Linda, Pfister, Gertrud. Books.google.ru. 2017. Retrieved 2020-03-23.
  5. "Singapore 2005: 2012 Olympic Sport Vote". International Olympic Committee. Retrieved 2007-03-18.
  6. "USA Baseball Announces Premier12 Staff Changes". USA Baseball. October 16, 2019. Retrieved October 23, 2019.
  8. "Two teams from WBSC Premier12 2019 to qualify for 2020 Tokyo Olympic Baseball". WBSC.org. December 19, 2018. Retrieved February 13, 2019.
  9. "USA Baseball announces #Premier12 Roster - Premier12". Mister Baseball. 2015-10-22. Retrieved 2019-11-08.
  10. "USA Baseball Professional National Team Media Guide by USA Baseball". Issuu. 2019-11-02. Retrieved 2019-11-08.
  11. 2010 CNT roster announced Archived 2010-11-13 at the Wayback Machine, USABaseball.com, July 11, 2010
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