2023 China World Baseball Classic Roster

Image credit: Ray Chang, Team China (Getty)

China has been a participant in every World Baseball Classic, but the momentum that the team had started to build with wins in pool play in 2013 and 2017 may have been somewhat blunted by the long layoff since that last World Baseball Classic.

China now ranks 30th in the current World Baseball Softball Confederation World rankings, having slipped significantly in those rankings because of lack of recent tournament experience. China finished third in the Asian Championship in 2019, 11th in the 18U World Cup that year and fourth in the U-15 World Cup qualifier that same year. 

Since then, Team China has not participated in any major international baseball competition. With the demise of the professional league that existed for a few years last decade, there aren’t as many chances for China’s players to get regular top-notch competition.

Angels righthander Alan Carter is the lone player on Team China’s roster who plays in the U.S. minor leagues. Ray Chang, long Team China’s stalwart, returns. The 39-year-old also played on China’s 2009, 2013 and 2017 WBC teams. Pitcher Chaoqun Zheng and catcher Li Ning both played on Team China’s 2017 World Baseball Classic team.

Yosuke Masago, an outfielder with experience in the Nippon Professional Baseball league, gives the team some veteran savvy in the outfield.

Pitchers (13)
Qiang Lin
Changlong Su
Xiang Wang
Kwon Ju
Xin Qi
Hailong Sun
Weiyi Wang
Yuchen Wang
Hao Zhang
Fuyang Zhao
Chaoqun Zheng
Alan Carter	Los Angeles Angels
Haicheng Gong
Jian Yi
Catchers (4)
Chen Chen
Ning Li
Yifan Li
Yun Lu
INFIELDERS (6)
Jie Cao
Chen Chen
Yongkang Kou
Chenchen Luan
Ray Chang
Jin Yang
OUTFIELDERS (6)
Rongji Liang
Jinjun Luo
Yuheng Lyu
Xiao Han
Pei Liang
Yusuke Masago