Dates, Venues Announced For 2023 World Baseball Classic

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After a two-year delay caused by the coronavirus pandemic, the World Baseball Classic will resume in 2023.

The World Baseball-Softball Confederation officially announced the return of the WBC on Thursday. The tournament has been expended from 16 to 20 teams and will take place from March 8-21. Pool play will be held in Phoenix, Miami, Tokyo and Taichung, Taiwan. The semifinals and finals will be played in Miami at loanDepot Park, the Marlins home stadium.

Team USA is the defending WBC champion and earned an automatic berth into the tournament. The US will be in Pool C with Canada, Colombia, Mexico and a fifth team to be determined. It will open pool play in Phoenix.

Sixteen of the 20 teams have been determined already. The remaining four teams will be decided in qualifiers in Panama City, Panama and Regensburg, Germany in September.

Below are the dates, pools and venues for the 2023 WBC.

 

POOL A

March 8-13

Taichung, Taiwan

Taiwan

Netherlands

Cuba

Italy

Qualifier #1

POOL B

March 9-13

Tokyo

Japan

Korea

Australia

China

Qualifier #2

POOL C

March 11-15

Phoenix

United States

Canada

Colombia

Mexico

Qualifier #3

POOL D

March 11-15

Miami

Puerto Rico

Venezuela

Dominican Republic

Israel

Qualifier #4

 

QUARTERFINAL 1

March 15-16

Tokyo

Pool A winner

Pool A runner-up

Pool B winner

Pool B runner-up

 

QUARTERFINAL 2

March 17-18

Miami

Pool C winner

Pool C runner-up

Pool D winner

Pool D runner-up

 

SEMIFINALS

March 19-20

Miami

Quarterfinal 1 winner vs. Quarterfinal 2 runner-up

Quarterfinal 2 winner vs. Quarterfinal 1 runner-up

 

CHAMPIONSHIP

March 21

Miami

Seminal 1 winner vs. Semifinal 2 winner