The United States Team in the World Baseball Classic

The United States World Classic Baseball team looks like a who's who of American All-Stars, especially on the mound and around the infield. It's a good thing too, because the competition this United States World Baseball Classic team will face in the round robin tourney, which begins March 3rd with games in Tokyo, Japan, will not exactly be chopped liver. When the United States World Classic Baseball team opens play in Phoenix, Arizona on March 7th, they will be facing the best that other countries have to offer.

The World Baseball Classic is a unique event put together by Major League baseball and its Player's Association in which sixteen nations and territories send their greatest players to do battle in pool play. The four pools of four teams each {A, B, C, and D} are comprised of the best baseball playing nations and territories in the world. The two top teams in each pool will then form a pair of pools for Round Two, with the four winners going to the semifinals until only two squads remain for the championship game on March 20th in San Diego, California.

The United States, like all the participants, has a provisional roster that they can choose their final roster of thirty players from. There must be a minimum of thirteen pitchers and three catchers on the team, as these two positions are most vulnerable to what major league managers fear most, injuries, especially during spring training. Several stars have opted not to play for Team USA, among them Barry Bonds, who initially indicated he would be there. The Classic has strict rules limiting pitch counts, to protect pitchers' arms. The US wisely loaded up on short relievers to comprise the majority of its pitching staff as only four of their hurlers are starters.