Legion Baseball alumni to represent U.S. in World Baseball Classic

Two former American Legion Baseball players are part of Team USA in the World Baseball Classic coming up in March.

Catcher J.T. Realmuto (Post 170/Midwest City, Okla.) and pitcher Daniel Bard (Post 337/Pineville, N.C.) are among the 30 players representing the United States in the tournament, taking place for the first time since 2017 after being canceled in 2021 due to the pandemic.

The Americans won the fourth World Baseball Classic, in 2017. Japan won the inaugural tournament in 2006 and repeated in 2009, with the Dominican Republic winning the title in 2013.

The 2023 tournament will consist of 20 teams divided into four pools. Team USA is in Pool C with Mexico, Colombia, Canada and Great Britain, and will play their pool games in Phoenix from March 11-15.

The other pools:

Pool A, in Taichung, Taiwan, March 8-12: Chinese Taipei, Netherlands, Cuba, Italy and Panama.

Pool B, in Tokyo, March 9-13: Japan, Korea, Australia, China and Czech Republic.

Pool D, in Miami, March 11-15: Puerto Rico, Venezuela, Dominican Republic, Israel and Nicaragua.

Pool play will be a round-robin, double-elimination tournament, with the top two finishers in each pool advancing. The winners and runners-up from Pools A and B will meet in single-elimination quarterfinal play March 15-16 in Tokyo, while teams advancing from Pools C and D will play quarterfinal games March 17-18 in Miami. The semifinals are scheduled for March 19-20 in Miami, with the championship game March 21 in Miami.

Team USA’s pool play schedule:

March 11: vs. Great Britain, 7 p.m. MT, Fox.

March 12: vs. Mexico, 7 p.m. MT, FS1.

March 13: vs. Canada, 7 p.m. MT, FS1.

March 15: vs. Colombia, 7 p.m. MT, FS1.

More information available at WorldBaseballClassic.com.