USA World Baseball Classic schedule: Dates, times & how to watch every 2023 WBC game

Kevin Skiver

USA World Baseball Classic schedule: Dates, times & how to watch every 2023 WBC game image

Team USA is entering the World Baseball Classic with an uphill hill to climb to reclaim its 2017 title.

Its pitching staff isn't especially strong and Bryce Harper will be out as he continues to recover from Tommy John Surgery. However, there is plenty to look to watching on the Team USA roster, including Mike Trout, Mookie Betts, and Trea Turner. The star-power is very much in play, which has it among the favorites for the 2023 WBC.

Team USA avoided the dreaded Group D in Miami, which includes the likes of Venezuela, the Dominican Republic, and Puerto Rico. Instead it will play in Group C in Phoenix, alongside Great Britain, Mexico, Canada, and Colombia.

All-in-all, there's a 20-team field in the World Baseball Classic, up from 16 teams in the previous four iterations. The competition is going to be more staunch than ever, with the USA, Japan, and the Dominican Republic standing in the top tier of favorites.

MORE: Watch World Baseball Classic games live on fuboTV (free trial)

The United States' schedule begins March 11 against Great Britain. Pool play will conclude March 15 against Colombia. If USA is to make it out of pools, it will need to finish either first or second.

The only guarantee for the United States is that its entire tournament will be played as a host country. If it makes it to the quarterfinals and, subsequently, the semifinals, it will be playing at LoanDepot Park in Miami.

How to watch the USA at the World Baseball Classic

  • TV channels:  Fox, FS1
  • Live stream:  FoxSports.com, fuboTV

The World Baseball Classic will be hosted on the Fox family of networks, specifically Fox, FS1, FS2, and Tubi.

The United States' tournament will begin against Great Britain on Fox's flagship station at 10 p.m. ET, 7 p.m. local time in Phoenix. From there, FS1 will broadcast the next three games. FuboTV will carry these games.

The United States will play four times in pools, beginning with Great Britain and concluding with Colombia.

Date Game Time (ET) Channel
March 11 Great Britain vs. USA 10 p.m. Fox
March 12 Mexico vs. USA 10 p.m. FS1
March 13 Canada vs. USA 10 p.m. FS1
March 15 USA vs. Colombia 10 p.m. FS1

Team USA World Baseball Classic 2023 roster

Mike Trout is easily the headliner for Team USA, but the Angels superstar is just one of several huge names taking the field for the United States.

Joining Trout in the outfield will be Mookie Betts and Kyle Schwarber, while Cedric Mullins is also on as another centerfielder and Kyle Tucker is an outstanding option in right.

MORE: WBC lineup decisions won't be easy for Mark DeRosa with loaded USA roster

In the infield, newly-minted $100 million shortstop Trea Turner will give Phillies fans a sneak peek of what to expect from him come Opening Day. The Cardinals will be present on the corners with Nolan Arenado and Paul Goldschmidt. And Bobby Witt Jr. is following up his long-anticipated rookie year with some international ball.

The pitching staff lost Clayton Kershaw this week, so Lance Lynn comes up as the arguable ace of the starting staff. Behind him, Miles Mikolas, Kyle Freeland, Brady Singer, Merrill Kelly, and Adam Wainwright will have to pick up the slack.

Pitchers

Player Team Throws
Jason Adam Tampa Bay Rays R
Daniel Bard Colorado Rockies R
David Bednar Pittsburgh Pirates R
Kyle Freeland Colorado Rockies L
Kendall Graveman Chicago White Sox R
Merrill Kelly Arizona Diamondbacks R
Lance Lynn Chicago White Sox R
Miles Mikolas St. Louis Cardinals R
Adam Ottavino New York Mets R
Ryan Pressly Houston Astros R
Brooks Raley New York Mets L
Brady Singer Kansas City Royals R
Adam Wainwright St. Louis Cardinals R
Devin Williams Milwaukee Brewers R

Catchers

Player Team Bats/Throws
Kyle Higashioka New York Yankees R/R
J.T. Realmuto Philadelphia Phillies R/R
Will Smith Los Angeles Dodgers R/R

Infielders 

Player Team Position Bats/Throws
Pete Alonso New York Mets 1B R/R
Tim Anderson Chicago White Sox SS R/R
Nolan Arenado St. Louis Cardinals 3B R/R
Paul Goldschmidt St. Louis Cardinals 1B R/R
Jeff McNeil New York Mets UTIL R/R
Trea Turner Philadelphia Phillies SS R/R
Bobby Witt Jr. Kansas City Royals SS R/R

Outfielders

Player Team Position Bats/Throws
Mookie Betts Los Angeles Dodgers RF R/R
Cedric Mullins Baltimore Orioles CF L/L
Kyle Schwarber Philadelphia Phillies LF L/R
Mike Trout Los Angeles Angels CF R/R
Kyle Tucker Houston Astros RF L/R

How does the World Baseball Classic work?

The World Baseball Classic will see four games of pools for every team. Pools are broken into A, B, C, and D. Pool A is being played in Chinese Taipei, Pool B will be in Tokyo, Pool C is in Phoenix, and Pool D is in Miami.

MORE: Why isn't Clayton Kershaw pitching in the World Baseball Classic?

The top two seeds of each pool will advance, leaving eight total and 12 teams eliminated. This is different from past years, which spawned new pools after pool play concluded (pools E & F). Instead, there will just be quarterfinal and semifinal games, followed by the championship.

All games will take place over the course of two weeks -- March 8 - March 21.

In the quarterfinals, the teams emerging from Pools A & B will play in Tokyo and the teams from Pools C & D will be in Miami.

World Baseball Classic 2023 schedule

Here's a look at the full schedule for the World Baseball Classic.

Pool A (Chinese Taipei)

Date Time Matchup Channel
March 7 11 p.m. Cuba vs. Netherlands FS1
March 8 6 a.m. Panama vs. Chinese Taipei FS2
March 8 11 p.m.  Panama vs. Netherlands FS2
March 9 6 a.m. Italy vs. Cuba Tubi
March 9 11:30 p.m. Cuba vs. Panama FS1
March 10 6 a.m. Italy vs. Chinese Taipei Tubi
March 10 11 p.m. Panama vs. Italy FS1
March 11 6 a.m. Netherlands vs. Chinese Taipei FS2
March 11 11 p.m. Chinese Taipei vs. Cuba FS2
March 12 7 a.m. Netherlands vs. Italy FS2

Pool B (Tokyo)

Date Time Matchup Channel
March 8 10 p.m. Australia vs. South Korea FS1
March 9 5 a.m. China vs. Japan FS2
March 9 10 p.m. Czech Republic vs. China Tubi
March 10 5 a.m. Korea vs. Japan FS2
March 10 10 p.m. China vs. Australia FS2
March 11 5 a.m. Czech Republic vs. Japan FS1
March 11 10 p.m. Czech Republic vs. Korea FS1
March 12 6 a.m. Japan vs. Australia FS1
March 12 11 p.m. Australia vs. Czech Republic FS2
March 13 6 a.m. Korea vs. China FS2

Pool C (Phoenix)

Date Time Matchup Channel
March 11 2:30 p.m. Colombia vs. Mexico Fox
March 11 10 p.m. Great Britain vs. USA Fox
March 12 3 p.m. Great Britain vs. Canada FS1
March 12 10 p.m. Mexico vs. USA FS1
March 13 3 p.m. Colombia vs. Great Britain FS2
March 13 10 p.m. Canada vs. USA FS1
March 14 3 p.m. Canada vs. Colombia FS2
March 14 10 p.m. Great Britain vs. Mexico FS1
March 15 3 p.m. Mexico vs. Canada FS2
March 15 10 p.m. USA vs. Colombia FS1

Pool D (Miami)

Date Time Matchup Channel
March 11 12 p.m. Nicaragua vs. Puerto Rico FS2
March 11 7 p.m. Dominican Republic vs. Venezuela FS1
March 12 12 p.m. Nicaragua vs. Israel FS2
March 12 7 p.m. Venezuela vs. Puerto Rico FS1
March 13 12 p.m. Dominican Republic vs. Nicaragua FS2
March 13 7 p.m. Israel vs. Puerto Rico FS1
March 14 12 p.m. Nicaragua vs. Venezuela FS2
March 14 7 p.m. Israel vs. Dominican Republic FS2
March 15 12 p.m. Venezuela vs. Israel FS2
March 15 7 p.m. Puerto Rico vs. Dominican Republic FS2

MORE: 2023 World Baseball Classic: 10 pitcher-hitter matchups we can't wait to see

Quarterfinals

Date Time Site Matchup Channel
March 15 6 a.m. Tokyo  Pool B runner-up vs. Pool A winner FS2
March 16 6 a.m. Tokyo  Pool A runner-up vs. Pool B winner FS2
March 17 7 p.m. Miami Pool C runner-up vs. Pool D winner FS1
March 18 7 p.m. Miami Pool D runner-up vs. Pool C winner Fox

Semifinals

Date Time Venue Matchup Channel
March 19 7 p.m. Miami Quarterfinal 1 winner vs. Quarterfinal 3 winner FS1
March 20 7 p.m. Miami Quarterfinal 2 winner vs. Quarterfinal 4 winner FS1

Championship

Date Time Venue Matchup Channel
March 21 7 p.m. Miami Semifinal 1 winner vs. Semifinal 2 winner FS1

Kevin Skiver

Kevin Skiver Photo

Kevin Skiver has been a content producer at Sporting News since 2021. He previously worked at CBS Sports as a trending topics writer, and now writes various pieces on MLB, the NFL, the NBA, and college sports. He enjoys hiking and eating, not necessarily in that order.