The 2026 World Baseball Classic is underway with the pool-play phase (i.e. first round). As expected, Team USA throttled Brazil in their opening game Friday (USA 15, BRA 5). Aaron Judge hit a home run, Brice Turang cleared the bases with a triple, Logan Webb retired 12 of the 13 batters he faced, and USA eventually pulled away after Brazil played them tough for a while in Houston.
The Americans entered the tournament as betting favorites to win their first WBC since 2017. Per DraftKings, USA is -800 favorites to beat out Brazil, Great Britain, Italy, and Mexico in Pool B. They are -110 to win the entire WBC. In pool play, each team plays the other four teams in its pool once each. The top two teams from each of the four pools advance to the single-elimination quarterfinals.
While they’ve had stout teams in the past, this is the most loaded team USA has ever taken into the WBC, being notably well-rounded with Judge, Cal Raleigh and Bobby Witt Jr. heading up the position players while reigning Cy Young winners Tarik Skubal and Paul Skenes lead the rotation. Mason Miller anchors the bullpen.
Team USA vs. Great Britain
- Time: 8 p.m. ET | Date: Saturday, March 7
- Location: Daikin Park, Houston
- TV channel: Fox | Live stream: fubo (Try for free)
- Starting pitchers: Tarik Skubal (USA) vs. Tyler Viza (GB)
- Odds (via DraftKings): USA -8.5 (+125), O/U: 14.5
Skubal, the ace of the Detroit Tigers, has won the last two AL Cy Youngs. Viza is a former Philadelphia Phillies’ draft pick (32nd round in 2013) who played the last two years in the Mexican League. He’s also played Taiwan, the Dominican Republic, and various independent leagues. Viza has 39 career appearances in Triple-A.
Here now are two things to know and a prediction for USA’s bout with Great Britain.
This will be Skubal’s only WBC start
For several reasons, including his looming free agency, Saturday will be Skubal’s only start in the WBC. He is scheduled to throw 50-55 pitches and will leave USA to rejoin the Tigers on Sunday. Skubal could rejoin USA to support the team and be in the dugout should they advance deeper into the tournament. He will pitch just the one time though.
“That’s where my focus is, trying to win a World Series for the city of Detroit, the team that drafted me in 2018,” Skubal told the USA Today. “… The guys have been cool about it, but I mean publicly, it’s a little bit different perception. But I think they understand what it means for me to be here. Obviously, I want to be in the room, you know, and that’s cool for them to even take me aside and be like, ‘It’s awesome that you’re here.'”
Miller is eligible to pitch
The WBC has strict rules regarding pitcher usage, including pitch limits and rest requirements. Miller, USA’s closer, threw 23 pitches Friday despite the lopsided score because he began warming up before the offense really broke the game open in the top of the ninth, and manager Mark DeRosa said he will use pitchers who warm up. There will be no getting hot, then sitting down.
Here are the relevant rules regarding Miller’s Saturday availability:
- Pitchers who throw 30 or more pitches in a game must have at least one day of rest before pitching again in a game.
- No pitcher may pitch more than two days in a row.
Miller threw 23 pitches Friday, so he is eligible to pitch again Saturday. If he does pitch again Saturday, the rules require at least one of the rest, though Sunday is an off-day for USA, so Miller wouldn’t miss a game. He would then be eligible to pitch in Monday’s big matchup with Mexico.
That said, DeRosa has said he intends to respect the players and their MLB teams, and not push them too far. He could treat Miller as unavailable Saturday and give him two days of rest heading into the Mexico game. Relievers usually don’t pitch back-to-back days until late in spring training, if they do it at all, and they never pitch three times in four days in March.
If Miller does not pitch Saturday, David Bednar would seem likely to step in as closer, though Brad Keller, Griffin Jax, and Garrett Whitlock are more than capable ninth-inning options. Webb (52 pitches Friday) and Michael Wacha (39 pitches Friday) are the only USA pitchers officially ineligible to pitch Saturday.
Prediction: USA wins big again
Brazil gave USA some headaches Friday, though that seems anomalous more than a sign USA is not as good as expected. Great Britain boasts more MLB talent than Brazil, namely Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Harry Ford, but they are still undermanned on the mound. USA drew 17 walks against Brazil. They’ll grind out at-bats and wear down Great Britain’s pitchers similarly.
Per DraftKings, the moneyline is -4000, which means you have to bet $4,000 on USA to win $100. So yeah, USA is very heavily favored. Expect another blowout and maybe the mercy rule (15-run lead after five innings or 10-run lead after seven innings) will come into play. Prediction: USA 14, Great Britain 2.