Judge enjoys being captain of the USA in the World Classic
Aaron Judge said putting on a US uniform had special meaning, and being captain is one of the greatest honors of his career.
PHOENIX — The star of the New York Yankees, Aaron Judge, manifested that put on on Monday one t-shirt of the equipment of USA had a special meaningespecially considering the escalating conflict throughout the Middle East following the joint attacks by the United States and Israel against Iran that began three days ago.
The three-time American League MVP is the captain of the United States heading into the World Baseball Classic 2026which takes place from Thursday to March 17.
The United States plays its first game against Brazil on Friday in Houston.
“There’s a lot of crazy things going on in the world right now,” Judge said after the team’s practice Monday. “I am grateful every day that I have the opportunity to come here, play the sport I love, have my family close and be with these great teammates.”
The 33-year-old outfielder said he addressed the squad during a meeting and told the star-studded group to take advantage of the opportunity and get to know each other.
Judge added that captaining the United States is one of the greatest honors of his career. Although several others on the roster have defended their colors in previous editions of the World Baseball Classic or other international competitions, this is the seven-time All-Star’s first experience.
“I turned it over (the shirt) and looked at the front where it said USA and, for me, it really hit home,” he said. “I started thinking about — some of us probably have people in the family who have served in the military or know people who have served in the military.
“That was the first thing I thought: There are people out there who have sacrificed everything for this country to allow me to have my wife safe at home, my daughter safe at home and for me to have the opportunity to come here and play a child’s game.”
This will be the sixth World Baseball Classic tournament, since the inaugural edition in 2006. Japan has won three times, in 2006, 2009 and, most recently, in 2023, when Shohei Ohtani memorably struck out American star Mike Trout for the final out.
The Dominican Republic won in 2013 and the United States won its only title in 2017.
This year’s 20-team event begins Thursday — in Japan — with four groups of five teams playing in Houston, Miami, Tokyo and San Juan, Puerto Rico. The United States will be in Houston, where they will play four games in five days in Group B against Mexico, Italy, Great Britain and Brazil.
The top two teams in each group will advance to the quarterfinals, when the tournament switches to a single-elimination format. Houston and Miami will host two games each in the quarterfinal round, with the semifinals and final taking place in Miami.
The United States has two exhibition games in Arizona against the San Francisco Giants on Tuesday and the Colorado Rockies on Wednesday before traveling to Houston for Friday’s opener.
The United States has a young, talented pitching staff that includes both of last year’s Cy Young Award winners — Tarik Skubal and Paul Skenes.
Skenes played his first two college seasons at the Air Force Academy before transferring to LSU.
United States manager Mark DeRosa said he had prepared a big recruiting pitch for Skenes to join the roster last year, but it ended up being a short, easy conversation.
“He told me, ‘I want to do this for every service man and woman who protects our freedom,’” DeRosa said. “At the end of the day, that’s all that needs to be said. There’s something very special about representing your country. We take it seriously. We want to enjoy the game and have fun, but we certainly understand the responsibility that comes with it.”
USA reliever Griffin Jax also played three seasons for Air Force.
The potential starting lineup should have plenty of power, with veteran sluggers Bryce Harper, Judge and Kyle Schwarber leading the way. There’s also youth and speed with center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong and shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. on the roster.
DeRosa returns as manager after leading the United States to a second-place finish in 2023. The pitching coach is former Yankees left-hander Andy Pettitte, the hitting coaches are Matt Holliday and Sean Casey, and the bench coach is Michael Young.
