Twenty years ago, Major League Baseball and the Players Association teamed up to launch the World Baseball Classic-a bold idea aimed at showcasing the game’s best talent on a global stage. What started as an ambitious experiment has grown into a cornerstone of international baseball, a tournament that players now circle on their calendars with pride.
For fans, it’s a chance to see superstars don their country’s colors. For players like Trea Turner, it’s a dream that doesn’t always get a second chapter.
Turner, the Philadelphia Phillies shortstop and three-time MLB All-Star, won’t be suiting up for Team USA in the 2026 WBC. And he’s not hiding how much that stings.
“It’s something I wanted to do. The phone never rang,” Turner said, speaking candidly about the snub.
“It’s so much fun. I gladly would have done it again.
I said it last time, if they ever ask, I would say yes. They’ve got a great roster this year.
It’s stacked.”
He’s not wrong. Team USA is absolutely loaded.
The roster reads like a who's who of current MLB stars: Aaron Judge, Bobby Witt Jr., Pete Crow-Armstrong, Brice Turang, Gunnar Henderson, and more. It’s a deep, dynamic group-one that’s built to make a serious run at the title.
But that depth also means tough decisions, and in this case, it meant there just wasn’t room for Turner, who turns 33 in June.
That’s a tough pill to swallow, especially considering what Turner brought to the table the last time around. In the 2023 WBC, he was electric.
His bat caught fire at the perfect time, and he became the heartbeat of Team USA’s offense. Turner hit .391 with five home runs and 11 RBIs-numbers that jump off the page, especially in a short tournament setting.
He didn’t just play well; he dominated.
Despite his heroics, Team USA fell just short of repeating as champions. A 3-2 loss to Japan in the final ended their run.
The 2020 tournament was canceled due to COVID, so the U.S. was looking to defend its 2017 title-when they beat Puerto Rico 8-0 in a statement win. That remains their only WBC championship, while Japan has claimed the crown three times.
This year’s tournament will stretch from March 5th to the 17th, with games hosted in Miami, Houston, San Juan, and Tokyo. It’s a truly international affair, and the stakes feel bigger than ever.
For Turner, watching from the sidelines won’t be easy. He’s still an elite player, still capable of changing games with his speed, glove, and bat. But the WBC is about timing as much as talent, and this time, the call didn’t come.
Team USA will move forward with its new crop of stars, aiming to reclaim the top spot in the world. And while Turner won’t be on the field, his legacy from 2023 still lingers-a reminder of just how special this tournament can be when everything clicks.