The 2026 World Baseball Classic continues on Monday, March 9, with seven games capped off by the highly-anticipated United States vs. Mexico matchup at 8 p.m. ET.
Things get underway in Tokyo with South Korea and Australia facing off in a pivotal Pool C game. Midday games include Dominican Republic-Israel, Colombia-Panama and the final Pool B game for Great Britain and Brazil, both 0-3.
Unbeaten entering Monday, Cuba and Puerto Rico face off and Venezuela plays Nicaragua at 7 p.m ET before the USA-Mexico showdown at Daikin Park in Houston.
National League Cy Young winner Paul Skenes starts for Team USA for Mexico, a WBC debut for the Pittsburgh Pirates ace. The top two teams from each of the four pools advance to the quarterfinals, which begin on March 13.
Here’s a look at the full slate:
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World Baseball Classic scores on March 9
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6 a.m. – South Korea vs. Australia, Tokyo (Tokyo Dome) on FS1
12 p.m. – Dominican Republic vs. Israel, Miami (LoanDepot Park) on FS1
12 p.m. – Colombia vs. Panama, San Juan (Hiram Bithorn Stadium) on FS2
1 p.m. – Brazil vs. Great Britain, Houston (Daikin Park) on Tubi
7 p.m. – Cuba vs. Puerto Rico, San Juan (Hiram Bithorn Stadium) on FS1
7 p.m. – Venezuela vs. Nicaragua, Miami (LoanDepot Park) on FS2
8 p.m. – Mexico vs. USA, Houston (Daikin Park) on Fox
Australia controls its destiny vs. Korea
After an agonizingly close loss to defending champion Japan a day earlier, Australia can secure a spot in the WBC quarterfinals by defeating Korea in both teams’ final game in Pool C.
However, a win by Korea could cause chaos − and a three-way tie with Taiwan for the pool’s second berth in the next round. The tie would be broken by a formula of total runs scored in common games divided by defensive outs recorded. Entering the game, Australia projects to have roughly a four-run advantage in those calculations.
How the World Baseball Classic works
The 20 teams are divided into four groups. They are:
Pool A (San Juan): Puerto Rico , Panama , Cuba , Canada , Colombia
Pool B (Houston): United States , Mexico , Italy , Great Britain , Brazil
Pool C (Tokyo): Japan , South Korea , Australia , Czechia , Chinese Taipei
Pool D (Miami): Venezuela , Netherlands , Dominican Republic , Israel , Nicaragua
Teams play one game each against the other four teams in their pool. The top two teams from each pool advance to the knockout rounds in Houston and Miami. Teams are re-seeded after the quarterfinals.
Teams that remain tied in the standings following round robin play will be seeded based on the following criteria:
Head-to-head performance between the teams who are tied
Fewest runs allowed divided by the number of defensive outs recorded in the games between the tied teams
Fewest earned runs allowed divided by the number of defensive outs recorded in the games between the tied teams
Highest batting average in games between the tied teams.
Drawing of lots conducted by WBCI
Pool play games will occur from March 4 to March 11. Quarterfinals begin on March 13. The semifinals begin March 15.
The championship game is set for March 17 in Miami.
