The power of the Spanish team without Spain smashed Taiwan → Ahn Woo-jin and Choi Ji-man were also excluded.. Let's talk about the minor leagues
Feb 22, 2025
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Spain ranks only 24th in the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC). Taiwan is in second place. Taiwan is a country that runs a professional baseball league.
However, the situation was different at the WBC, where the rules of players are generous.
Spain smashed Taiwan 12-5 in the 2026 WBC qualifying round at Taipei Dome on the 21st (Korea time). Wander Encarnacion went 3 for 5 with two RBIs, Jesus Justaritz went 3 for 5 with one RBI, and Rusber Estrada swung 2 for 4 with three RBIs.
If you look at the Spanish roster, there is only one player born in Spain, pitcher Jorge.
It is a multinational force consisting of 10 Dominican Republics, 9 Venezuelans, 5 Cuba, 1 Colombia, and 1 United States. Dominica and Venezuela and Cuba are baseball powers and have many major leaguers. Of course, there was no active major leaguer in the Spanish national team. Most were from the minor leagues.
The Major League Baseball Secretariat has set out a very broad set of conditions 'nationality' for the globalization of baseball.
Of course, it is possible if the player himself was born in the country or held citizenship or permanent residency.
On top of that, even one of the parents is a citizen of the country or can be born there.
As a result, a large number of major leaguers spread to each country on WBC.
Although Korea performed well in the first and second tournaments, the reason why it was eliminated in the first round from the third to the fifth is not irrelevant.
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Ryu Ji-hyun, the head coach of the national team, said that he would apply baseball skills only in selecting national teams.
Coach Ryu went on to "We will form the best national team with the best power in the upcoming WBC preparation process in 2026. Korean players as well as overseas players check it out. He announced that he would not impose any restrictions on veteran players playing in minor leagues as long as he met the requirements of Taegeukmark.
When certain names of players such as Choi Ji-man, Ahn Woo-jin, Mitch White, and Tommy Edman were mentioned, coach Ryu Ji-hyun clearly suggested the criteria again.
He drew the line that there was no reason to exclude certain players for any particular reason. Coach Ryu said, `"The 2025 performance is the biggest reference point. And the first match will be on March 5 next year. His condition at the time is also important because it is two to three weeks earlier than the previous season. I'll closely check how you managed it`Any player who played in the 2025 season deserves to wear the national flag.
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
