ORLANDO, Fla. — The Chicago Cubs likely will be missing some notable players for a stretch of spring training thanks to the World Baseball Classic.
As many as eight Cubs players might be on WBC rosters: Pete Crow-Armstrong and Matthew Boyd (U.S.), Seiya Suzuki and Shota Imanaga (Japan), Owen Caissie (Canada), Daniel Palencia (Venezuela), Miguel Amaya (Panama) and Javier Assad (Mexico).
The national teams for Palencia, Amaya and Assad still need approval from the Cubs for those players to participate in the WBC, which will be played March 5-17 at various sites. The Cubs intend to support any players who wish to represent their countries and are working through logistics.
“In general the WBC is a great experience for a lot of guys,” manager Craig Counsell said Tuesday at the winter meetings. “And for some, I would recommend against it. But for most, I think it’s a great experience.”
Crow-Armstrong and Boyd were announced last month as members of Team USA, the first WBC experience for both players.
U.S. manager Mark DeRosa called Crow-Armstrong “the best defender in the game.” Should the Americans advance to the semifinals and final in Miami, DeRosa needs Crow-Armstrong covering the expansive center field at LoanDepot Park and wants Aaron Judge to know he’s sticking in right field rather than worry about whether he would be needed in center.
DeRosa recalled being at the Cubs complex this past spring training as part of MLB Network’s season preview coverage and left thinking, “Oh, my god, I love this kid.”
“I know he went bonkers in the first half and then he kind of hit the skids — he’s good enough to make the adjustment,” DeRosa said Tuesday. “But ultimately for me it’s his presence. It’s his his want to compete. It’s his want to be a part of the team. He has played in a bunch of USA stuff as an amateur, and he can go get it. It’s one of those motors that’s infectious.
“I don’t know if there’s a bigger rising star personality than PCA. It takes two seconds watching him running around center field to know this guy wants it. He loves this game, and that’s the type of energy when we’re talking about rallying this team to be successful.”
DeRosa hadn’t had many conversations with Boyd until recently, but he watched the left-hander pitch at an elite level in 2025. Boyd, 34, is coming off his most innings pitched (179 2/3) since 2019 and the second-most in his 11-year big-league career.
“I know he’s been nicked up throughout his career,” DeRosa said. “But when he’s right, and for the Guardians to give him the playoff start (in 2024) and then he signs with the Cubs and he’s dominant — and he’s just a sweetheart of a guy — that’s my most fun, those calls to guys like that.”
Team Japan manager Hirokazu Ibata didn’t reveal whether Suzuki or Imanaga will be part of the squad that looks to defend its 2023 WBC title. Ibata hopes to know by the end of December if either player will be on the roster.
Suzuki was disappointed and frustrated that an oblique injury prevented him from playing in 2023.
“I’ve met him personally, and I’ve also heard those frustrations from him,” Ibata said through an interpreter. “I understand that he wants to contribute as a part of the next tournament.”
Japan’s Shota Imanaga pitches against the United States in the World Baseball Classic championship game March 21, 2023, in Miami. (Wilfredo Lee/AP)
Imanaga’s WBC status seems murkier. Coming off a shaky ending to his 2025 season, the left-hander is focused this offseason on getting back on track and coming into spring training and the 2026 season locked in to his best form.
Imanaga started the 2023 WBC championship game against the U.S., allowing one run in two innings with no walks and two strikeouts.
“I would obviously be disappointed if he opts out of the tournament,” Ibata said. “I’ve spoken with him in the past — that was before he had a destination for next year in terms of the club that he was going to be playing with — so hopefully maybe a different perspective on Imanaga’s part of wanting to play for Team Japan.
“But obviously it would be disappointing if he does opt out. We understand the caliber player he is. He’d be a big part of Team Japan on the pitching side.”
Caissie will return to Canada’s WBC roster, general manager Greg Hamilton said Tuesday. Hamilton described Caissie’s performance in the 2023 WBC at age 20 as a “coming-out party” for the Cubs’ top prospect. He hit a key home run in a pool-play win over Great Britain.
Caissie is expected to have a bigger role this time.
“We knew the talent, and obviously when it’s young talent and you’re putting them on that stage, you don’t necessarily know how they’re going to handle it, but he handled it tremendously,” Hamilton said. “He showed experience and composure beyond his years.
“And certainly for a country like ours, it’s one of the benefits of that event where a player that’s got upside, is close to the big leagues, can come out and show people that they’re ready for that stage at the major-league level. And he certainly did that.”
Added Canada manager Ernie Whitt: “We’ve seen the progression that we thought we would see with him, and we’re excited that he’s going to be a part of our team.”
Cubs reliever Daniel Palencia beats a cowbell after the Game 3 win over the Padres in an NL wild-card series Oct. 2, 2025, at Wrigley Field. (Chris Sweda/Chicago Tribune)
Venezuela manager Omar López said Palencia is committed and wants to be on the WBC roster.
Palencia, 25, has been on his country’s national team radar for years. Venezuela considered him for its 2024 Premier12 squad until the Cubs put Palencia on the 40-man roster in July 2023, which meant he no longer qualified to be part of that international tournament.
Palencia also was under consideration for Venezuela’s WBC roster in 2023.
“When he was selected (to the Cubs 40-man) and then we saw the breakout and how he can improve a lot in the last probably year and a half and the way that he performed, we went right away, ‘OK, Daniel Palencia is in our pre-selection team,’” López said Tuesday. “And obviously throughout the season, we stayed in touch with him and we were crossing our fingers, no injuries.”
A right shoulder strain put Palencia on the injured list for 16 days in September, but he returned healthy and became an important middle-innings fireman for Counsell during the postseason. He didn’t allow a run in five of his six playoff appearances.
“Thank God he was able to finish, which is a good thing for us,” López said, “but MLB is trying to protect their players, too, and we do too. It’s a negotiation to see if we can have the best talent that we have in Venezuela with us.
“But I will understand if it’s something not working properly for any player to not be able to participate. But we hope everything goes through in the process to have Daniel Palencia be with us.”
There’s mutual interest between Panama and Amaya to play in the WBC in what could be a starting role for the 26-year-old catcher. Amaya, however, is coming off two injuries that limited him to 28 games in 2025, and his health will be a factor in the decision.
Panama manager Jose Mayorga told the Tribune that Amaya has expressed a desire to play in the WBC.
“The biggest thing is just having him healthy is really important for himself, for his career and for us as well,” Mayorga said. “And of course, looking forward that he has the permission of the Cubs to play with us, and then we’ll be really happy and interested in making it happen.
“Having seen him since he was a child, the growth that he had made and the consistency that he has been having behind the plate and in the box, too, it’s really impressive to see that.”
Assad’s performance during the last WBC was pivotal in helping Mexico reach the semifinals. He posted 5 2/3 scoreless innings in two relief appearances with two hits, one walk and six strikeouts.
Assad threw three scoreless innings against the U.S. and 2 2/3 in Mexico’s quarterfinal victory over Puerto Rico. Mexico GM Rodrigo López told the Tribune on Tuesday that Assad was “a surprise for all of us (in 2023) and definitely, in this edition, is a big part.”
López envisions Assad being Mexico’s No. 1 or No. 2 starter.
“The last time I talked to him, he was very excited,” López said. “Hopefully everything goes well. For us, he’s a guy that must be on the roster.”