Cricket is the bat-and-ball sport with the most established history of best-on-best national-team play with its Test matches and the World Cup. The other great bat-and-ball sport answers with the World Baseball Classic, the 2023 edition which is currently ongoing.
Boston Red Sox Pitcher Nick Pivetta of Victoria is a glaring absence for sa国际传媒 in the WBC due to recovery from illness. But that doesn’t take away from the West Coast League’s impressive list of 19 alumni playing in the planetary showcase.
“We would have loved to have seen Nick play, he would have made a difference for sa国际传媒, but we are extremely proud of the Victoria HarbourCats who are involved,” said Jim Swanson, co-owner and managing-director of the WCL club.
Four HarbourCats alumni were selected to play for two nations, including Pivetta, who was unable to do so.
The other former HarbourCats pitchers in the WBC are Indigo Diaz and Cade Smith for sa国际传媒 and Chavez Fernander for Great Britain.
“These guys have already been in high-leverage situations during this WBC,” said Swanson, also co-owner and general manager of the Nanaimo NightOwls of the WCL.
Other former WCL players on the Canadian team are pitchers Trevor Brigden and Curtis Taylor out of the Kelowna Falcons and infielder Damiano Palmegiani out of the Port Angeles Lefties. Former Falcons pitcher Alex Webb is throwing for Great Britain.
The Walla Walla Sweets of the WCL have four former players in the WBC with Kyle Molnar and Joey Wagman pitching for Israel, Dominic Miroglio catching for Italy and Jarren Duran in the outfield for Mexico.
There are three former Bend Elks in the WBC with Rio Gomez playing for Colombia, Eric Sogard with the Czech Republic and Nicky Lopez with Italy.
The Wenatchee AppleSox are represented by alumni pitchers Ryan Long with Great Britain and Zack Weiss with Israel.
Other former WCL players in the WBC are pitcher Jake Bird from the Yakima Valley Pippins with Israel, pitcher Sam Gaviglio out of the Corvallis Knights on Italy and outfielder Isaac Benard out of the Cowlitz Black Bears with Nicaragua.
“As an international league from our very beginning, we’re particularly passionate about baseball’s ability to transcend borders, and we’re thrilled to see so many WCL standouts on the world’s biggest baseball stage,” WCL commissioner Rob Neyer said in a statement.
Swanson has a long association with international baseball, having operated the World Baseball Challenge that used to be hosted by Prince George.
“The WBC shows that baseball is a world game, from Australia to the Czech Republic.” said Swanson.
“The HarbourCats have had players from Taiwan, Cuba and Bermuda.”
