Pioneer League Alumni Shine on Baseball's Biggest International Stage
Former PBL Players to Play in the World Baseball Classic
The 2026 World Baseball Classic, Major League Baseball's most exciting international event, will feature over ten former Pioneer League players, underscoring the league's success as a player development league and its rich history of standout talent.
The Missoula PaddleHeads have several notable alumni participating in the Classic, including Yankee star Jazz Chisholm Jr. representing Great Britain, the Diamondbacks Geraldo Perdomo joining the talented Dominican Republic roster, Alek Thomas, an outfielder for the Diamondbacks is on the Mexico team.
Missoula graduate, Paul Goldschmidt, playing for Team USA, called the tournament "the most fun I've ever had playing baseball. It's an All-Star Game, every game".
Other ex-Pioneer League players in the Classic include the Royals star Salvador Perez who played Rookie ball in the PBL for Idaho Falls. Will Smith (Ogden), a three-time World Series champion for the Dodgers, is joining the star-studded USA roster. Also, look out for the Mariners Dominic Canzone (Missoula) playing for Italy and Orioles pitcher Dean Kremer (Ogden) on the Israeli team.
The tournament is divided into four pools, with games taking place in San Juan, Houston, Tokyo, and Miami. Each team will play the teams in its pool, and the top two finishers from each group will advance to the quarterfinals. From there, the tournament shifts into single-elimination play, building towards the semifinals and final in Miami.
Catch these players in action beginning this Friday March 6th, Venezuela takes on the Netherlands in Miami at 12:00PM ET. Alek Thomas and Mexico will face Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Great Britain at 1:00PM, with Perdomo and the Dominican Republic playing at 7:00PM. The USA will go up against Brazil at 8:00PM to end the first day of group pool play.
When pool play wraps up on the 11th look ahead to the quarterfinals, the 13th, semifinals on the 15th and 16th, and the final on March 17th. Make sure to visit mlb.com to view the rest of the World Baseball Classic schedule and find out when your favorite former PBL stars will be competing for their country.