3 Tigers Players To Watch at the 2026 World Baseball Classic
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The World Baseball Classic is less than one month away. The Detroit Tigers will have 10 players representing them at the World Baseball Classic. This includes Tarik Skubal joining Team USA after winning a record-breaking arbitration case. There are other Tigers players to watch at the WBC, though.
Per MLB.com, the 10 players from Detroit's organization participating in the tournament are:
Enmanuel De Jesus, Keider Montero, Gleyber Torres (Venezuela)
Woo-Suk Go, Jahmai Jones (Korea)
Tarik Skubal (USA)
Duque Hebbert (Nicaragua)
Kenley Jansen (Netherlands)
Hao Yu Lee (Chinese Tapei)
Carlos Lequerica (Israel)
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Skubal, Jansen, Torres and Montero are all players Tigers fans should be aware of. However, there are three players that Detroit and the fans should be excited to get a closer look at.
3 Players To Watch at the World Baseball Classic
Jahmai Jones: Jones has played in the MLB for multiple seasons now. However, 2025 was his best year in the bigs. Over 72 games, the 28-year-old slashed .287/.387/.550 with seven home runs, 23 RBI and 18 walks over 72 games played.
Jones had his best season in 2025, but it may be an anomaly. The Tigers will want to see some consistency out of him in 2026. The World Baseball Classic will be a great chance for Jones to prove he has become a consistent player.
Hao Yu Lee: Lee will suit up for Chinese Taipei at the World Baseball Classic. He is the No. 6 prospect in the organization. The Tigers acquired him at the trade deadline in the Michael Lorenzen deal back in 2023. The 23-year-old slashed .243/.342/.406 with 14 home runs, 61 RBI, 81 runs scored and 65 walks over 126 games played.
Lee is poised to make his debut in 2026, and it will be much-deserved once it happens. The only thing holding him out of the bigs is that the Tigers do not necessarily need a second or third baseman at the Major League level. But the World Baseball Classic will be a great way for the team and its fans to get a closer look at the top prospect.
Woo-Suk Go: Go came to the USA back in 2024, but he has yet to make his MLB debut. He appeared in 32 games in the minors last year and owned a 4.46 ERA. This was a big step up from his 2024 season, in which he had an ERA north of 6.00. The right-hander made it to Triple-A last year and should start the season there in 2026.
Go will join Jones on Team Korea. There could be room for him in the bigs this year if some injuries occur, but the WBC will be a chance to get a better look at the relief pitcher.
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Cameron Zunkel is a sports writer from the western suburbs of Chicago. He played Division-II baseball at the University of Illinois at Springfield where he earned a masters degree in Communication. Cameron also played independent league baseball for the Joliet Slammers and Schaumburg Boomers of the Frontier League. He has been in journalism for the better part of two years now, and has a passion for baseball specifically. His other work includes writing sports betting articles for ClutchPoints. In his free time, you can catch Cam at the gym, on the golf course, or coaching the youth in the beautiful sport of baseball.