New York Yankees captain Aaron Judge, a two-time American League MVP and the AL's all-time home run king, earned another prestigious honor on Monday when he was named captain of Team USA for the 2026 World Baseball Classic.
It will be Judge's World Baseball Classic debut.
The career Yankee is off to a scorching start in 2025, hitting .357 with six home runs through 15 games. He also has 17 runs scored, a 1.228 OPS and a .478 on-base percentage, all league highs.
Judge was coming out of free agency the last time the WBC came around in 2023, having just signed a nine-year deal with the Yankees. The team also named him captain at the time. He felt like he was missing out as Team USA finished second to Japan.
“I wanted to be there,” Judge said Monday in an appearance on MLB Network. “I was looking forward to this opportunity again.”
Mark DeRosa will return as Team USA manager with Judge the first player announced.
Related New York Yankees NewsArticle continues below
In the two-plus years since the last WBC, Judge has hit 101 home runs with a mind-boggling 208 OPS+ and a .303 batting average. He's seeking his third MVP award in the last four seasons. Judge is also tracking to become only the fourth player ever with four 50-plus home run seasons.
Judge made his World Series debut last October as the Yankees returned to the Fall Classic for the first time since 2009. He struggled mightily in the postseason, however, hitting just .184 and dropping a crucial fly ball in the deciding game of the World Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Though we don't know what the rest of the Americans' roster will look like, we do know the path the team will have to navigate to reclaim the gold. Team USA is in Pool B alongside Mexico, Italy, Great Britain and Brazil. They'll begin play in Houston on March 6, 2026.
The top two teams will advance to the quarterfinals to face the top two from Pool A in games that will also be in Houston.
