Seoul: St. Louis Cardinals reliever Riley O'Brien and Detroit Tigers outfielder Jahmai Jones were among four U.S.-born players of Korean descent named to the South Korean national team for the World Baseball Classic (WBC) on Friday.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) unveiled the 30-man roster for the March 5-17 tournament. O'Brien and Jones are joined by Seattle Mariners pitcher Dane Dunning and Houston Astros utility player Shay Whitcomb. All four players were born to American fathers and Korean mothers. Per WBC's eligibility rules, players can represent the country of birth of one of their parents, even if those players themselves weren't born in that country.
Manager Ryu Ji-hyun expressed that the additions of these four players will provide South Korea with more balance throughout the roster. He noted that the players felt honored to represent the country of their mothers' birth and were eager to play for the team.
Dunning, the player with the most extensive major league experience, has appeared in 136 games, including 102 starts, with a 28-32 record and a 4.44 ERA in 593 1/3 innings. In the 2023 World Series, he played a crucial role for the Texas Rangers, contributing to their victory by pitching 2 1/3 scoreless innings against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Jones, who is 28 years old, achieved a batting average of .287 with an on-base plus slugging (OPS) of .937 in 72 games last year. Whitcomb, aged 27, struggled with a batting average of .125 in 20 games for the Astros in 2025 but excelled in Triple-A, hitting 50 home runs and securing 155 RBIs in 215 games over the past two years. O'Brien, 31, achieved a career-best 2.06 ERA and recorded six saves last year in 42 games for the Cardinals.
This year's squad also includes two other South Korean major leaguers: San Francisco Giants outfielder Lee Jung-hoo and Los Angeles Dodgers infielder Kim Hye-seong, along with reliever Go Woo-suk, who recently signed a minor league deal with the Tigers. Manager Ryu completed the roster with KBO stars, including former league MVPs Hanwha Eagles pitcher Ryu Hyun-jin and Kia Tigers third baseman Kim Do-yeong. The team comprises 15 pitchers, including four left-handers, and 15 position players.
In the tournament, South Korea will compete in Pool C against Japan, Chinese Taipei, Australia, and the Czech Republic, with all games taking place at Tokyo Dome in Tokyo. The top two teams from each of the four pools will advance to the quarterfinals, which will be held in the United States. South Korea aims to improve from previous tournaments, where they were eliminated in the preliminary rounds in 2013, 2017, and 2023, after reaching the semifinals in 2006 and the championship final in 2009.