Minimizing the injury gap left by Kim Ha-seong, Song Sung-mun, and Moon Dong-ju
O'Brien as closer, Dunning to work as both starter and reliever
Whitcomb as a utility player, Jones as a two-way outfielder on offense and defense
Four Korean-American players with Major League Baseball (MLB) experience have joined the South Korea national baseball team for the 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC).
The Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) held a press conference for the 2026 WBC national team at the Korea Press Center in Jung-gu, Seoul on the 6th and announced, "Korean-American players currently active in MLB, Shay Whitcomb (Houston), Jemai Jones (Detroit), Riley O'Brien (St. Louis), and Dane Dunning (Seattle), will play for the WBC South Korea national baseball team."
They are expected to provide a major boost to the team, which is aiming to reach the quarterfinals for the first time in 17 years. They are being evaluated as key assets who can replace injured players such as Kim Ha-seong (Atlanta), Song Sung-mun (San Diego), and Moon Dong-ju (Hanwha). They are expected to fill the gaps in the team's thin roster. In particular, they are also expected to help resolve the shortage of right-handed hitters and bullpen pitchers.
St. Louis right-handed reliever O'brien Riley has been selected for the South Korea national baseball team for the World Baseball Classic. AFP Yonhap
All four players joining the national team have Korean heritage on their mother's side. Under WBC rules, a player may choose which national team to represent based on the nationality or heritage of either parent. The 2023 tournament was the first time the national team selected Korean-American big leaguers. At that time, the team included Tommy Hyunsu Edman (LA), who was born to a second-generation Korean-American mother and an American father, on its roster.
At the press conference, national team manager Ryu Jihyun explained the background of the selections, saying, "We expected that including Korean-American players would allow us to build a lineup with good left-right balance. The players also actively expressed that it would be an honor to wear the Taegeuk mark and play in their mothers' homeland."
Whitcomb is a right-handed hitting infielder who debuted in 2024. He is a utility player capable of handling second base, third base, shortstop, and even the outfield. His overall big league numbers are modest, with a career batting average of .178 (13 hits in 73 at-bats over 40 games), but last year in Triple-A he posted a solid batting average of .267 with 25 home runs, 64 RBIs, and an OPS (on-base plus slugging) of .869. He is expected to fill the void left by the injuries to Kim Ha-seong and Song Sung-mun on the national team.
Jones is a right-handed hitting outfielder who has been in the big leagues since the 2020 season. Last season, he batted .287 with 7 home runs, 23 RBIs, and an OPS of .937 over 72 games. After being selected by Washington in the first round of the 2016 MLB Draft and beginning his professional career there, he went on to play for Chicago, Texas, and Atlanta.
Ryu Jihyun, manager of Korea's WBC national baseball team, is explaining the background for selecting a major leaguer of Korean descent. Yonhap News
O'Brien and Dunning are expected to serve as reliable inning-eaters. O'Brien is a right-handed pitcher who throws a fastball that reaches 160 km/h. Last season, he played a key role in the team's bullpen, pitching 48 innings over 42 games. He recorded 45 strikeouts, 3 wins, 1 loss, 6 saves, and an earned run average of 2.06. Manager Ryu plans to use O'Brien as the closer. He said, "O'Brien is showing powerful pitching in the majors as well. Basically, I am thinking of him as our closer. I plan to bring him in at the moments when the team needs him most between the seventh and ninth innings."
Dunning is a right-handed pitcher who has contributed across multiple teams, including the White Sox and Texas. In 136 career big league games, he has recorded 28 wins, 32 losses, 2 saves, 3 holds, and an earned run average of 4.44. In this tournament, he will move between the starting rotation and the bullpen. The four players are expected to join the team after the second training camp in Okinawa, Japan, just before the exhibition game to be held in Osaka on March 2.
◆South Korea World Baseball Classic national team roster (30 players total)
Pitchers (15)= Dane Dunning (Seattle), Kwak Bin (Doosan), Cho Byunghyun, Noh Kyung-eun (both SSG), Park Younghyun, Ko Youngpyo, So Hyeongjun (all kt), Won Taein (Samsung), Ryu Hyunjin, Jung Wooju (both Hanwha), Song Seunggi, Son Juyoung (both LG), Ko Woo-seok (Detroit minor league system), Riley O'Brien (St. Louis), Kim Younggyu (NC)
Position players (15)= Kim Hyesung (Dodgers), Kim Doyoung (KIA), Kim Juwon (NC), Moon Bokyung, Shin Minjae, Park Hae-min, Park Dongwon (all LG), Noh Siwhan, Moon Hyunbin (both Hanwha), Shay Whitcomb (Houston), Ahn Hyeonmin (kt), Jemai Jones (Detroit), Koo Ja-wook (Samsung), Lee Jung-hoo (San Francisco), Choi Jaehoon (Hanwha)
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