Aaron Judge Named Captain of Team USA for 2026 World Baseball Classic
New York Yankees superstar Aaron Judge added another accolade to his already impressive resume on Monday, being named captain of Team USA for the 2026 World Baseball Classic. The two-time AL MVP and the American League’s all-time single-season home run leader will be making his WBC debut in the upcoming tournament.
Judge is off to a blistering start in the 2025 season, batting .357 with six homers, 17 runs scored, a .478 on-base percentage, and a 1.228 OPS—leading the league in all of those categories.
Back in 2023, when the last WBC was held, Judge had just signed a nine-year deal with the Yankees and was newly named team captain, which kept him out of the tournament. Watching Team USA finish as runner-up to Japan left him feeling like he missed a golden opportunity.
“I wanted to be there,” Judge said in an MLB Network interview on Monday. “I was looking forward to this opportunity again.”
Manager Mark DeRosa will return to lead Team USA, with Judge being the first official roster announcement. Since the last WBC, Judge has slugged 101 home runs, posted a staggering 208 OPS+, and maintained a .303 batting average. He’s in the hunt for his third MVP in four seasons and is on pace to become just the fourth player in MLB history to record four seasons with 50 or more home runs.
Judge made his long-awaited World Series debut last October as the Yankees returned to the Fall Classic for the first time since 2009. However, he struggled offensively in the postseason, hitting just .184 and committing a key error with a dropped fly ball in the decisive game against the Dodgers.
As for the 2026 WBC, Team USA has been placed in Pool B, which also includes Mexico, Italy, Great Britain, and Brazil. The Americans will begin pool play in Houston on March 6, 2026. The top two teams will move on to the quarterfinals, also held in Houston, to face the top two finishers from Pool A.
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