Cardinals' Paul Goldschmidt to Play for Team USA in 2023 World Baseball Classic

St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Paul Goldschmidt has committed to playing for Team USA in the 2023 World Baseball Classic, it was announced Saturday.

Goldschmidt joins a number of MLB stars who have committed to play in the tournament, including Mike Trout and Trevor Story, who will also represent the United States, and Joc Pederson, who will represent Israel.

Goldschmidt also represented the United States in the 2017 World Baseball Classic. He appeared in five games and recorded just one hit before being replaced by Eric Hosmer for the semifinal and final matches. The Americans went on to capture gold in the championship game against Puerto Rico.

Before suiting up for Team USA in 2017, Goldschmidt assembled an impressive 2016 season for the Arizona Diamondbacks, hitting .297/.411/.489 with 24 home runs, 95 RBI and 32 stolen bases in 158 games. He also worked 110 walks.

Since then, the Texas native has won two Gold Gloves and two Silver Slugger awards and earned three All-Star Game selections. He has seven All-Star selections, four Gold Gloves and four Silver Sluggers over his 12-year career.

The 34-year-old is having one of his best seasons, slashing .330/.411/.609 with 26 home runs, 82 RBI and five stolen bases in 100 games. His performance resulted in his first All-Star selection since 2018.

Fellow Cardinal Nolan Arenado has also committed to suiting up for Team USA in the 2023 World Baseball Classic.

The tournament will begin with pool play March 8 across four host cities—Taichung, Taiwan; Tokyo; Phoenix; Miami—and end with the championship game on March 21 at loanDepot park in Miami.

The United States, which won the last WBC in 2017, was selected to Pool C alongside Canada, Mexico, Colombia and a to-be-determined team from the qualifiers this fall.