USA Baseball Drops Star-Studded Lineup Led by Judge, Harper for WBC Exhibition vs. Rockies

Team USA is gearing up for the 2026 World Baseball Classic with a star-studded exhibition finale Wednesday in Arizona.

Aaron Judge, Bryce Harper and Kyle Schwarber headline the starting lineup for Wednesday's matchup against the Colorado Rockies.

Team USA started out its exhibition slate with a 15-1 win over the San Francisco Giants on Wednesday.

The Americans open WBC play against Brazil on Friday in Houston.

The Rockies are deploying a lineup led by Jake McCarthy, Adael Amador and Mickey Moniak.

Judge and Harper joined Cal Raleigh, Roman Anthony and Gunnar Henderson as players who batted in multiple runs on Wednesday.

Paul Skenes got the start against the Giants, allowing one hit and one run while striking out four batters in three innings.

The last four batters in the starting lineup were swapped out between Wednesday and Thursday.

Alex Bregman will slide over to second base, while Henderson will step in at third.

Will Smith replaces Raleigh at catcher, Pete Crow-Armstrong will replace Byran Buxton in center field and Ernie Clement will take over from Anthony in the left.

The batting order will still be led for a second straight game by Witt, Harper, Judge and Schwarber.

Veteran starter Ryan Yarbrough, a recent addition to Team USA's roster, will get Thursday's start after coming in as an injury replacement for Joe Ryan.

Team USA is planning on starting Logan Webb for Friday's WBC opener against Brazil, manager Mark DeRosa told reporters Monday.

The next two starts are slated to go to the reigning Cy Young Award winners as Tarik Skubal starts against Britain on Saturday and Skenes returns to the mound against Mexico on Monday, per DeRosa.

Nolan McLean is set to start Tuesday against Italy, although he is currently day-to-day with an illness.

Skubal has said he will only pitch one WBC game this year, but Team USA could turn back to Webb, Skenes and McLean if the team advances past pool play. Quarterfinals are set to begin March 13.