Rob Manfred Talks Future World Baseball Schedule, Possibility of Having Event During MLB Season

The excitement of the World Baseball Classic may be moving to the middle of the MLB season instead of Spring Training in future editions.

"Obviously we have commitments to Fox in terms of the All-Star Game in the middle of the season through '28," MLB commissioner Rob Manfred said Wednesday, per Ronald Blum of the Associated Press. "As the game continues to evolve, we have talked about midseason tournaments in general. And certainly if we decided to get serious about this, about a midseason tournament, this would be an ideal opportunity."

The NHL just provided an example of how a league can pause in the middle of the season for an international tournament when players participated in the 2026 Milano Cortina Olympics.

And the United States' victory over Canada in the gold-medal generated headlines across both nations, which the NHL surely hopes leads to more interest down the stretch run of its own season.

Ideally, something similar could happen for baseball.

Having it in the middle of the season could lead to further participation, as many pitchers aren't stretched out yet in Spring Training, while others are still working their way back to playing condition.

Perhaps the United States could have pitched Tarik Skubal more than one game in the tournament if it happened during an ongoing season when he was already accustomed to taking the mound every fifth day.

There is also a question of when the next one will be, especially with the league and its players currently negotiating about whether they will participate in the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

"The issue for us is whether we do it in '29 or in '30, three years or four years? I'm getting a lot of email from people today saying don't make us wait four more years for this," Manfred said. "I do think a three- or four-year cycle is probably about right for the event. The timing is going to turn on what we do with respect to related sorts of international efforts.

"I remain optimistic about the Olympics and obviously if we play in the Olympics it's a short time from July of '28 'till the spring of 29 and that's something we'll have to take into account. I'm not saying it's outcome determinative, but it's something we'll have to think about."

The event has plenty of momentum after this year's edition, which Blum noted drew a record 1,619,839 fans for 47 games. It also broke television viewership records and created memorable atmospheres inside the stadiums.

"The World Series I was in, the crowd here, the crowd we had when we played against Mexico, it's bigger and better than the World Series," Aaron Judge told reporters after the Americans' semifinal win over the Dominican Republic. "The passion that these fans have, representing their country, representing some of their favorite players, there's nothing like it."

While the United States prevailed in that game against the Dominican Republic, its championship aspirations ended Tuesday.

Venezuela defeated the Americans 3-2 in the final with Eugenio Suárez driving in the winning run in the top of the ninth inning with a double. It came in the half-inning after Bryce Harper tied it with a dramatic two-run homer in the eighth.

With the crowd on its feet, the United States couldn't manage a hit off closer Daniel Palencia in the ninth as Venezuela clinched a dramatic victory and WBC title that may not be at stake again until the middle of the season in 2030.