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TAICHUNG CITY, Taiwan – USA Baseball’s 2026 Collegiate National Team is set to compete in the inaugural World Collegiate Baseball Championship (WCBC) from July 11-15, 2026, at Taichung City Intercontinental Baseball Stadium in Taichung City, Taiwan.
Each game of the WCBC will be streamed through MLB on various platforms, including MLB Network, MLB.com, and USA Baseball’s YouTube page (@USABaseball). To view all options for following along with the event, visit the Collegiate National Team’s schedule page on USABaseball.com.
About the World Collegiate Baseball Championship
USA Baseball, Chinese Taipei Baseball Association (CTBA), and Japan University Baseball Federation (JUBF) jointly created the World Collegiate Baseball Championship (WCBC), and 2026 marks the inaugural event. As the founding federations, USA Baseball, Chinese Taipei Baseball Association, and Japan University Baseball Federation will compete in the event each year, while the fourth team will be a wild card participant selected by the host country. The host country, as well as the wild card participant, will rotate annually. This year’s host country, Chinese Taipei, has invited Korea, who will represent the Korea Baseball Softball Association (KBSA), as the wild card team.
Team USA’s Schedule at the World Collegiate Baseball Championship
Team USA’s game schedule at the WCBC is as follows:
- July 11 – USA vs. Korea – 12:30 a.m. ET/12:30 p.m. local
- July 12 – Chinese Taipei vs. USA – 6:30 a.m. ET/6:30 p.m. local
- July 13 – Japan vs. USA – 12:30 a.m. ET/12:30 p.m. local
- July 14 – USA vs. TBD (semifinals) – TBD
- July 15 – USA vs. TBD (finals) – TBD
History Against Korea
The U.S. and Korea have met at the collegiate level a combined 85 times, with Team USA owning a 62-23 record in the all-time series. The last time the two teams met was July 14-18, 2010, for a five-game series at the National Training Complex in Cary, North Carolina. The U.S. swept the series and outscored Korea, 21-5, in the five games. Team USA has won 14 of the last 15 matchups, dating back to 2000.
History Against Chinese Taipei
The U.S. and Chinese Taipei have a deep history at the collegiate level that dates back to 1987, as they two federations have played in 21 editions of the USA vs. Chinese Taipei International Friendship Series. The U.S. leads 17-0-4 in the overall series and leads the all-time game series 889-13-2. Of the four times the series has been played in Taiwan, the U.S. has won one of the series and the other three have been split. The U.S. has won each of the last five series, though, dating back to 2017.
The last time the teams met outside of the USA vs. Chinese Taipei International Friendship Series was in 2014 at the XXVIII Haarlem Baseball Week in The Netherlands. The teams met three times in the tournament, July 14, 18 and 19, and the U.S. won all three contests.
History Against Japan
The U.S. and Japan also have a long-standing history that dates back to 1972. The two nations have played in a head-to-head friendship series, the USA vs. Japan Collegiate All-Star Championship Series, 45 times. The U.S. leads the overall series 24-21 and owns a 135-110-2 advantage in overall games played. The teams met last year for the 45th edition of the series in Japan, and Japan swept the U.S. in five games.
The last time the teams met outside of the USA vs. Japan Collegiate All-Star Championship Series was in 2022 at Honkbalweek Harlem in The Netherlands. The two teams matched up on July 9 in the tournament opener and again on July 15 in the bronze medal game. Japan won the opener, 1-0, but the U.S. secured a 5-1 victory in the medal round.
Back in the Red, White, and Blue
This year’s roster is highlighted by three national team alumni. For Ryan McPherson (Mississippi State), this is his third national team appearance after playing on USA Baseball’s 2021 15U National Team and last year’s Collegiate National Team. 2024 18U National Team gold medalists Trent Grindlinger (Tennessee) and Nico Partida (Texas A&M) have been reunited and will play together for the second time in their careers.
2026 Roster Breakdown
Twenty-one schools and five conferences are represented on the 2026 Collegiate National Team roster. Florida leads all schools with three players apiece, the most of all schools, while Auburn, Mississippi State, Oregon, Texas, and UCLA have two representatives each on the list. The Southeastern Conference (SEC) boasts 15 athletes on the roster to lead all conferences, followed by the Big Ten with six, the Big 12 with four, the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) with two, and the Sun Belt Conference with one.
2026 Coaching Staff
This year’s team is led by manager Dan Hartleb, and he is assisted by pitching coach Matt Hobbs and assistants Jonathan Hernandez, Tracy Smith, and Tom Walter. Together they have a combined 150 years of coaching experience across the high school and collegiate levels of the game.
Hernandez, who was recently named the Southwestern Athletic Conference Coach of the Year for the second consecutive season, just completed his eighth season at the helm of Bethune-Cookman, and Hobbs just wrapped up his eighth season as pitching coach for Arkansas. Hartleb, who has been the head coach at Illinois for 21 seasons, is the winningest head coach in program history, while Smith and Walter each own more than three decades of coaching experience. Smith is currently the head coach at Michigan while Walter has been at the helm of Wake Forest’s program since 2010.
Social Media
For the most up-to-date information on the Collegiate National Team, follow @USABaseballCNT on Twitter/X and @USABaseball on Instagram, or visit USABaseball.com.
