The 18U National Team is set to begin play in the 2025 World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) U-18 Baseball World Cup presented by RAXUS in Okinawa, Japan. From September 5-14, the stars and stripes will compete against 11 other nations for the Title of World Champion. Team USA is the only nation to have competed in all 31 editions of the WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup as it will look to secure its 11th World Championship in program history.
THE PAST
USA Baseball’s 18U National Team boasts an elite tradition of excellence and success amongst international competition. The program has tallied 17 gold medals with its earliest dating back to 1982 at the II Baseball World Junior Championship and its most recent at the 2024 WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup Americas Qualifier. In addition to its medal count, the 18U National Team has consistently produced professional talent, with 21 former players being drafted in the 2025 MLB Draft, including first overall pick Eli Willits along with Kade Anderson and Ethan Holliday. The 18U National Team is currently riding an eight-game winning streak thanks in large part to a dominant run from the 2024 squad last summer.
THE FIELD
The WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup divides a 12-team field into two groups, with Team USA competing in Group B along with Australia, China, Germany, Panama, and Chinese Taipei. The red, white, and blue earned an automatic bid after it won the 2024 WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup Americas Qualifier while Panama paved its way to the event after serving as host and finishing second in the tournament. Of the six nations in Group B, three are top 10 teams according to the WBSC World Ranking: No. 2 Chinese Taipei, No. 3 USA, and No. 10 Australia.
Group A is composed of Cuba, Italy, Japan, Korea, Puerto Rico, and South Africa. Japan leads Group A as the defending World Champions after taking home the title in 2023, defeating Chinese Taipei, 2-1, in Taipei City. Alongside No.1 Japan sits a pair of WBSC top 10 nations in No. 4 Korea and No. 7 Puerto Rico.
Team USA has a winning record against all other 11 nations competing in this year’s World Cup. Overall, the stars and stripes are 152-41 in 31 trips to the World Cup.
THE VENUE
Team USA traveled nearly 8,000 miles across the globe to Okinawa, Japan, where the team is slated to start international competition on September 5 against Panama at Okinawa Cellular Stadium in Japan. Okinawa Cellular Stadium, the main venue of the 2025 WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup, seats 15,000 fans with a maximum capacity of 30,000 spectators. The stadium is located in Naha City and features an all-dirt infield and natural grass in the outfield.
The secondary location of the tournament is Nishizaki Stadium, which sits approximately 15 minutes away from the Naha airport. The venue is a part of the Nishizaki Athletic Park; the Chiba Lotte Marines of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) use the complex for their spring training. Like Okinawa Cellular Stadium, the Nishizaki Stadium seats well over 10,000 fans with approximately 12,000 seats available for spectators. The Ryukyu Bus “89” connects the main area of Naha to the general location of Nishizaki Stadium giving fans the perfect location to watch international competition.
THE ROSTER
The 20-player Team USA roster features five USA Baseball alumni, 10 players with USA Baseball national team development programming experience, and four players who have participated in MLB Develops events and programming. Grady Emerson is appearing on a national team roster for the fourth consecutive summer, becoming the first player in USA Baseball history to play for two 15U National Teams and two 18U National Teams. He is joined by his 2022 15U teammates Carson Bolemon and Andrew Costello, who helped Team USA win gold at the 2022 WBSC U-15 Baseball World Cup. 2023 15U alum Jorvorskie Lane Jr. makes his second appearance on a U.S. roster, while two-time alum Jared Grindlinger rounds out the alumni on the roster.
In addition to the five alumni on the roster, 10 total players have experience participating in USA Baseball’s national team development programming. Emerson and Grindlinger were both members of the 2022 13U/14U Athlete Development Program (ADP), while Costello and Jacob Lombard both participated at the 2023 16U/17U National Team Development Program (NTDP). Bolemon, Coleman Borthwick, Will Brick, Lane Jr., Anthony Murphy, and Gio Rojas competed at the 2024 16U/17U NTDP, and Grindlinger played at the 2025 16U/17U NTDP in July.
Additionally, James Clark, Lombard, Murphy, and Aiden Ruiz all have experience across a myriad of MLB Develops programs and events. The quartet has participated in nearly all of MLB Develops’ offerings, including the Breakthrough Series, DREAM Series, Hank Aaron Invitational, High School All-American Game, High School Home Run Derby, and The Program-all of which are hosted jointly with USA Baseball.
AT THE HELM
The 18U National Team is led in 2025 by Rick Eckstein, a six-time Professional National Team coach and former MLB hitting coach. Eckstein served under longtime big-league manager Davey Johnson for several U.S. professional teams, winning three medals. He secured USA Baseball’s “Doc” Counsilman Science Award in 2008, the 2023 Coach Educator of the Year Award, and the Rod Dedeaux Coach of the Year Award in 2025. Eckstein began his coaching career in 1997 and held stints as the hitting coach for the Pittsburgh Pirates and Washington Nationals. He is joined on staff by his brother, 2006 World Series MVP David Eckstein, along with two-time MLB All-Star Brad Penny and longtime high school coach Steve Stone.
HOW TO WATCH
Every game of the WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup will be streamed LIVE on Gametime.sport ($). Live stats will also be available HERE.
SOCIAL MEDIA
To follow along with all the action with the 18U National Team, be sure to follow @USABaseball18U on X and @USABaseball on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and X.
