Yankees captain Aaron Judge expresses desire to play in World Baseball Classic in 2026 after missing 2023 edition

Aaron Judge is open to playing in the 2026 World Baseball Classic after missing our the previous edition in 2023.

Yankees captain Aaron Judge expresses desire to play in World Baseball Classic in 2026 after missing 2023 edition

Aaron Judge (Image via Imago)

After signing a massive 9-year deal with the New York Yankees in the 2022 offseason, Aaron Judge made a huge decision. He decided not to suit up for his country at the World Baseball Classic (WBC) in 2023. He has now expressed his desire to play in the next event in 2026.

Following a six-year hiatus, the World Baseball Classic returned in 2023 with 20 teams participating in pool play format. After some exciting games, the final game down between the two heavyweights – USA and Japan.

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The tournament eventually came down between MLB superstars Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani. The Japanese star got the better of his then-Los Angeles Angels teammate and helped Japan to the WBC title. Team USA could have benefited from the presence of Judge, who would have come into the tournament after smashing the American League record for most home runs in a regular season at 62.

The WBC will return in 2026. Aaron Judge is hoping that by the time it arrives, he is still in good shape which would see Team USA pick him for the international event.

I think that’d be pretty fun. It just depends. See where I’m at in my career at that point. Hopefully they still want me. It’d be cool to represent your country. [Team USA] made it to the finals, but they didn’t win it. So we gotta win it. We’ll see.

Aaron Judge said as per Deesha Thosar of Fox Sports

Before this, Judge has to navigate through the 2025 season. While he did win the AL MVP award in 2024, his team suffered a crushing defeat in the World Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Given what they achieved last season, the Yankees and Judge are hoping to go one better in the upcoming campaign.

Yankees broadcaster sparks debate by claiming Aaron Judge is better than Shohei Ohtani

Just before the new season starts, the MLB Network releases the list of the top 100 players in the league at the moment. This year the top two spots belonged to reigning MVPs Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani with the Japanese star finishing on top once again. A Yankees broadcaster has sparked debate while taking a shot at these rankings and claiming that Judge is better than Ohtani.

Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani
Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani (Image via Imago)

Speaking on The Michael Kay Show, Yankees play-by-play announcer Michael Kay ranted about these rankings for over 10 minutes. He would vigorously argue how the top spot belonged to Judge instead of his rival. He also compared the stats of the two superstars and pointed out how the Yankees star edged out Ohtani in almost every category.

You tell me, you tell me … how is Ohtani better than Judge? On what planet can you say that Ohtani is better than Judge? I don’t understand it. Are you projecting in 2025 that you think Ohtani is going to go back to being a dominant pitcher? I just think, and I hate to admit it, that there is an anti-Yankee bias.

Michael Kay said on his show

When it comes to stats, Judge did slightly better than Ohtani. He hit 58 home runs and had 144 RBI in the regular season, whereas Ohtani had 54 home runs and 130 RBI. Both players batted with an average of more than .300.

The one stat where Ohtani excelled was the stolen bases one. He recorded 58 stolen bases and thus founded the 50-50 club. On top of it, he won the World in his first season with the Dodgers. Perhaps this historic accomplishment was the reason he finished as the No.1 player in the rankings ahead of Judge.