The official rosters for the 2009 World Baseball Classic were announced today. In previous posts, we broke down the 2009 World Baseball Classic schedule and we will be analyzing the rosters of the different nations as the week goes along.
But seeing as how this blog is based in the U.S., we figured why not start out with Team USA for an analysis.
At the bottom of this post you can see the complete 2009 World Baseball Classic roster for Team USA. My initial thoughts are that it is not that imposing of a team, and that Team USA could have a rough ride trying to make it out of the second round. (Remember, Team USA failed to make the final cut in 2006.)
Some quick hit reactions:
- Jake Peavy is one of the best pitchers in the world and a great ace, but there is nothing imposing behind him. Roy Oswalt has declined for the last few years and Ted Lilly and Jeremy Guthrie aren’t scaring anyone.
- Team USA appears to have an outstanding bullpen. I assume that White Sox-killer Joe Nathan will close, and there are plenty of capable arms to bridge the 7th and 8th innings. If Team USA can get leads, they could be in good shape to told them.
- Brian McCann is about as good as it gets at catcher.
- The left side of the infield will be outstanding when David Wright and Jimmy Rollins are playing. With Derek Jeter and Chipper Jones out there, Team USA instantly gets much older. Something tells me that Wright and Rollins will get the majority of the playing time, especially with Jeter already nicked up this spring and Chipper seemingly always hurt.
- Ryan Braun is a monster and Grady Sizemore, despite my abject hatred for him, is an excellent center fielder. But Curtis Granderson and Brad Hawpe? Is that really the best we can do? Granderson picked it up in the second half last year and was tremendous in 2008, so I can let than pick slide. But Team USA knows that it can’t take Coors Field with it to the WBC right? I am hoping that Hawpe ends up becoming a seldom-used bench player.
Anyway, I’m under the gun and about to leave so this post has to be short and sweet. Below is the complete breakdown of the Team USA 2009 World Baseball Classic roster. I’ll be back later tonight and tomorrow with breakdowns of the other nations’ rosters.
Team USA 2009 World Baseball Classic Roster
| POS | Player | MLB Team | Bats | Throws |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SP | Jeremy Guthrie | Baltimore Orioles | R | R |
| SP | Ted Lilly | Chicago Cubs | L | L |
| SP | Roy Oswalt | Houston Astros | R | R |
| SP | Jake Peavy | San Diego Padres | R | R |
| RP | Jonathan Broxton | Los Angeles Dodgers | R | R |
| RP | Brian Fuentes | Los Angeles Angels | L | L |
| RP | J.P. Howell | Tampa Bay Rays | L | L |
| RP | Matt Lindstrom | Florida Marlins | R | R |
| RP | Joe Nathan | Minnesota Twins | R | R |
| RP | J.J. Putz | Seattle Mariners | R | R |
| RP | B.J. Ryan | Toronto Blue Jays | L | L |
| RP | Scot Shields | Los Angeles Angels | R | R |
| RP | Matt Thornton | Chicago White Sox | L | L |
| RP | Brad Ziegler | Oakland Athletics | R | R |
| C | Chris Iannetta | Colorado Rockies | R | R |
| C | Brian McCann | Atlanta Braves | L | R |
| 1B | Kevin Youkilis | Boston Red Sox | R | R |
| 2B | Dustin Pedroia | Boston Red Sox | R | R |
| 3B | Chipper Jones | Atlanta Braves | S | R |
| 3B | David Wright | New York Mets | R | R |
| SS | Jimmy Rollins | Philadelphia Phillies | S | R |
| SS | Derek Jeter | New York Yankees | R | R |
| IF | Mark DeRosa | Cleveland Indians | R | R |
| OF | Ryan Braun | Milwaukee Brewers | R | R |
| OF | Curtis Granderson | Detroit Tigers | L | R |
| OF | Brad Hawpe | Colorado Rockies | L | L |
| OF | Grady Sizemore | Cleveland Indians | L | L |
Follow the link and use your web navigational skills view the complete 2009 World Baseball Classic rosters for all 16 nations participating.
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