Was watching Team USA debut in the WBC against Brazil, and was a little put off by some of the Brazilian players. Dante Bichette Jr. – what’s he doing here? And how about Manny Ramirez’s son Lucas? And who the heck is this starter, Bo Takayashi (turns out he was born in Brazil).
Looking at Team USA’s opponent for the next game, Great Britain, I saw that most of their players were from the USA. So, what’s going on here? How representative are these teams of the actual countries they’re playing for?
Native-Born Players
Well, it looks like there are some teams that are going full native – USA, Cuba, Japan & Venezuela. The rest go from one foreign-born player (Australia & Taipei) to only one native-born player (Israel).
US-Born Players
Well, it is America’s game (and that US roster’s going to be pretty hard to crack), so you’d assume the US would have the most natives on foreign teams. It looks like 10 teams have been able to keep Americans to less than 10% of their roster. Another 6 have kept the amount under 50%. Three though – GB, Italy & Israel – have a majority of Americans.
Select Individual Teams / Featured Players
Taipei (1 non-native)
Stuart Fairchild, OF, USA
- Mother is from Taipei
- Born in Seattle, went to Wake Forest
- 9 years in bigs, 3 teams, currently with Cleveland
- 177 ABs, 232 avg, 5 HRs, 9 SBs
Australia (2 non-natives)
Ulrich Bojarski, OF, South Africa
- Both non-native Aussies are from South Africa
- Bojarski moved to Australia as a child
- 8 seasons in Australian Baseball League – 796 ABs, 281 avg, 36 HRs, 18 SBs
- 5 in (US) minors – 1,074 ABs, 218 avg, 25 HRs, 18 SBs
- Was in 2023 WBC
Dominican Republic (2 non-natives)
Austin Wells, C, USA
- Maternal grandparents born in DR
- Born in Arizona, grew up in Vegas, went to Univ of Arizona
- Parents were both athletes at Arizona (father played baseball)
- 3 years with NYY – 825 ABs, 38 HRs, 139 RBIs
- 72 post-season ABs, 153 avg
- Led AL in errors in 2024
Netherlands (2 non-natives)
Derek West, P, USA
- Maternal grandparents born in Netherlands
- Most of team (80%) is from Netherland Antilles
- Born in Florida, went to Univ of Pittsburgh
- 4 seasons in minors – 107 IPs, 5.40 ERA, 122 K’s
- Last 3 years in Mexico – 180 IPs, 4.56 ERA, 155 K’s
- Played for Netherlands in 2023 WBC – 3 IPs, 10.13 ERA
Panama (3 non-natives)
Logan Allen, P, USA
- Mother was born & raised in Canal Zone
- Born in Florida, went to Florida Intl Univ
- 3 years with Guardians – 379 IPs, 23-24, 4.48 ERA, 320 K’s
- 4 in minors – 313 IPs, 23-10, 3.85 ERA, 394 K’s
- Started 1st game for Panama in 2026 WBC – 3 IPs, 5 hits, 3 runs
- Not to be confused with former pitcher of same name who pitched for Cleveland (again), Arizona, SD & Baltimore
Right / wrong
Nicaragua (3 non-natives)
Chase Dawson, OF, USA
- Played winter ball there, became citizen
- Born in Indiana, went to Valparaiso
- 7 seasons in minors & independent leagues – 1,835 ABs, 295 avg, 157 SBs, 362 runs
- Played in 2025 WBC – 250 avg, 3 RBIs (led team)
Czechia (4 non-natives)
Ryan Johnson, P/OF/1B, Canada
- Lives, works (English teacher) & plays in Czechia
- Born in Toronto, went to Lubbock Christian (DII)
- 2-way player
- Not to be confused with pitcher with same name who pitches for the Angels
Right / wrong
South Korea (4 non-natives)
Riley O’Brien, P, USA
- Mother was born in South Korea
- Born in Seattle, middle name is Chun-Young
- Went to College of Idaho
- 4 years in MLB with 3 teams – 58 IPs, 3-2, 3.55 ERA, 6 saves, 59 K’s
- 8 years in minors – 472 IPs, 28-25, 3.49 ERA, 19 saves, 545 L’s
- Grandson of MLBer Johnny O’Brien
Brazil (6 non-natives)
Dante Bichette Jr., 1B/3B, USA
- Mother is from Brazil
- Born in Florida
- Brother Bo & father Dante Sr. both played/play in bigs
- Estranged from family, citing abuse
- Was in Little League WS
- 1st round pick
- 8 seasons in minors – 2,856 ABs, 254 avg, 385 RBIs
Canada (7 non-natives)
Adam Macko, P, Slovakia
- Born in Bratislava
- Moved to Ireland at age 12, Canada at 17
- 6 seasons in minors – 353 IPs, 15-26, 4.53 ERA, 450 K’s
Italy (10% native)
Sam Aldegheri, P, Italy
- Born & raised in Verona
- Brother Mattias also plays professionally
- 2 years in Italian Baseball League – 9 IPs, 2-0, 4.66 ERA, 1.862 WHIP, 13 K’s
- 5 in minors – 345 IPs, 19-19, 3.67 ERA, 395 Ks
- 2 with Angels – 27 IPs, 1-4, 6.41 ERA, 2.063 WHIP
Great Britain (7% native)
Matt Koperniak, OF, England
- Born in London, military brat
- Grew up in Massachusetts, went to Trinity College (CT)
- 5 years in minors – 2,159 ABs, 286 avg, 323 RBIs, 325 runs
- Played for GB in 2023 WBC – went 0 for 8
Israel (1 native)
Assaf Lowengart, OF, Israel
- All other players are American
- Born in Israel, exposed to baseball when family moved briefly to Milwaukee
- Served in Israeli Defense Forces
- Went to Mansfield Univ (PA), William & Mary – 284 ABs, 327 avg, 23 HRs, 71 RBIs
- 1 year in independent leagues – 52 ABs, 154 avg
- Played in 2020 Summer Olympics, 2023 WBC
