South Korea heads into the World Baseball Classic running from Thursday to March 17 with its 30-man roster now set, as announced by the Korea Baseball Organization.

The roster includes seven overseas-based players, headlined by San Francisco Giants outfielder Lee Jung-hoo and Los Angeles Dodgers infielder Kim Hye-seong, along with MLB and Korean American big leaguers.

National team manager Ryu Ji-yun will lead the squad. Right-hander Go Woo-suk, playing in the minors under the Detroit Tigers, also earned a spot. Riley O’Brien was initially expected to be on the roster but did not make the final list, with Doosan Bears’ Kim Taek-yeon joining the team instead.

South Korea started strong in early WBC history, reaching the semifinals in 2006 and finishing runner-up in 2009. However, the team has failed to advance past the first round in the past three editions — 2013, 2017 and 2023 — drawing criticism over roster construction and renewed calls for greater integration of overseas talent.

Korea will open pool play in Tokyo against the Czech Republic on Thursday as part of Group C.


don@heraldcorp.com