Phillies have 6 players still standing at the World Baseball Classic

The World Baseball Classic quarterfinals are here and the Phillies have six players still standing across three countries. Cristopher Sanchez for the Dominican Republic. Bryce Harper, Kyle Schwarber, and Brad Keller for Team USA. Aaron Nola and Dante Nori for Italy. Six guys representing three flags, with two of them back in action tonight.

Sanchez gets the ball first for the DR against Korea at 6:30 PM ET on FS2 in Miami. Harper, Schwarber, and Keller follow a few hours later when Team USA faces Canada at 8 PM ET on FOX in Houston. Nola and Nori will have to wait until Saturday when Italy takes on Puerto Rico.

If the DR and Team USA both win tonight, they meet in Miami on Sunday in what would be one of the better baseball games of the year.

Phillies ACE Cristopher Sanchez vs. Korea

Sanchez has a full week between starts heading into tonight and he needed every day of it. His pool play outing against Nicaragua was rough. Four outs recorded, three runs allowed, a walk, five singles, and a double.

He did set a WBC record by striking out four batters in a single inning, which sounds impressive until you realize the first of those batters reached on a wild pitch. Nicaragua went 0-4. It was not a good night.

Korea went 2-2 in pool play, beating Czechia and Australia while losing to Japan and Chinese Taipei. They have legitimate big leaguers in Jung Hoo Lee, Hyeseong Kim, Jahmai Jones, and Shay Whitcomb. Hyun Jin Ryu, now 38, is on the pitching staff.

The Dominican Republic is the heavy favorite tonight and there was a real advantage to landing on this side of the bracket instead of facing Japan.

Schwarber, Harper, and Keller for Team USA

Schwarber has been Team USA’s best hitter and it is not particularly close. Six for 16 in pool play with a homer, four walks, and six runs scored.

Over nine career WBC games across two tournaments he is hitting .300 with three homers, six RBI, nine walks, and only three strikeouts in 40 plate appearances.

The man shows up every time.

Harper has not found it yet. Three for 15 with three singles, three runs scored, a walk, and five strikeouts. DeRosa batted him second the first two games, cleanup in the third, and brought him off the bench in the fourth.

The timing has been off. That said, Harper is 4-for-10 with a walk against Soroka in his career, so tonight is a favorable matchup on paper.

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Keller has made two appearances and allowed two unearned runs over 1⅔ innings. His outing against Italy was ugly. He inherited a bad situation, then walked Jac Caglianone, committed a throwing error, gave up a sacrifice fly to Dante Nori, and uncorked a wild pitch before finally getting out of the inning.

The talent is real and he is going to be a legitimate piece of the Phillies bullpen in 2026. He just needs to put this WBC behind him.

Aaron Nola and Dante Nori for Team Italy

Nola pitched Italy into the quarterfinals but will not be available again until the semifinals at the earliest.

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That leaves Dante Nori as the offensive engine and the 21-year-old has been exactly that all tournament. He is hitting .500, six for twelve, with two homers, a double, five RBI, and two walks.

He hit two home runs to right-center in the opener against Brazil batting ninth as the only player in the lineup without big league experience. Cervelli moved him to leadoff in Game 2 and he reached base three times.

Phillies prospect Dante Nori makes WBC history for Team Italy

Against Mexico on Wednesday, he singled the other way and laid down a perfectly executed surprise bunt to score a run and keep the inning alive.

Nori is the Phillies’ seventh-ranked prospect per MLB Pipeline. He hit at Single-A, he hit in the Arizona Fall League, and now he is hitting in the World Baseball Classic.

He is projected to open 2026 at Double-A Reading. Based on what he has done here, that might not last long.

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