On Thursday night, the rosters for the World Baseball Classic were announced and three Blue Crabs got their name called to represent their country.
Alex Crosby will join Great Britain for the WBC after helping them qualify for their first WBC appearance in history with a walk-off sac fly in the championship game of the WBC Qualifier. Crosby joined the Blue Crabs in 2021 as a first baseman but moved to the hot corner for the 2022 season and shined in the position and at the plate. In 2022, Crosby assisted the Blue Crabs to a record-breaking season and two straight playoff berths. He and Great Britain take on the US in game one.
Michael Wielanksy was selected to join the Israeli club for the 2023 WBC after posting an impressive performance for the Blue Crabs, and in the Panamanian Winter League. Wielanksy was brought to the Blue Crabs in a trade with the Long Island Ducks in May 2022. The second baseman batted .347 in 72 at-bats in Panama and helped the Federales de Chiquiri secure the Panamanian League Championship alongside his Southern Maryland teammate, Joe DeLuca. Wielansky and the rest of team Israel will battle it out with Nicaragua in their WBC opener.
Finally, the 2021 ALPB Reliever of the Year Endrys Briceno will join team Venezuela for the WBC. Briceno had two spectacular seasons in Southern Maryland, including the 2021 post-season accolade, and a spring training invite from the Arizona Diamondbacks following the 2022 season. Endrys struck out 19 batters in just 15.1 innings pitched while in Venezuela. His performance helped the Indios de Mayaguez secure the Liga de Béisbol Profesional Roberto Clemente championship in Puerto Rico alongside longtime Blue Crab, Daryl Thompson. Briceno and Venezuela take on the giants of the Dominican Republic in game one.
The Blue Crabs wish the best of luck to our players in the WBC. We are very excited and can’t wait to see some Blue Crabs represent their countries!