Top 10 World Baseball Classic Moments of All Time

The calendar has flipped to March, which means spring training is in full swing and meaningful baseball begins in just a couple of days.

With the World Baseball Classic kicking of this week, it’s only fitting that we look back and gather some of the most iconic moments in the tournament’s history.

The moments on this list span decades, from the tournament’s inception back in 2006 all the way to the most recent iteration of the tournament in 2023.

While plenty of moments were in consideration, these select few stood out as some of the most memorable. Here are the top 10 moments in the history of the World Baseball Classic.

10. Ondřej Satoria Strikes Out Shohei Ohtani (2023)

While this isn’t a game-saving catch or a walk-off home run, it is the type of story that the WBC is all about.

Satoria is an electrician who plays in an amateur men’s league in the Czech Republic. And on a huge stage, he competed against Shohei Ohtani, in the midst of one of the greatest peaks the game of baseball has seen.

And despite the David and Goliath matchup, Satoria got the punchout. After all, the all-time great hitters only get on base one in every three at-bats. It’s hard not to be romantic about baseball, as they say.

9. Fernando Rodney Closes Out the Win (2013)

While not a moment per se, the Dominicans’ championship-winning game in 2013 encapsulated their run perfectly. In the team’s final four games, it surrendered just two runs total, with a shutout of Puerto Rico in the championship game.

This included seven saves from Fernando Rodney, who closed out a near-perfect ninth inning. With the strikeout of Luis Figueroa, it was over, and the Dominican Republic took home its first WBC title on the back of some masterful pitching.

8. Adam Stern’s Inside-the-Parker (2006)

The World Baseball Classic was not well known in its first modern iteration in 2006. While the United States wound up the victors, Stern’s home run for Team Canada against the U.S. may be the greatest moment.

While inside-the-parkers usually find a way to top lists of iconic moments, the fact that Stern’s homer came in the midst of a 7-0 blowout lowers it a bit. Nonetheless, this feels like classic early WBC.

Seldom-known journeyman has an all-time moment against a team featuring Roger Clemens, Ken Griffey, Jr, and Alex Rodriguez, among others.

7. Canada and Mexico All-Out Brawl (2013)

Canada led Mexico 9-3 in the ninth inning when the Canadians led off the inning with a bunt single. Mexico took offense — although in Canada’s defense, run differentials were a part of the tiebreaking system in pool play.

Regardless, Team Mexico pitcher Arnold Leon threw up and in to Rene Tosoni before eventually hitting him.

From there, it was on, creating one of the most memorable moments of the WBC. Seven players were ejected, with four coming from Mexico and three from Canada.

6. Randy Arozarena’s Casual Catch (2023)

You’ve heard of deadpan humor, but how about deadpan home run robberies? Randy Arozarena injected this moment into the baseball zeitgeist in 2023, as Mexico duked it out with Japan in the semi-finals.

With Mexico leading 3-0 and the bases loaded with two outs in the fifth, Arozarena robbed a go-ahead grand slam. He then stood there, arms crossed, deadpan. While Japan went on to win, this moment was game-saving at the time and remains too iconic to leave off this list.

5.Trea Turner’s Grand Slam (2023)

Many fans were shocked to not see Trea Turner on the American roster in 2026. And a huge reason why is his performance in 2023, specifically this grand slam against Team Venezuela in the quarterfinals.

The U.S. was down 7-5 entering the eighth frame against Venezuela. After the bases were loaded from a Tim Anderson walk, Pete Alonso single, and J.T. Realmuto hit-by-pitch, Turner stepped in. And from there, he cemented his WBC legacy with a go-ahead grand slam that gave the U.S. its eventual 9-7 victory.

4. Adam Jones’ Game-Saving Catch (2017)

This will not be the first instance of MLB teammates meeting on an international field. With Manny Machado at the plate and the Dominican Republic down one run, Machado delivered a powerful swing.

A swing that would have been a home run, had Adam Jones not intervened. Jones leaped over the wall, bringing back a potential game-saving hit for the D.R. The U.S. would go on to win this WBC, thanks in large part to Jones’ performance.

3. Munetaka Murakami’s Walk-off Double Against Mexico (2023)

Munetaka Murakami is set to join the Chicago White Sox in 2026. But three years before his move to the South Side, Murakami put the nail in the coffin of an all-time classic: Japan vs. Mexico in the semi-finals.

The second moment on this list from that game, Murakami came up in the bottom of the ninth, down one run with runners at first and second. And when Murakami was presented with a moment that children dream of, he didn’t let it slip through his fingers. The rest is history, as Japan went on to the finals and beat the United States.

Honorable Mention: You could also argue that Masataka Yoshida’s three-run homer to tie it in the seventh was the most iconic moment in this game. The job of choosing between these two is not an envious one.

2. Ichiro Takes Japan to the Promised Land (2009)

In 2009, Japan was chasing down its first international title in the second-ever modern-era WBC. With the game tied after nine frames, extra innings were on. And in the top of the ninth, Ichiro came up to the plate.

Eight years after leaving Japan for MLB, Ichiro became the reason for Japan’s celebration, knocking a single to plate two runs and give Japan the lead. They would never look back, closing out the game in 10 innings and securing the first of Japan’s three WBC titles.

1. Ohtani Strikes Out Trout (2023)

Sports fan often joke that there are script writers behind the scenes, creating the most cinematic moments. Usually, these are easy to brush aside. But when Trout stepped up against Ohtani with two outs and the WBC title on the line, the script writer allegations were difficult to ignore.

One run game. Bases empty. Ninth inning. Two outs. And two of the greatest players of the century.

With pitches in the dirt and two 100-mph fastballs, the battle between the then-Angels teammates worked to 3-2.

And on that 3-2 count, Ohtani fired a slider that dipped away from Trout, leaving him with a swing and a miss. This won Japan its third overall WBC title, and its first since 2009.

The at-bat was etched into the WBC history book as one of the greatest baseball moments of all time.