The 2026 World Baseball Classic is already one of the most eventful iterations of the international tournament.

Over the last two ways, Italy pulled off upset wins over Team USA and Team Mexico to win the Pool B bracket. They'll play Puerto Rico in the quarterfinal round of the international tournament at 2 p.m. CT on March 14 at Daikin Park in Houston.

Italy beat Mexico 9-1 on Wednesday, which ended the WBC stint for the 2023 bronze medalists.

The quarterfinal round-on in the WBC will be single elimination. If Italy wins, it will play either Venezuela or Japan in the semifinal round on March 16 in Miami.

Two notable St. Louis Cardinals players took part in Italy's Pool B run and could help continue to contribute to the country's potential Cinderella run.

Here's an overview of the Cardinals' two representatives on Team Italy and how they performed against Mexico:

The 25-year-old, right-handed reliever is coming off his second season in the major leagues. After making just two appearances (one start) in 2024, Graceffo expanded his his stay in the majors in 2025.

Graceffo posted a 6.28 ERA and struck out 40 batters in 43 innings pitched across 26 appearances.

The 2021 fifth-round pick is projected by FanGraphs to break camp with St. Louis as a long-relief pitcher.

Graceffo pitched one inning against Mexico. He fanned one batter, walked two and allowed one earned run on one hit in one inning pitched.

Saggese, who was also a fifth-round pick by the Cardinals a year before Graceffo, will likely be a go-to bat off the bat and in platoon situations for the team.

Before this spring, Saggese was exclusively an infielder in his pro career. The last time he played an organized game in the outfield was in little league.

In efforts of finding a necessary right-handed bat for the outfield, St. Louis gave the Carlsbad, Calif., native a look in the outfield.

Saggese has registered 100 games in the major leagues over the last two seasons, with 82 of them coming in '25. He slashed .258/.299/.342 with a .641 OPS last season and hit 17 doubles and two home runs with 25 RBIs.

Saggese received one at-bat against Mexico after coming in at shortstop off the bench. He went 0-for-1. He's still looking for his first hit of the WBC.

FanGraphs currently projects Saggese to be on the Cardinals' Opening Day roster on the bench.

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