Team USA Loses Kansas City Royals Pitcher From World Baseball Classic Roster

Team USA suffered a stunning World Baseball Classic defeat on Tuesday night, falling to Italy 8-6 in a major upset. Heavily favored to defeat Italy and improve to 4–0 in the WBC, Team USA trotted out what looked to be their B-lineup for a game they needed to win. Manager Mark DeRosa had been on television earlier in the day and seemed to indicate he thought Team USA had already punched their ticket to the quarterfinals. After the loss to Italy, DeRosa claimed he misspoke on that segment, but his lineup and pitching decisions in the loss were questionable at best.

Now, Team USA faces a situation where their fate is no longer in their own control. Whether USA advances to the quarterfinals will depend on the outcome of Wednesday’s game between Italy and Mexico. If Italy wins, USA advances. If Mexico wins and scores at least five runs, USA also advances. But if Mexico wins and scores four or fewer runs, Team USA is eliminated.

If Team USA does advance, it will be without one of its pitching options. It was reported on Wednesday by Anne Rogers of MLB.com that Kansas City Royals starting pitcher Michael Wacha has returned to Spring Training. According to manager Matt Quatraro, the plan was always for Wacha to make just one appearance in the WBC before returning to camp.

Wacha’s lone appearance in the WBC came in relief, when he pitched three innings against Brazil in Team USA’s first game. He surrendered four hits and three earned runs, but did strike out five batters. He now returns to Arizona where Kansas City is rounding out its Spring Training games.

Wacha is entering his 14th MLB season. He has made 309 career appearances (288 starts) and owns a 111–75 record. His 3.86 ERA in 2025 was right in line with his 3.89 career mark, as he appeared in 31 games (all starts) for Kansas City, spanning 172.2 innings pitched and striking out 126 batters.

Making his lone career All-Star team in 2015 with the St. Louis Cardinals, Wacha is now more than a decade removed from that campaign and still pitching at a high level in the major leagues.

While Team USA will miss his presence if they advance, he is not the only pitcher to depart after one appearance, as Detroit Tigers ace Tarik Skubal did the same. Tuesday's loss showed some of the holes in USA's pitching staff, and it has now gotten even thinner.