MIAMI — Yankees superstar and U.S. team captain Aaron Judge isn’t generally one for overstatement or hyperbole, so his postgame comments after the Americans clinched a spot in the World Baseball Classic championship game certainly turned heads.
“It’s bigger and better than the World Series,” Judge said late Sunday about the WBC after the taut 2–1 semifinal victory over the Dominican Republic. The outfielder was part of the 2024 World Series against the Dodgers. “The passion that these fans have, representing their country, representing some of their favorite players, there’s nothing like it.”
On a straight fan metrics standpoint, Judge isn’t correct—at least not yet. Last year’s World Series with the Dodgers and Blue Jays had an average U.S. viewership more than five times what games involving the American team in the WBC this year have garnered, even as the event continues to set records in this sixth iteration. Other factors, such as average ticket prices and digital content consumption, also strongly favor the World Series.
Judge’s sentiment, however, speaks to the national pride that was always core to the WBC but has hit an entirely different level this year. Players and coaches continue to be moved emotionally, competing for their country compared to their normal, professional jobs. This year’s WBC, which included 78 MLB All-Stars at the start and a true best-on-best feel to the competition, has only added to that sentiment. So, too, did the raucous sellout crowd at loanDepot park, normally a much quieter venue during Marlins games.
“The WBC has this magnetic way of just growing the game of baseball,” said U.S. manager Mark DeRosa after the highly anticipated matchup with the Dominican Republic. “Whether we won or didn’t win [the semifinal], baseball won. I think baseball won again.”
The Big Money
Tuesday night’s final between the U.S. and either Italy or Venezuela will show a marked financial difference between the MLB earnings of the respective rosters.
The U.S.–Dominican Republic matchup was a much more even matchup, as the 2026 salaries of the Americans on the WBC roster add up to $311 million—which would rank fifth in MLB—while the Dominican Republic had a comparable $295.2 million. Judge’s $40 million salary leads the way for the U.S.
The Italian team, however, will have total 2026 MLB earnings of only about $52 million—nearly half of that from pitcher Aaron Nola, who will earn $24.6 million while playing for the Phillies. Many of the Italians on the WBC roster are at or near the MLB minimum salary, set for $780,000 this year.
Venezuela’s WBC squad, meanwhile, comes in at $187 million.
The Americans, however, are pushing back on any potential overdog narrative that their combined salaries and the implied talent advantage would suggest.
“I don’t know about a villain role. I don’t think any of us really thought about that,” said first baseman Bryce Harper. “It’s awesome to see these cultures come together from Asia to Latin countries to America. That’s what is so great about our game. We’re all in this tournament, feeding off and playing a great game, and it’s great that there’s so many different cultures that play this game.”
