Multiple WBC-bound Guardians leave camp with sights set on big stage 

March is almost here, which means the start of the World Baseball Classic is upon us. 

And, as such, the Guardians roster is set to take a bit of a hit thanks to the number of players on their roster who are participating in the tournament. 

On Friday a variety of WBC-bound Guardians played in their final spring game for Cleveland before heading across the globe to be in their respective camps. 

The Guardians have a plethora of players who are going to play in the World Baseball Classic 

The Guardian with the biggest name who is going to get a chance to show his stuff on baseball’s biggest stage is second baseman Travis Bazzana, who is heading to Japan to play for Team Australia in Pool C. 

Bazzana left for his team on Thursday along with outfielder Stuart Fairchild, who is going to play for Chinese Taipei. 

This year’s WBC will be a great chance for Bazzana to build around the star power that’s been attached to his name since he was the No. 1 pick in the 2024 MLB Draft. He got off to a good start this spring with a majestic home run against the Dodgers earlier this week, but he and his Australian teammates will have their work cut out for them in the cutthroat Pool C. 

The three other Guardians who left for the World Baseball Classic are catcher Bo Naylor (Team Canada), left-handed starter Logan Allen (Team Panama) and infielder Dayan Frias (Team Columbia). 

Naylor has been one of the bright spots of Guardians’ spring training, as he’s gone 5-for-10 with three doubles and two walks so far through Cactus League play. He went 1-for-4 on Friday in his final action, and now will serve as the No. 1 option behind the plate for Canada. 

Allen’s inclusion on Team Panama was a bit of a surprise when it was first announced, but now he’s going to get a chance to represent his mother’s homeland via his WBC nod. 

He pitched three innings on Friday and threw 51 pitches, which will be good prep for what’s going to be needed from him in the WBC. While that’s more of a workload than pitchers usually get at this juncture in the spring, Allen (like most pitchers participating in the WBC) are building up quicker so they can go longer in tournament games. 

Lastly there’s Frias, who also played for Columbia in 2023. While he’s gone 0-for-6 for the Guardians so far this spring, he’s racked up two RBI and four walks in that time. 

Even though WBC results won’t mean anything in relation to the Guardians’ spring results, it’ll still be exciting to see plenty of familiar faces play in what’s quickly becoming one of the biggest events on the baseball calendar.