When Aaron Judge was named the 16th captain in New York Yankees history and the franchise’s first since Derek Jeter, who held the title from 2003 through 2014, few could have imagined what fans would be in store for.
Since earning the captaincy of the greatest sports team ever, Aaron Judge has won two more MVPs, led his team to its first pennant since 2009, and has continued to attain numerous team and Major League Baseball records. Many pundits and fans consider him the greatest right-handed hitter of all time, and that stance is well-substantiated.
But now on a global stage, the future Hall of Famer has a new distinct honor: being captain of Team USA in the World Baseball Classic. Judge was named captain of America’s Team back in April of 2025, and he is the right person to assume such an honor. Back during the Olympics, it was Auston Matthews of the Toronto Maple Leafs who was captain of the Stars and Stripes; in doing so, Matthews lead the Americans to their first gold medal in 46 years.
Judge has not been bashful about his desire to lead his stateside squad to global glory, as he wants to emulate the success of the men’s and women’s hockey teams at Milano. If he’s to succeed in doing so, then he’ll have to replicate his historic regular season feats and have a repeat of his October 2025 playoff performance. His teammates will have to step up too, of course.
It’s not overstating it to suggest that Team USA’s World Baseball Classic (WBC, for short) roster is one of the greatest baseball teams ever assembled, in terms of talent and player resumes.
Aaron Judge needs no further introduction. He’s been the greatest hitter in baseball for the better part of a decade now, and he’s the odds-on favorite to win his fourth American League MVP.
Just the rotation alone makes opposing hitters nauseous. Despite Tarik Skubal’s oddly brief forthcoming appearance in the WBC, the Americans’ stable of starting pitchers, which was its Achilles heel three years ago in the tournament, the rotation is easily the best of all 20 countries competing this year.
Team USA’s rotation is comprised of Paul Skenes, the aforementioned Tarik Skubal Logan Webb; Matthew Boyd, Michael Wacha, and Ryan Yarbrough. Yarbrough was added to the roster following the announcement of Joe Ryan’s lower back inflammation diagnosis.
Despite some initial hurdles, this rotation is still downright intimidating. Skenes, who won the NL Rookie of the Yearaward in 2024 and the NL Cy Young Award in 2025, is the first player to win those awards in consecutive seasons since Dwight Gooden did it in the 1984 and 1985 seasons. Skenes’ 1.96 ERA since 2024 is the best among all starting pitchers.
Although Skubal is making just one start, it’s important to remember that one game with him for Aaron Judge and Team USA is better than a game without him. Two years ago, he became the first pitcher to win the Triple Crown since Shane Bieber in the COVID-19 shortened 2020 season. He and fellow Cy Young awardee Chris Sale were the first pitchers to earn the Triple Crown in a full season since 2011. Last year’s campaign was even better for the pending free agent.
It’s easy to be overshadowed by Skenes and Skubal, but Logan Webb is no slouch himself. As a matter of fact, Webb’s 3.34 ERA over the past two seasons ranks eighth-best among all starting pitchers with a minimum of 350 innings pitched; his 2.77 FIP is third-best.
The San Francisco Giants’ ace has earned Cy Young votes in four consecutive seasons, and he’s been a workhorse, as he’s pitched 820 innings since 2022, which is the best in the big leagues.
Following the triumvirate of perennial Cy Young contenders, Aaron Judge’s other teammates in the rotation, Matthew Boyd, Michael Wacha, and fellow Yankee Ryan Yarbrough, round out an underrated back end. Boyd was an All-Star with the Chicago Cubs last year. Wacha has almost conspicuously amassed a 120 ERA+ since 2022, and Yarbrough incudes more soft contact than almost any pitcher in the game.
Another Yankees teammate of Aaron Judge’s, David Bednar, is also donning the red, white and blue. Bednar has been one of the premier closers in the game for several years now, and he’ll anchor the United States’ bullpen. Other relievers in manager Mark DeRosa’s stable include Griffin Jax, Brad Keller, Clay Holmes, and Mason Miller.
Expressing concern about some of the relievers would be a fair response, but there is no need for total apprehension. This bullpen has multiple All-Stars and overlooked arms, and could very well become an asset for Team USA.
There will be no shortage of firepower in the lineup for Aaron Judge and the Americans. The seemingly omnipotent collection of hitters, outside of the Yankees captain himself, includes Bryce Harper, Cal Raleigh, and Gunnar Henderson.
That’s just the tip of the iceberg. Also in the lineup are Bobby Witt Jr., Alex Bregman, and Pete Crow-Armstrong. Topping it all off are Byron Buxton, Kyle Schwarber, Roman Anthony, and Brice Turang.
Putting it quite simply, this is a lineup teeming with burgeoning young stars, multiple MVPs, players with 60-home-run seasons, and future Cooperstown inductees.
Next to Aaron Judge, Bobby Witt Jr possesses arguably the most dynamic bat in the lineup. At just age 25, the former second overall pick has won a batting title, two Silver Sluggers, owns a .915 OPS since 2024, and also has a flashy glove.
The list goes on and on. This is truly a team with minuscule weaknesses and herculean strengths.
This is the opportunity that American baseball has been dreaming of.
While Mike Trout and Team USA came tantalizingly close in 2023, and although the Americans won the World Baseball Classic in 2017, this is the greatest American baseball team ever assembled.
At the risk of stating the obvious, there will be ample challenges for Captain America and the United States in this tournament. Injuries have taken some important players off the roster, and Team Japan and the Dominican Republic have formidable rosters of their own. It’s now or never for Aaron Judge and Team USA to hoist the World Baseball Classic Trophy.
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