KC Royals All-Star Seth Lugo commits to pitch for Puerto Rico in 2026 WBC

While the 2025 MLB season may be at the forefront of major leaguers' focus at the moment, the upcoming 2026 World Baseball Classic will be on the back of many minds in the coming months.

Now that the field of participating nations has been set for several weeks now, the preparation is on for teams to craft their best possible lineups ahead of next March's global tournament.

Team USA really got the ball rolling on crafting their roster early last week when manger Mark DeRosa named Aaron Judge as team captain on April 14.

Since then other nations have followed suit, including Puerto Rico, as days later they named New York Mets superstar shortstop Francisco Lindor as their team captain.

And this week Lindor learned who one of his starting pitchers he will be that he'll backup in 2026, after Kansas City Royals starter Seth Lugo committed to pitch for Puerto Rico, as the Royals officially announced on Thursday morning.

Seth Lugo commits to pitch for Puerto Rico in 2026 World Baseball Classic

Pitching on the national scale for Puerto Rico isn't new for Lugo, as he also pitched for the island nation in the 2017 World Baseball Classic. While the team may've finished as runners-up to the U.S. that year, this time around Lugo will hope to improve upon his solid but somewhat mediocre individual performance that tournament. In three starts, he threw to a 4.20 ERA, however did manage to post a low 1.07 WHIP and .200 BAA.

When 2026 rolls around though, there's plenty of reason to believe that Lugo can help anchor this rotation, coming off a 2024 All-Star and American League Cy Young runner-up campaign with a 3.00 ERA. And so far through 2025, the 35-year-old veteran has been crafting yet another respectable season, with a 3.90 ERA through five starts.

This is something Lugo is looking forward to, as in a conversation with former big leaguer Carlos Baerga on Wednesday, he stated his initial intention to pitch for Puerto Rico and the excitement around the opportunity.

"It's going to be a lot of fun, looking forward to it," Lugo told Baerga.

Puerto Rico will open their 2026 WBC at home in San Juan from March 6 to 11 as they host Pool A, a group that includes Cuba, Canada, Colombia and Panama.