Here’s an unexpected roster decision for the WBC.
Earlier this week I posted here about the eight Cubs players with MLB experience who will likely take the field for their home countries in the World Baseball Classic:
Pete Crow-Armstrong and Matthew Boyd (U.S.), Seiya Suzuki and Shota Imanaga (Japan), Owen Caissie (Canada), Daniel Palencia (Venezuela), Miguel Amaya (Panama) and Javier Assad (Mexico).
A bit under the radar, another player in the Cubs organization who has a chance to play in the major leagues this year could take the field for a country you might not have considered:
And here’s why those two players qualify for Chinese Taipei’s team:
Long is not on the Cubs’ 40-man roster, but he will almost certainly get a non-roster invitation to Spring Training, so he’ll participate in the first couple of weeks of spring games before heading to Tokyo, where Chinese Taipei will be part of Pool C along with Australia, Korea, Czechia and Japan.
The first baseman was the Cubs’ ninth-round pick in 2023 out of Cal State-Long Beach and in 2025 batted .305/.404/.479 with 23 doubles and 20 home runs in 140 games for Triple-A Iowa. Last month he was named Cubs Minor League Player of the Year for 2025.
Congratulations to Jonathon Long. This sort of competition can help prepare players well for the upcoming season.
Category: General Sports
