The 2017 World Baseball Classic begins on Monday with a pair of games from Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul, South Korea, both involving Team Israel.
WBC 2017 schedule: Game times, TV coverage, and how to watch Monday online
Two games are scheduled to open the tournament.
While both games from Pool A are technically Monday back in the United States, locally in Seoul the contests are a night game on Monday, followed by an afternoon contest on Tuesday.
The first game of the 16-team tournament features Israel battling Korea, a 4:30 a.m. ET start.
Israel punched its ticket for the WBC by winning a qualifying round last September in Brooklyn, one of four qualifying pools to fill the final four spots in the 2017 Classic. Israel features four players currently on an MLB 40-man roster, all pitchers — Richard Bleier (Yankees), Scott Feldman (Reds), Brad Goldberg (White Sox), and Tyler Kelly (Mets).
Also on team Israel are Ike Davis and Ryan Lavarnway, both non-roster invitees in major league camps this spring, as well former major league outfielder Sam Fuld and 38-year-old pitcher Jason Marquis, who last pitched in the majors in 2015.
Korea features just one player on an MLB 40-man roster — Cardinals closer Seung-Hwan Oh — with the rest of the roster comprised of players from the Korean Baseball Organization. Korea was a runner-up at the 2009 WBC, and finished in third place in the inaugural event in 2006, and has a 14-5 overall record in the three previous World Baseball Classics.
Pool A features four teams — Israel, Korea, Chinese Taipei, and Netherlands. The first round is a round robin format, with the top two teams in each pool advancing to the second round.
MLB Network will broadcast both games on Monday, also available online via MLB Network with television provider authentication. ESPN Deportes will televise the games in Spanish, with streaming online via Watch ESPN.
Monday WBC schedule
4:30 a.m. ET - Israel vs. Korea
10 p.m. ET - Israel vs. Chinese Taipei
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