Juan Soto confirms his return to this year’s World Baseball Classic, joining a star-studded Dominican Republic roster.

The Dominican Republic squad for this World Baseball Classic has already assembled many MLB star players.

And today, the lineup might have welcomed its most dazzling member, with New York Mets power hitter Juan Soto confirming his return to represent the Dominican Republic.

The Dominican Baseball Federation also announced that Athletics starting pitcher Luis Severino and Pirates reliever Dennis Santana have joined the team.

Soto’s performance in the 2023 World Baseball Classic was outstanding; although the team did not advance past the group stage, he recorded 6 hits in 15 at-bats, including 2 home runs and 5 extra-base hits, posting an OPS of 1.500.

In the 2025 season, Soto’s first with the Mets started off slowly, but he still finished with impressive stats: a career-high 43 home runs and an OPS of 0.921. He also stole 38 bases, far surpassing his previous single-season record of 12. He led the league in walks for the fourth time, earned his sixth Silver Slugger Award, and placed third in the National League MVP voting.

The 27-year-old star will join fellow MLB luminaries such as Julio Rodríguez, Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Ketel Marte, and Fernando Tatis Jr. to wear the Dominican jersey in Group D. Their opening game is scheduled for 7 PM Eastern Time on March 6 at Miami’s loanDepot park against Nicaragua.

Both Severino and Santana will be making their World Baseball Classic debuts.

Severino signed a three-year, $67 million contract with the Athletics last offseason. In his first season with the team, he started 29 games and posted a 4.54 ERA. Over his ten-year MLB career, he has a cumulative ERA of 3.92, with his peak years being 2017-18 when he was a consecutive All-Star with the New York Yankees.

After moving between several teams during his first seven professional seasons, Santana found stability with the Pirates. The right-hander was claimed by Pittsburgh via waivers in June 2024 and has since appeared in 109 games for the Pirates, maintaining a low ERA of 2.28.