Elliott: For a change Canada has experiened WBC starters
Arizona Diamondbacks RHP Mike Soroka (Calgary, Alta.) will likely start the WBC opener. Photo: Arizona Diamondbacks
February 21, 2026
By Bob Elliott
Canadian Baseball Network
Don’t look now, but Canada finally, finally has an experienced starting staff for the World Baseball Classic pool in Puerto Rico.
Canada had qualified major-league starters before who were eligible -- but never were many available for the WBC, whether it be insurance problems, rehabbing from injuries, their clubs delivering a hard “no,” or the general manager dropping the old line “well, you can go if you want, but how do we evaluate you for an open spot in the rotation when you are off at in the WBC?”
Manager Ernie Whitt and Greg Hamilton will have Mike Soroka (Calgary, Alta.), Jamieson Tailon in his second start for Canada, Cal Quantrill (Port Hope, Ont.) and Jordan Balazovic (Mississauga, Ont.) for the event which begins March 6 at Hiram Bithorn Stadium in San Juan.
The first three have combined for 441 starts, the most of any five previous WBC starting staffs. In fact, the experience was so little, only one WBC had more than 100 combined starts. And that was when Ryan Dempster started two of three in Miami in 2017. Dempster was rested. He had not pitched in five years.
Canada is ranked 20th in the world, but the rankings are deceiving. Points are awarded for competing in 22U, 15U and 12U age groups. Canada only completes in the World Juniors and the WBC.
Soroka, 28, made 17 starts in 2025 -- 16 with the Washington Nationals and one with the Chicago Cubs giving him 69 big-league starts. He’ll face No. 13-ranked Colombia on March 7.
RHO Jameson Taillon will make his second start for Canada.
Taillon, 33, made 23 starts with the Chicago Cubs in 2025 raising his total to 223. His mother is from Toronto and his father from the Cornwall, Ont. area. He started against Team USA in 2013 and left with the lead, but the bullpen failed to protect it. He will likely face the No. 8 Panama entry on March 8.
Former Terriers RHP Cal Quantrill (Port Hope, Ont.) now of the Texas Rangers is available to start for Canada.
Quantrill, 31, made 26 starts last season -- 24 with the Miami Marlins and two with the Atlanta Braves -- giving him 149 in his seven-year career. He will likely go against the host No. 7 ranked Puerto Rico on March 10.
Ontario Blue Jays RHP Jordan Balazovic (Mississauga, Ont.) will start for Canada in the WBC.
Balazovic, 27, appeared in 18 games with the 2023 Minnesota Twins as a reliever, pitched for the Doosan Bears in 2024 (making 11 starts) and was at triple-A Toledo (seven starts) last season. He faces No. 10 ranked Cuba on March 11. On loan from the Uni-President 7-11 Lions in Taiwan, where he will start, the Lions gave approval if he was a starter.
Pitch limits for the first round are 65 -- as long as the club gives permission.
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A look at past Canadian rotations, their total amount of starts before the tournament and their results
Starters
2006 (Phoenix) Results
Erik Bedard, Adam Loewen, Jeff Francis W, W, L (2-1)
Total major-league starts: 90.
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2009 (Toronto) Results
Mike Johnson, Vince Perkins L, L (0-2)
Total major-league starts: 32.
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2013 (Phoenix) Results
Shawn Hill, Chris Leroux, Jamieson Taillon L, W, L (1-2)
Total major-league starts: 44.
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2017 (Miami) Results
Ryan Dempster, Nick Pivetta, Dempster L, L, L (0-3)
Total major-league starts: 351 all by Dempster -- first since 2013
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2023 (Phoenix) Results
Cal Quantrill, Mitch Bratt, Noah Skirrow, Rob Zastryzny W-L-W-L (2-2)
Total major-league starts: 76.
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2026 (Puerto Rico)
Mike Soroka, Jamieson Tailon, Cal Quantril, Jordan Balozavic ?
Total major-league starts: 441.
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And as for the bullpen ...
The Big Maple LHP James Paxton (Ladner, BC) will close out games for Canada.
Canada will proceed without relievers Cade Smith (Abbotsford, BC) and Matt Brash (Kingston, Ont.), but will have James Paxton (Ladner, BC) try and close out games. Paxton, who has not pitched since Aug. 11 2024 with the Boston Red Sox, will crank it (and can get to 96-97 mph). What he is doing is similar to 2023 when Adam Loewen (Surrey, BC), John Axford (Port Dover, Ont.) and Philippe Aumont (Gatineau, Que.) came to the mound after shaking the rust off.
Aumont will join Paxton this year.
Other options late in the game are LHP Rob Zastryzny (Edmonton, Alta.), who has logged 89 major-league innings, including 22 with the Milwaukee Brewers last year and RHP Eric Cerantola (Oakville, Ont.), who worked 49 innings at triple-A Omaha (Kansas City Royals).
Bullpen arms from double-A are Indigo Diaz (North Vancouver, BC), who worked 52 1/3 innings for the Somerset Patriots (New York Yankees) and Micah Ashman, whose mother is from Cranbrook, BC. He pitched in 43 games with a 2.35 ERA at Erie and Chesapeake (Orioles), plus 23 games at class-A West Michigan.
With the pitch count limit, Canada will piggy-back starters with the likes of LHP Adam Macko (Stony Plain, Alta.) who had a 5.06 ERA in 18 games at Buffalo (Blue Jays), former Cleveland Guardian LHP Logan Allen, whose father is from Lachine, Que. and Noah Skirrow (Stoney Creek, Ont.).
Allen toed the rubber in 45 games, logging 124 1/3 innings, in parts of five seasons in the majors. He pitched in 32 games last year with the NC Dinos in Korea. And from indy ball is Skirrow, who made 25 starts with a 3.99 ERA for the Lancaster Stormers in the Atlantic League.
From class-A Matt Wilkinson (Surrey, BC), who went 4-9 with a 4.24 ERA in 26 games with Lake City. Plus a 2025 draft in Antoine Jean (Montreal, Que.), the SEC pitcher of the 2025, who made five All-American teams and was named Canadian Baseball Network Player of the Year.
Carter Loewen (Abbotsford, BC) was on the initial roster but isn’t being allowed to compete. Brock Dykxhoorn (Goderich, Ont.) who made 21 starts for the Uni-President 7-Eleven Lions, will replace Loewen.
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As for the lineup ...
“The position players are basically the same as 2023 in Arizona,” said CF Denzel Clarke (Pickering, Ont.).
1B Josh Naylor (Mississauga, Ont.) takes over for Freddie Freeman and Matt Davidson, who has hit a combined 385 homers in the majors, Japan and Korea, will likely be the DH.
As Clarke looked at the probable roster he saw back from 2023 C Bo Naylor (Mississauga, Ont.), 2B Edouard Julien (Quebec, Que.), 3B Abraham Toro (Longueuil, Que.) and SS Otto Lopez (Montreal, Que.).
The outfield remains the same as 2023: Tyler O’Neill (Maple Ridge, BC), Owen Caissie (Burlington, Ont.) and Clarke.
“I’m looking forward to this, we have a lot of friends on this roster, guys we played junior with, players who were there in 2023 ... it’s like family. In fact it is.”
Clarke and the Naylor brothers are cousins.
Canada is the only team to have a winning record (2006) and not advance to the next pool due to run differential ... could this year be a first?