Canadian captain Josh Naylor raises his cap in celebration after Canada downed Cuba 7-2 to win Pool A in the WBC in San Juan, Puerto Rico on Mar. 11, 2026. (Image Credit: AP Photo/Fernando Llano)

By Logan Lehmann

Historic Win

Canada advancing to WBC playoffs driving excitement for baseball in Prince Albert

Mar 13, 2026 | 6:00 AM

The sport of baseball continues to brew excitement both across the country, and here in Prince Albert. 

This after Canada advanced to the World Baseball Classic (WBC) playoffs for the first time ever on Wednesday, a major milestone for the country in the sport. 

In Prince Albert, minor baseball players are currently preparing for evaluations for the upcoming year with training sessions around the city, where P.A. Minor Baseball president Nathan Noble said some of the kids are really getting into it. 

“The talk at winter training in the evenings is, ‘Oh, how did Canada do? Did they beat Cuba? How they do against Puerto Rico?’ The kids are talking about it and the older kids, the 15- and 18-year-olds, are definitely into it. It’s creating that excitement that we all want to see around baseball, and Prince Albert’s no different than anywhere across Canada right now.” 

Your #WorldBaseballClassic Pool A winner: Team Canada 🇨🇦 pic.twitter.com/lGzy2SpwBl

— World Baseball Classic (@WBCBaseball) March 11, 2026

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He added that the organization has recently seen an influx in parents inquiring about the sport, which he also credits to the success of the Toronto Blue Jays this past season. 

Historically in the WBC, Canada has never made it past the round robin across the five other installments of the tournament, with their previous best finish being 2-1 in 2006 and 2-2 in 2023, where they just missed out on a playoff spot. 

In the WBC, the top two teams from each Pool gets into the playoffs. 

In Canada’s case in 2026, they won Pool A while powerhouse Puerto Rico placed second and although both countries finished tied with a 3-1 record, Canada claimed top spot due to beating Puerto Rico in pool play. Other teams in Pool A included Cuba, Colombia, and Panama.  

Team Canada took Pool A thanks to its head-to-head win over Team Puerto Rico! #WorldBaseballClassic pic.twitter.com/fZlsykuLBo

— World Baseball Classic (@WBCBaseball) March 12, 2026

Now, the Canadians have a tough task ahead in the quarterfinals as they’re set to square off with arguably the best team in the tournament in the United States. The U.S. finished second in Pool B behind Italy, who were the only ones to down the Americans in the round robin in a group that also had Mexico, Great Britain, and Brazil.  

“The fact that Italy can go in and knock off the U.S., I think anyone can beat anyone on a given day,” said Noble, when asked if Canada has a shot in the quarterfinals.  

“I think that the Canadians have enough quality baseball players that they can shock the United States and scare them. It’s too bad the States has already had one of those scary moments, they’ll probably be a little bit more focused, but yeah, for sure it can happen.” 

Other teams to advance to the playoffs include Pool C contenders Korea and Japan, who are the defending world champions, and the Dominican Republic and Venezuela out of Pool D.  

Additionally, the two teams left standing in the finals will automatically qualify for the 2028 Olympics, with the exception of the United States as they already qualified as the host nation. If the U.S. does make the finals, the overall third place team in the tournament will fill the open spot. 

Canada and the U.S. will battle it out at Daikan Park in Houston, with first pitch slated for 7 p.m. Sask time on Friday. 

The #WorldBaseballClassic bracket is set heading into the quarterfinals! pic.twitter.com/Jmh1PkOd9s

— World Baseball Classic (@WBCBaseball) March 12, 2026

— 

loganc.lehmann@pattisonmedia.com