Nine Milwaukee Brewers are on international rosters for World Baseball Classic

The World Baseball Classic, the every-four-years international baseball tournament, is once again scheduled to take place this spring. Last night rosters for the participating countries were revealed on MLB Network, which of course included a large contingent of players that are employed by the various Major League Baseball franchises. Nine active members of the Milwaukee Brewers’ organization and one member of the front office will represent seven different countries in the upcoming competition. They are:

Jonathan Villar (Dominican Republic)

The 25 year old batted .285/.369/.457 with 19 home runs and a league-leading 62 stolen bases for the Brewers in 2016.

Wily Peralta (Dominican Republic)

The 27 year old threw 127.2 big league innings last year with a 4.86 ERA, 93 strikeouts, and 43 walks. He was much better in the second half of the season.

Jorge Lopez (Puerto Rico)

Milwaukee’s #14 prospect according to MLB Pipeline, Lopez struggled to a 5.78 ERA in 124.2 innings between AA and AAA last season. The 24 year old rebounded nicely in winter ball and is looking to build more positive momentum heading into 2017.

Andrew Barbosa (Puerto Rico)

The 29 year old lefty spent last year in the Mets’ organization, where he worked to a 1.51 ERA and 71:19 K/BB ratio in 71.2 innings across four minor league levels.

Hiram Burgos (Puerto Rico)

A veteran of 8 minor league seasons, the 29 year old posted a 4.40 ERA and 115:55 K/BB ratio in 143.1 innings at AAA Colorado Springs last season. He is the only player representing the Brewers that has previously appeared in a WBC (2013).

Hernan Perez (Venezuela)

The 25 year old utilityman hit .272/.302/.428 with 13 home runs and 34 steals in 430 plate appearances for the Brewers last year while appearing at 7 different positions.

Carlos Torres (Mexico)

A valuable member of the big league bullpen for Milwaukee last year, the 34 year old posted a 2.73 ERA and 78:30 K/BB ratio in 82.1 innings in 2016.

Cody Decker (Israel)

The 30 year old journeyman spent time last year in the minors for Boston, Colorado, and Kansas City, batting a cumulative .230/.284/.484 with 19 home runs in 335 plate appearances between the AA and AAA levels.

Wei-Chung Wang (Chinese Taipei)

The 24 year old former Rule 5 draftee spent last year in the rotations for AA Biloxi and AAA Colorado Springs, posting a 3.78 ERA and 114:35 K/BB ratio in 133.1 innings pitched.

Pete Orr (Canada)

The 37 year old recently retired from playing and was hired as a pro scout by the Brewers after spending the 2014-15 seasons playing in AAA for the organization. In parts of 8 MLB seasons, he hit .257/.289/.328 with 3 homers and 19 steals in 738 plate appearances.

Peralta, Barbosa, and Wang are in what’s called the “Designated Pitcher Pool” for their respective teams. A team can use up to 10 designated pitchers but can't have more than two on its active roster at a time. Those "active" designated pitchers can be replaced at the beginning of each of the next two rounds, but only by another member of the designated pitcher pool. Once a designated pitcher has been replaced, he cannot return to the active roster for a subsequent round.

The WBC will run from March 6th through the 22nd and there will be games played in Japan, Korea, Mexico, and the United States, with the championship round taking place at Dodger Stadium. Last time the event was played in 2013, the Dominican Republic emerged victorious over Puerto Rico.

Statistics courtesy of Baseball-Reference