[Official] 8 LG → 6 Hanwha → Here, 'ML Special' Kim Hye-sung + Ko Woo-seok will also go, announcing the additional list of WBC's 1st camp

*This content was translated by AI.

Will the Dream Team appear in the Korean World Baseball Classic (WBC) national team. Kim Hye-sung (27, LA Dodgers) and Ko Woo-seok (28, Detroit Tigers), who are active on the U.S. stage, will join the national team in Saipan, the first camp training site for the national baseball team.

The Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) announced on the 6th that "Ko Woo-suk and Kim Hye-sung have been confirmed to join the 2026 WBC national team Saipan camp."

Korean baseball is aiming to rebound from the upcoming WBC tournament in March. He is determined to continue his momentum to the KBO League after performing well in international competitions.

The first step is Saipan training. The South Korean baseball team, led by national team coach Ryu Ji-hyun, will depart for Saipan, the United States, on the 9th and will concentrate on training until the 21st. After returning to his team for a while, he will enter the second camp in Okinawa, Japan, from February 15 to 28.

Earlier last month, the KBO Power Enhancement Committee confirmed the list of domestic players to participate in the first camp of the WBC national team. Hanwha Eagles veteran pitcher Ryu Hyun-jin and KBO League MVP Kim Do-young were also included on the list.

KBO said at the time, "The first camp to be held in Saipan from January 9th to 21st was designed to support players to play in their best condition at the start of the tournament, considering the characteristics that the WBC is a tournament held before the start of the season."

The Korean team participating in the first camp consisted of a total of 29 players, including 16 pitchers and 13 fielders. By club, eight players will participate, the most from LG, the winner of the 2025 season, and six from Hanwha, the runner-up team, will participate. Four players from KT and three from Samsung will join, followed by SSG, NC and Doosan with two players. One player was selected from KIA and Kiwoom.

And whether overseas players would join the first camp was scheduled to be confirmed later, but this time, Kim Hye-sung and Ko Woo-seok were finally confirmed to join.

Both Kim Hye-sung and Ko Woo-seok are enthusiastic about the national team. When asked about her participation in WBC at an awards ceremony last month, Kim Hye-sung said, "I have inquired and requested my club to participate," adding, "I want to participate in the competition." If permission is granted, if the national team picks him, he will definitely go out. "If the club gives me permission, I want to go to the first camp first," he said, encouragingly.

Kim played 71 games in the Major League this season and posted a batting average of 0.280 (45 hits in 161 at-bats) with three home runs, 17 RBIs and 13 steals. In particular, he successfully finished his debut season with an on-base plus slugging percentage (OPS) of 0.699 which is an indicator of offensive productivity.

Of course, joining Saipan's first camp does not confirm his participation in the WBC tournament. The final decision is made by the club. Even so, as both Kim Hye-sung and Ko Woo-seok clearly expressed their intention to participate, the possibility of boarding the national team has increased. In addition, Lee Jung-hoo (San Francisco Giants), Kim Ha-sung (Atlanta Braves), and Song Sung-moon (San Diego Padres) will not accompany the first camp.

KBO has already submitted 35 members of the Provincial Roster to the WBCCI. The list is not disclosed in accordance with the organizing committee guidelines. The final roster of 30 people will be finalized by February 3, the deadline for submission.

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*This content was translated by AI.