'Super Emergency' LAD Kim Hye-sung 'Double National Fellow' Superstar WBC Eventually Declared Not to Participate, Why?

*This content was translated by AI.

Freddie Freeman (37), a superstar of the Los Angeles Dodgers in the U.S. Major League Baseball (MLB), will eventually miss the 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC) tournament.

Canadian media Sports Net reported on the 11th (Korea time) that "Freeman will not participate in the 2026 WBC competition in March due to personal reasons."

Freeman is a U.S. nationality holder born in California, U.S. in 1989. However, since both parents are Canadian, they are also dual citizens of the United States and Canada.

Previously, he played in the Canadian national team uniform at the 2017 WBC and 2023 WBC competitions. Canada's heart is that different.

Freeman was named the MLB National League Most Valuable Player (MVP) in the 2020 season and is the top infielder in the big league, having been selected nine times only for the All-Star. It is not an exaggeration to say that you have booked a Hall of Fame induction.

Last year, he became a hero with a walk-off shot in the 18th inning of the extended game in Game 3 of the 2025 MLB World Series (WS, best-of-seven) against the Toronto Blue Jays at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, California.

"Both of my parents were born in Ontario, Canada, and they grew up there," Freeman said ahead of last year's World Series with Toronto, which is based in Canada. That's why it feels special to me, he said. "Every time I visit Toronto, I feel closer to my late mother."

In fact, Freeman has a meaningful story with his mother. His mother Rosemary died of skin cancer back in 2000. He was ten years old. So Freeman always wore a long-sleeved undershirt whenever he played in memory of his mother. This is because my mother always had to wear long arm tops while she was undergoing skin cancer treatment.

Freeman played in 147 games in the 2025 season and posted a good batting average of 0.295 with 24 home runs, 90 RBIs, and an on-base plus slugging percentage (OPS) of 0.869. He marked 367 home runs and 1,322 RBIs in the big league.

Freeman's absence from the WBC immediately put the Canadian national team on high alert. Canada competes in Group A with Puerto Rico, Cuba, Panama and Colombia. Canada has suffered elimination in the first round for two consecutive WBC tournaments.

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*This content was translated by AI.