TUCSON, Ariz. ¨C Colombia is going back to the World Baseball Classic. The team entered the Tucson Qualifier as the clear favorite, the country¡¯s roster bursting with talent even after big league players such as Jos¨¦ Quintana and Donovan Solano couldn¡¯t participate. All they did at the Kino Veterans Memorial Stadium was live up to the billing, going a perfect 3-0, seemingly never breaking a sweat.
Brazil followed suit on Thursday night, securing the final spot in the 2026 tournament by beating Germany, 6-4, in a winner-take-all second-place matchup. It is Brazil's first trip to the World Baseball Classic since 2013. Veteran Leonardo Reginatto, who has played for Brazil in every World Baseball Classic Qualifier the team has participated in, knows how important this one was -- especially since it looks like it will be his last.
"It's very important to us to qualify," Reginatto said. "I think this is something that can change baseball down there. We had a lot of people watching and cheering for us. This is my fourth or fifth Qualifier -- definitely my last one. I can't play this game too long anymore, but I'm very glad to finish my career like this. I mean, this is a dream come true, not only for me, for a lot of guys, and we're very happy to qualify."
Colombia opened the tournament with a 5-0 victory over Brazil, with starter Julio Teheran taking a no-hitter into the sixth. They defeated China, 8-1, and then closed the round-robin play with a throttling of Germany, 10-0, in a mercy-rule victory.
There are no MVPs named at Qualifier tournaments, but if there were, Colombian outfielder Jes¨²s Marriaga would probably be the recipient: Marriaga was blisteringly hot, going 6-for-12 with a home run, double, triple and seven RBIs. His slash line was a ridiculous .500/.538/1.000 as he helped Colombia blitz its way through the group.
¡°Our only goal is to qualify to the next round and go to the World Baseball Classic in 2026,¡± Marriaga said after his four-RBI performance on Monday night. ¡°Everybody's doing whatever they can to contribute to that.¡±
Colombia had been relegated to the Qualifier after finishing last in its group at the 2023 Classic, but it will now play in its third consecutive World Baseball Classic since first qualifying for the tournament in 2017. That year, Dilson Herrera ¨C who is still a starter for the national team ¨C sent Colombia to its first tournament with a game-winning, eighth-inning home run against Panama.
Brazil, which won silver at the 2023 Pan-American Games, now hopes to improve upon its 2013 World Baseball Classic performance, which saw the nation go 0-3.
Colombia and Brazil joined Nicaragua and Chinese Taipei ¨C who each advanced from the Taipei Qualifier last week ¨C as the newest teams to book their places at the 2026 tournament.