Before he was the No. 1 pick in the MLB draft, Travis Bazzana had dreamed of playing for Australia at the World Baseball Classic.
Bazzana, who went to the Cleveland Guardians with the top overall pick in 2024, the first Australian to receive that honor, got a small taste of what awaits at the WBC during his senior national team debut at the Premier12 in Japan in 2024.
Now after a season in the Guardians’ system, Bazzana is back in Japan with Australia and ready to experience the actual WBC, which will get under way when the Australians take the field against Taiwan to open the tournament on Thursday.