Barcelona gets the first meaningful innings on the road to the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics this week, with Colombia, Italy, Germany and host Spain opening a Premier12 qualifying tournament from Oct. 9-11. Two clubs will move on to the 16-team Premier12 field next year, and with only three Olympic berths still unclaimed, every game carries a little more weight than a typical October international set.
The Olympic picture and the Barcelona stakes
Baseball is scheduled to return at the Los Angeles Games after its appearance in Tokyo in 2020. The Olympic tournament will have six teams. The United States is already in as the host, while the Dominican Republic and Venezuela earned spots as the two highest-placed WBSC Americas nations outside the U.S. at the World Baseball Classic.
The Premier12 is not the World Baseball Classic, which remains international baseball’s championship event, but it has deep roots in the old Amateur World Series that began in 1938. The modern Premier12 name arrived in 2015, and the competition has expanded beyond its former 12-nation format.
- Japan, Chinese Taipei, the United States, South Korea, Venezuela, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Panama, the Netherlands, Cuba, Australia and the Dominican Republic already hold places in next year’s Premier12.
- Barcelona supplies two more entrants from Colombia, Spain, Italy and Germany.
- A second qualifier, in Zhongshan, China, from Nov. 26-28, will provide the other two teams and finish the 16-club field.
- The Barcelona games begin at 6 a.m. for viewers in the United States.
- Players on MLB 40-man rosters cannot participate, though affiliated Minor Leaguers who are not on a 40-man roster are eligible.
Fans outside Italy and Spain can watch through the WBSC YouTube channel, with Tyler Maun and Sam Dykstra handling the broadcast. The field may not feature 40-man talent, but there is no shortage of former Major Leaguers, prospects, veteran international hands and pitchers who have been around the block.
Colombia brings the deepest room
At No. 13 in the WBSC rankings, Colombia arrives as the club to beat. Gio Urshela, who went 2-for-7 with five walks for Colombia in the 2026 World Baseball Classic, takes over as manager. Former big leaguers Dilson Herrera and Sugar Ray Marimon are also on his staff.
José Quintana and Michael Arroyo are not part of this roster, but Colombia still has plenty of affiliated experience. Carlos Arroyo, Michael’s older brother, spent 2025 in the Braves organization. The outfield has captain Jesús Marriaga, who drove in seven runs while going 6-for-12 during the 2025 qualifiers. Giants prospect José Ramos and Guardians prospect Dayan Frías headline the infield group.
- Luis Patiño, who pitched in 45 Major League games after being part of the Blake Snell trade to San Diego, is set to start Colombia’s opener.
- David Lorduy threw 3 1/3 scoreless innings in this spring’s Classic, though command remains the question with his electric arsenal.
- Mariners prospect Diego Contreras, 18, posted an .887 OPS in the Arizona Complex League this season.
- Cardinals catcher Paulo Asprilla, 20, completed his second Florida Complex League campaign.
- Jaider Morelos joins the team after winning Croatia’s league title with Nada Split, where he batted .473 with four homers over 27 regular-season games.
Frías had a rough Triple-A season, but his ties to Colombian baseball run deep. His father coaches in the country, and Frías trained while growing up with Orlando Cabrera. He also went 3-for-11 in the March Classic.
The young players may not get the bulk of the at-bats in a short tournament where managers usually trust their veterans. Still, Colombia has length through its roster, a recent qualifier pedigree and a 10-0 win over Germany in the 2025 WBC qualifying round. On paper, it has the best chance to finish atop the group.
Italy and Spain bring October momentum
Italy, ranked 14th, is the only Barcelona entrant that has played in a previous Premier12, though it went 0-5 in 2015. Its current program has a different feel after a silver medal at the 2025 European Championship and a run to the World Baseball Classic semifinals. Parma also captured the European Baseball Champions League, Italy won the Blind Baseball International Cup, and manager Francisco Cervelli has spent much of the year working in the country to strengthen the national setup.
Italy tuned up against Dominican Winter League clubs, finishing 0-1 with two draws. Cervelli’s former big league friends Robinson Canó and Aníbal Sánchez joined the group during workouts.
- Matteo Bocchi will take the ball in the opener, with Claudio Scotti and Ettore Giulianelli also central to the pitching plans.
- Giulianelli brings a screwball, an increasingly uncommon pitch in the modern game.
- Catcher Alberto Mineo and first baseman Renzo Martini add Minor League and national-team experience.
- Former Major Leaguer Robel García continues a winding professional career that has included stops in Italy, the Dominican Republic, Korea, Mexico and the United States after his comeback began with Bologna.
- Blue Jays prospects Giacomo Taschin and Giaconino Lasaracina give the Italians a younger battery combination.
Lasaracina is a name worth circling. He set a Blue Jays system exit-velocity mark in Dunedin this summer, posted an .865 OPS to lead his club among players with at least 100 plate appearances, and starred in Italy’s 2025 European silver-medal run. In that event, he hit .481/.516/1.185 with six home runs.
Spain, No. 26 in the WBSC rankings, has lived with narrow disappointment lately. It has missed the main World Baseball Classic field by one victory in each of the last two qualification cycles, including a third-place result in the 2025 Taipei qualifier. This time, the Spaniards have home-field surroundings in Barcelona and Adam Jones in the dugout. The former Team USA star has worked with Spain’s program since relocating to Barcelona several years ago.
Former Mets infielder Luis Guillorme is the best-known name, but Spain’s strength is a seasoned group that includes Wander Encarnación, the 2023 European Championship MVP, along with Jesús Ustariz, Gabriel Lino, Edison Valerio and the Hernández brothers. Much of the roster has Cuban, Dominican or Venezuelan roots, while Barcelona natives Marc Civit and Peter Bonilla represent the local core.
- Elian Leyva starts Game 1 after a career that has taken the Cuban-born right-hander through Cuba, Mexico, Italy, Taiwan and the Dominican Republic, as well as Triple-A in the Braves system.
- Pablo Guillén won the 2023 European Championship final and threw six scoreless innings during the 2025 WBC qualifier.
- Former Cubs prospect Felix Stevens brings real extra-base punch after a 20-homer, 20-steal season in only 84 Frontier League games.
Italy’s recent results and roster balance give it a slight edge in the fight for the second advancing spot. Spain has enough power and veteran savvy to make that call uncomfortable, but another tight finish may await the hosts.
Germany’s arms could make the weekend difficult
Germany enters ranked 17th and with the underdog label after placing fifth at the latest European Championship and falling to Brazil in the game for second place at the Tucson WBC qualifier. But the program has reasons to believe its next wave is coming. Several German prospects signed with Major League organizations this season, Brewers right-hander Paul Hoff earned the club’s Short Season Pitcher of the Year honor, and Brewers catching prospect Yannic Walther reached High-A while producing the best offensive line of his Minor League career.
Walther returns after appearing in the WBC qualifying roster, although manager Jendrick Speer may use him primarily in the outfield while veteran Vincent Ahrens handles catching duties.
- Markus Solbach, who reached Triple-A with the Dodgers, starts the opener after firing 14 scoreless innings with 14 strikeouts at the European Championship.
- Niklas Rimmel, Christian Pedrol and veteran Duke Von Schamann deepen the German pitching staff.
- Pedrol has also represented Brazil internationally.
- Captain Eric Brenk returns at third base, while first baseman Simon Baumer supplies left-handed-looking power from the middle of the order.
- Division I players Tristan Russell and Luca Hoerger add youth to the club.
Canada-born slugger Billy Germaine is Germany’s player to watch. He batted .417 with two homers in the 2022 qualifiers and led the DBL this season with 14 home runs, four more than Baumer.
Germany’s veteran arms should keep it in ballgames, particularly if Solbach sets the tone. Still, Colombia looks like the group’s standard, leaving Italy, Spain and Germany to battle for the second ticket. That makes Barcelona a fine place to start the next Olympic cycle: four clubs, three days and no room for a sleepy first inning.
