The World Baseball Classic is nearly here, and prediction market Kalshi has odds posted for several unique tournament markets.
In this article, I'm going to look at World Baseball Classic Group C as Kalshi has odds posted for each of the four teams to win Pool C, with Japan given overwhelming odds to advance.
You can trade on the World Baseball Classic and other sporting events, as well as thousands of additional markets, at Kalshi, which is available in most states. We wrote a full explainer on how it works here, and have a Kalshi promo code ready if you want to get in on the action.
So, let's dive into some World Baseball Classic predictions for Pool C.
World Baseball Classic Pool C Odds, Predictions
Odds are via Kalshi and update every hour.
Japan won the 2023 WBC in dramatic fashion, with Shohei Ohtani striking out then-teammate Mike Trout to end the game. Not only does Japan have good odds to win the whole thing again, but they're expected to dominate Pool C. Even with Ohtani not on the mound, Japan has a strong foundation in its rotation, led by MLB arms Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Yusei Kikuchi, and Tomoyuki Sugano, and filled out with arms from Nippon Professional Baseball, the second-strongest pro league in the world.
The hitting side is where things get more interesting. Ohtani leads that group, but he'll have the best supporting cast he's had in years, with experienced MLB players Seiya Suzuki and Masataka Yoshida flanking him, along with 2026 MLB signees Munetaka Murakami and Kazuma Okamoto. No other team in this pool boasts close to the amount of MLB and NPB talent as Japan.
Of the remaining teams, Korea, home of the competitive Korea Baseball Organization, looks to be the biggest challenger. While not loaded with high-level MLB talent outside of Jung Hoo Lee, they do have some MLB players, such as Hyeseong Kim, Jahmai Jones, Dane Dunning, Riley O'Brien, Woo-Suk Go, and former MLB ERA title winner Hyun Jin Ryu.
Chinese Taipei will bring back 2023 WBC hero Yu Chang, but few other players have much MLB experience. Guardians' top prospect Travis Bazzana headlines Australia, and the only other notable player on an MLB 40-man roster is the White Sox's Curtis Mead. Czechia has no current big leaguers, but roster former Orioles prospect Terrin Vavra.
Chinese Taipei vs Australia kicks off at 10:00 p.m. ET on March 4, while Czechia will face Korea at 5:00 a.m. ET on March 5. Japan will wait until March 6 to take on Chinese Taipei at 5:00 a.m. ET, and all three of those games will be held in Japan at the Tokyo Dome.
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