One of the best arms in the Mariners bullpen last season now deservedly gets to show what he can do on the international stage in March.
Cal Raleigh is going to have some familiar company on the Team USA roster for the 2026 World Baseball Classic. As reported by Michael Clair of MLB.com, Gabe Speier will be joining his Seattle Mariners teammate for the tournament, which will take place between March 5-17.
This is thoroughly deserved for Speier, who is coming off a season when he was tremendous for the Mariners and developed into one of the best southpaw relievers in the majors. He produced a number of personal bests, including a 1.4 bWAR, 62.0 innings pitched, 33.7 strikeout rate, 0.871 WHIP and 7.45 strikeout-to-walk ratio.
You only have to look at the 30-year-old’s Baseball Savant page to get even more evidence of just how dominant he was in 2025. Among other things, he ranked in the 98th percentile for xERA and Chase %, as well as the 97th percentile for xBA and BB %.
As per Clair, Speier was especially dominant versus left-handed batters, restricting them to a .179/.214/.302 slash line with a barely believable 42/2 strikeout-to-walk ratio. Not that right-handed batters had much more success, as evidenced by a .203/.267/.347 slash line.
Gabe Speier blessed by the opportunity
Speier spoke about how he found out he would be playing for Team USA, in an interview on Wednesday with the MLB Network. He said:
“Obviously I’m super blessed to have this opportunity. (Mark DeRosa) gave me a call a couple of weeks ago and it was actually during one of my workouts, so I went to my phone and had a voicemail from him. As soon as I saw the name I was (thinking) this is for Team USA. (I’m) just beyond stoked and such a cool opportunity to be able to represent the country and play in this event.”
This is the second piece of good news for Speier in a number of days, after seeing a raise in his salary from $845k to $2.125 million in his second year of arbitration eligibility. Claimed off waivers by the Mariners in Nov. 2022, he is eligible for free agency in 2028.
The Santa Barbara, California native is just the latest Mariner to confirm they will be taking part in the World Baseball Classic, with more expected to follow. Randy Arozarena and Andrés Muñoz have confirmed they will play for Team Mexico, Julio Rodríguez will represent the Dominican Republic, while Josh Naylor and Matt Brash have committed to Team Canada.
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Photos courtesy of Tim Rogers Photography
What kind of season are you predicting for Speier in 2026? Do you believe he will continue to pitch at a similar level to last season for the Mariners, or take a step back in his productivity? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.
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