Ryan Yarbrough replaces All-Star Joe Ryan for Team USA at 2026 World Baseball Classic

[p]The move was called since [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/yarbrough-ryan/MmRQ8dmL/"]Ryan[/a], 29, who would've been one of [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/usa/dSweSEc8/"]Team USA[/a]'s strongest arms, continues to deal with a back injury.[/p][p]Yarbrough, 34, tossed a 4.36 earned run average for the [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/new-york-yankees/SrC4LDIT/"]Yankees[/a] in 19 games (eight starts) last season, recording 55 strikeouts in 64 innings of work, giving up 58 hits and 19 walks.[/p][p]Ryan could return if Team USA advances to the second round, or further, if he's healthy. [/p][embed guid="d879e1d1-2779-43be-9ada-169242be4a60" url="https://x.com/WBCBaseball/status/2028140034835038612?s=20" social-type="twitter" /][p]Ryan, now entering his sixth season, was selected to the American League All-Star team last year for the first time in his career. The San Francisco native tossed a personal best 3.42 ERA in 31 starts last season, recording 194 strikeouts (four shy of breaking his previous best) in 171.0 innings, while giving up 138 hits and 39 walks.[/p][p]He made his MLB debut with the Twins in 2021, making five starts in five games. [/p][p]Since that season, Ryan has thrown below a 4.00 ERA in three of the next four years, recording no less than 150 strikeouts in each of those four seasons except once - in 2024 when he tossed 147. [/p][embed guid="1a8f5bf1-6105-46b6-907a-403bd38da954" url="https://x.com/MLB/status/1916568780274123200?s=20" social-type="twitter" /][p]As for Yarbrough, the lefty veteran spent the first five years of his career with the Tampa Bay Rays after making his MLB debut in 2018. After some shaky years, the once starter-turned-reliever joined the Kansas City Royals in 2023, before they ended up trading him to the Los Angeles Dodgers, finishing the season with the second-worst ERA (4.52) of his career in 25 games. [/p][p]In 2024, Yarbrough had the best season of his career. After the Dodgers traded him to the Toronto Blue Jays mid-season, he finished the year with a career-best 3.19 ERA in a career-high 44 games. [/p][p]Now, he'll be the new arm joining Team USA at the 2026 World Baseball Classic. [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/news/drama-and-intrigue-expected-as-2026-world-baseball-classic-approaches/zseTDLV7/"][b]Read all you need to know about the upcoming WBC tournament here.[/b][/a][/p][embed guid="61b1b41e-e879-4d97-8ff7-bc356addc57f" url="https://x.com/TalkinYanks/status/1927197688551838183?s=20" social-type="twitter" /]