Phillies' Jesús Luzardo might wind up pitching in World Baseball Classic after all

Spring training has begun in MLB, and the Philadelphia Phillies start their season in Clearwater, Florida, once again. An issue all clubs are dealing with this time of year is that several of the players on their respective rosters are participating in March's World Baseball Classic. After previously saying he wasn't going to play in the WBC, Jesús Luzardo might take part in the tournament after all.

Luzardo is entering a vital year as he will be a free agent after the season. He had a successful first year in Philadelphia after being acquired in a trade with the Miami Marlins last winter. He wasn't named to the Venezuelan roster, so what has changed that could now see him potentially participating in this year's World Baseball Classic?

Jesús Luzardo in Designated Pitcher Pool for 2026 World Baseball Classic

According to Phillies Tailgate on X (formerly Twitter), the Phillies listed Luzardo and Alan Rangel in the Designated Pitcher Pool (DPP) for the World Baseball Classic. Luzardo is listed as one of the six reserve pitchers for Team Venezuela.

Each federation can place up to six pitchers on the list to potentially call up after the first round, per MLB.com's Michael Clair. Teams can replace up to four pitchers after the first round and up to two after the quarterfinal. These players can replace one of up to four pitchers that the team previously marked as a potential substitute.

Luzardo explained to Scott Lauber on the Extra Bases Podcast back in January why he turned down an invitation to participate in the 2026 World Baseball Classic.

"In terms of pitching for the [WBC] ... I got a call from [Venezuela], all year last year talking to them, I promised that I would go and pitch," Luzardo said. "Did get a call from the US and got an offer to pitch as well. But just this year, I think it's going to be tough for me going into a free agency year. I made the decision that unfortunately I'm not going to be able to pitch in the Classic and want to take my time, take a slow spring training, fully get ready with the team, make sure my body bounced back after a career-high innings.

"Tough decision for me and my family because it's very important for my family for me to represent Venezuela. But just in terms of intelligent decision-making and a hard decision after a long last year and looking forward to a long this year, going into the playoffs hopefully again pitching into maybe November."

Luzardo threw a career-high 183 2/3 innings in his first year with Philadelphia. His previous career best in innings was in 2023 with the Miami Marlins when he totaled 178 2/3 innings. The lefty experienced an injury-plagued season in 2024 as he only threw for 66 2/3 innings.

It's possible Luzardo doesn't reach free agency, as he may agree to a contract extension with the Phillies. Ranger Suárez is now with the Boston Red Sox, and it would be another significant loss to Philadelphia's rotation if they lost another starter for two consecutive offseasons.

Luzardo is expected to play a significant role in the Phillies rotation with Zack Wheeler unavailable for the start of the regular season, the loss of Suárez, and the questions surrounding the other starters like Aaron Nola, Taijuan Walker, and Andrew Painter. It would be more beneficial for the Phillies if Luzardo didn't pitch in the World Baseball Classic, considering his importance to Philadelphia's rotation.

However, it's possible now that Luzardo will leave camp at some point to pitch for Team Venezuela if there is an injury to one of the other starters who are scheduled to pitch during the tournament.