Team USA baseball team inspired by hockey wins before WBC, Aaron Judge says

Another version of Team USA, this time on the baseball diamond, is preparing to win a gold medal, as the World Baseball Classic (WBC) is set to begin this week.

The United States has had good results in recent sporting events, including the men’s and women’s ice hockey teams, both of which beat Canada at the Milan Cortina Games last month. Both games ended in an overtime goal, with Megyn Keller’s backhand winning the women’s game and Jack Hughes’ heroics winning the men’s game.

Team USA baseball captain Aaron Judge, a three-time New York Yankees MVP, made an appearance on “The Pat McAfee Show” Monday, where he admitted that his hockey performances got his teammates excited for the WBC.

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Aaron Judge of the New York Yankees speaks to the media after being named captain of the 2026 WBC USA team during the game between the Kansas City Royals and the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium on Monday, April 14, 2025 in New York, New York. (Mary DeCicco/MLB Photos)

“The boys were excited,” he said when McAfee asked him what he thought of Hughes’ goal in particular. “Hughes, man, we sent so many photos of Hughes in the group text. It was awesome.

“It’s pretty cool that it’s snowballing. Just the excitement we had when I was with the Yankees and then with the group text, the boys were pumped. Now it’s WBC, we have a chance to put on the red, white and blue and copy what they did.”

The judge added that it was a “special ride” that the men and women had experienced.

Of course, Judge hopes his two weeks away from the Yankees will be worth it, as the United States seeks revenge for finishing with silver in the 2023 WBC, losing to Japan in the championship game.

Judge’s teammate, first baseman Bryce Harper, shared the same sentiment as his captain. Harper has been wearing the Stars and Stripes colors for some time now, having played for the U-18 national team in 2008.

Bryce Harper of the Philadelphia Phillies looks on after being ejected for arguing on a checked swing during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Detroit Tigers, Friday, Aug. 1, 2025, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Chris Szagola)

He announced he would play for the 2023 WBC team, but he was rehabbing after Tommy John surgery that left him unable to play.

He is now healthy and looking forward to representing his country again.

“I learned when I was young, when we put the United States on our hats, it’s about us,” he explained when it was his turn to wear the helmet on McAfee’s show. “That’s why it’s just about the United States and not about the United States. It’s about us. So for our team, it’s about everyone that’s in this clubhouse. It doesn’t matter where you’re from, who you played for, what you have, we don’t care because every day that we come here, it’s for the greater good of America. What we do for the people, who we represent.

Aaron Judge of the New York Yankees speaks to the media after being named captain of the 2026 WBC USA team during the game between the Kansas City Royals and the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium on Monday, April 14, 2025 in New York, New York. (Mary DeCicco/MLB Photos)

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“I’m proud to be an American. I’m so happy to be in this clubhouse with all these guys and there’s no greater feeling than going there, hearing the national anthem blaring through the speakers. Knowing what you stand for.”

Team USA begins its WBC schedule against Brazil on March 6 at Daikin Park in Houston, Texas.

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