U.S. and Canada Baseball Teams Face Off, Hockey Gold Medalists Cheer from Afar

While the U.S. World Baseball Classic team members were still in spring training camps, Jack Hughes scored the winning goal in overtime, helping the United States defeat Canada and secure its first men's Olympic hockey gold medal since 1980.

“I was on the bench being interviewed by Japanese media, and the big screen was showing that game,” recalled Kyle Schwarber. “After they scored, I was jumping around while still answering questions. You could feel what that moment meant to them and how much effort they had put in to reach it.”

Now, it's the baseball team's turn to try to defeat their northern neighbor.

The U.S. and Canada will meet in the quarterfinals of the Classic at Houston's Big Gold Park on Saturday, a continuation of the U.S.-Canada hockey finals from the Milan Winter Olympics last month – in which the U.S. won both games.

NHL New Jersey Devils center Hughes himself has contributed to this U.S. team striving to advance further in the tournament. He shares an agent with U.S. team center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong and sent the team an encouraging video, which circulated in the baseball team's chat group.

Moreover, the men's hockey team is arranging to send some game-worn jerseys to the baseball team, and the U.S. players plan to wear them on the bus for Saturday's game.

“This is my first time playing for the national team, for the country,” said U.S. starter Logan Webb. “You have rivals during the season too, but I think that feeling can't compare to this kind of game. Saturday's game will definitely be wild.”

As for the Canadian team, they seek revenge for those two Olympic gold medal losses.

“During that game, especially the next day, we got teased a lot in the locker room,” said starter Michael Soroka. “Getting revenge would be nice. But we're not chasing a specific outcome or fitting into some narrative. We just go out and play our baseball, let things happen naturally.”

The rivalry between the U.S. and Canada has recently taken on the aura of a major sports event; last year's Dodgers-Blue Jays World Series, one of the most thrilling ever, also carried a bit of that flavor.

But as Webb said, no game truly ignites emotions like a matchup between two national teams.

The U.S. has a four-game winning streak against Canada in Classic history, including a 12-1 victory in 2023. They clearly hope to extend that record and follow the hockey team's path.

“I remember the moment of the puck drop, watching those players skate, feeling like they were skating for their lives, not just for the U.S. and Canada,” said Schwarber. “Now it's our turn.”