Christian Yelich was admiring one of his custom-designed Louisville Slugger bats with the red, white and blue Team USA logo etched into the trademark when the topic turned to money.
When it was mentioned to Yelich that players in the World Baseball Classic are paid to play, his response was: “We are?”
It was news to Yelich, a Marlins outfielder who was selected to represent the United States in the international baseball tournament.
“I’d play for free, are you kidding?” Yelich said.
Yelich, Marlins teammate Giancarlo Stanton and a large ensemble of All-Stars from throughout the majors will converge on Marlins Park to take part in the WBC, an international baseball tournament that is growing in popularity.