As the World Baseball Classic is about to get underway, the Tampa Bay Rays said so-long to pitchers Chris Archer (USA), Alex Colome (Dominican Republic) and Jose Alvarado (Venezuela) as they left to join their respective teams. USA manager Jim Leyland, who came out of retirement for this prestigious honor, has named Archer as the opening starter against Colombia.
In addition to the players above, pitchers Jake Odorizzi (USA) and Jose De Leon Puerto Rico) are on the reserve list for their respective teams both are eligible and can be added for the second and or third round of play.