Albert Pujols to manage Dominican Republic in 2026 World Baseball Classic: Report

The Dominican Republic has a new manager for the 2026 World Baseball Classic, and it stands to be a popular hire.

Albert Pujols has been chosen to take over the D.R.'s dugout as it attempts to win its second WBC title, according to ESPN. Nelson Cruz, the team's general manager, reportedly plans to make an official announcement by the end of March.

Pujols just finished up his first stint as a manager, leading the Leones del Escogido to their first title in more than a decade in the D.R.'s LIDOM this winter.

Advertisement

On the national team, Pujols will take over for Rodney Linares, currently the Tampa Bay Rays' bench coach. The team is coming off a disappointing 2023 WBC in which it shockingly failed to make it out of group play due to losses to Venezuela and Puerto Rico.

In the five WBC events since 2006, the international baseball powerhouse has won only once, its undefeated run in 2013. That was also the last time it even reached the semifinals, which it has only done twice.

The 2026 team has plenty of potential players who could try to break that slump. The 2023 team featured Juan Soto, Julio Rodríguez, Willy Adames, Rafael Devers, Manny Machado, Sandy Alcantara and Cristian Javier, and there are other Dominican players out there such as Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Fernando Tatis Jr., José Ramírez, Elly De La Cruz, Luis Castillo, Framber Valdez and Emmanuel Clase.

Advertisement

Some of those players play the same position, but part of Pujols' job will be to get as many of them on the field as possible for the WBC.

Pujols was a member of the D.R.'s first WBC team in 2006, but didn't play in another one for the rest of his career.