ESPN Deportes will provide comprehensive, multimedia coverage of the 2017 World Baseball Classic, the premier global baseball competition, March 6 to 22.
The network will air up to 45 games, including up to 22 primetime windows. ESPN Deportes primetime coverage begins Monday, March 6 at 10pm ET with first-round pool play featuring Israel vs. Chinese Taipei.
Coverage will intensify Thursday, March 9 when defending champion Dominican Republic makes its debut against Canada at 6pm ET, followed by Mexico vs. Italy at 9pm ET.
Coverage of the tournament will be featured on ESPN Deportes, ESPN Deportes Radio, WatchESPN (Spanish) and ESPN Radio (English). In addition, ESPN2 will simulcast the ESPN Deportes’ Spanish-language coverage of the Final, Wednesday, March 22, at 9pm ET. MLB Network will air exclusive coverage of all the games in English and on an authenticated basis via MLBNetwork.com/watch.
The 2017 edition of the World Baseball Classic will feature some of the game’s biggest stars, including Miguel Cabrera (Venezuela), Nolan Arenado (United States), Robinson Canó (Dominican Republic) and Yadier Molina (Puerto Rico). In total, 63 former All-Stars have stepped up to the plate to represent their countries.
ESPN Deportes will feature an All-Star talent team of commentators and analysts providing unmatched, daily and bilingual coverage, with at least 22 experts reporting from numerous locations.
ESPN Deportes’ baseball experts will include Ernesto Jerez, Luis Alfredo Álvarez, Guillermo Celis, Eduardo Pérez, Jorge Eduardo Sánchez, Eitan Benezra, Fernando Álvarez, Carolina Guillén, Renato Bermudez, Carlos Nava, Jorge Morejón, José Francisco Rivera, Kenneth Garay, and Enrique Rojas.
They will be joined by former MLB player and manager Ozzie Guillén, legendary pitchers Orlando “El Duque” Hernández and Ismael Valdéz. Pedro Gómez and Marly Rivera will serve as bilingual reporters for game coverage, SportsCenter, Nación ESPN on ESPN2 and Baseball Tonight.
In an effort to rally fans behind national uniforms, ESPN Deportes has launched a marketing campaign featuring music from Latin Grammy winners ChocQuibTown. Titled De Dónde Vengo Yo, the song will serve as the network’s theme music for all World Baseball Classic-related content and marketing efforts.