Record 76 nations featured in Final 2018 WBSC Baseball World Rankings

LAUSANNE, Switzerland — The Final 2018 World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) Baseball World Rankings, published today, include a record high of 76 nations, as the sport of baseball continues its globalisation path.

Japan earned the most ranking points in 2018 to overtake USA and reclaim the No. 1 ranking in the world.

Absent at the biggest international event of the year, the U-23 Baseball World Cup, USA fell to No. 2, despite winning both the U-15 Baseball World Cup and the U-18 Pan-Am Championship this year.

Korea earned the third-most points this year to hold their No. 3 ranking, while No. 4 Chinese Taipei earned the second-most points.

Mexico won their first-ever world championship in baseball, the U-23 World Cup, helping the nation to earn the fourth-most points in 2018.

Dominican Republic, behind the country’s ProBeisbol National Team alliance, scored the fifth-most points in 2018.

No. 7 Australia remains Oceania’s top baseball country, while No. 8 Netherlands remains Europe’s best baseball country.

No. 8 Venezuela is South America’s best-ranked nation.

No. 31 Indonesia was the top climber in 2018, advancing 16 places.

Top overall Climbers in 2018

1. Indonesia +16
2. U.S. Virgin Islands +12
3. Sri Lanka +11
4. Curacao +11
5. Aruba +11
6. Chile +10
7. Ukraine +9
8. Ireland +9 (tie-7th)
9. Georgia +9 (tie-7th)
10. Philippines +7

Most ranking points in 2018

1. Japan – 1,187 pts.
2. Chinese Taipei – 1,049 pts.
3. Korea – 829 pts.
4. Mexico – 780 pts.
5. Dominican Republic – 693 pts.
6. Venezuela – 583 pts.
7. United States of America – 540 pts.
8. Panama – 445 pts.
9. Netherlands – 419 pts.
10. Colombia – 391 pts.

Full rankings movements and trends can be found at the newly launched https://rankings.wbsc.org.