The WBSC updated its Men’s Baseball World Rankings on Wednesday, and Cuba (2,308 points) dropped to twelfth, while the Dominican Republic (2,511 points) and Australia (2,446 points) climbed a spot to tenth and eleventh, respectively. Cuba was ranked eleventh in the Premier 12, which has caused it to plummet in the recent ranking.
It’s important to remember that the WBSC considers the results of all categories when compiling these rankings. Therefore, the events Cuba will face this year at the youth levels will be of vital importance for future updates to these rankings. This month, they will participate in the U-12 World Cup and in September, they will also participate in the U-18 World Cup.
Also in September and October, the Cuban U-15 and U-23 teams, respectively, will attempt to qualify for the 2026 World Cups in their category. Later in November, the senior team will play in the Copa América against the top 12 ranked players on the continent.
Japan (6,843) and Chinese Taipei (5,147) remain the top two men’s baseball programs in the world, while the United States (4,591) and South Korea (4,283) rose to third and fourth place, and Mexico (3,926) and Venezuela (3,885) fell to fifth and sixth, respectively.
The main moves in the rankings were: Palau, who climbed 17 spots to 56th after winning the Pacific Mini Games, India climbed 12 spots to 57th, while Laos climbed 11 spots to 44th. On December 31, 2014, Cuba was ranked fifth in the world; almost 11 years later, it has dropped seven spots.
With a new format and an increase in the number of teams announced for the next Premier 12, which includes two qualifying tournaments in 2026 and the top 20 teams in the world participating, the publication of this ranking marks the starting point for the race towards the next tournament.
The top 12 teams in the World Rankings at the end of 2025 will qualify directly for the 2027 Group Stage, while the teams ranked 13th to 18th and two Wild Cards will play in Premier 12 Qualifying Tournaments to determine the other four participants in the Group Stage. The fight to finish 2025 among the top 12 will intensify with automatic qualification for the Premier 12 at stake.