Starling Marte told the local media in the Dominican on Tuesday night that he will play in the 2017 World Baseball Classic for the Dominican Republic. While he didn’t play back during the 2013 WBC, Marte is joining a team that ran the table that year, going 8-0 in the Classic. The Dominican Republic will be in the same bracket as the United States, Canada and Colombia in the first round, playing their games at Marlins Park in Miami.
Marte also mentioned that the Pirates will not allow him to play winter ball this year to get an early start on preparation for the games, which take place in early March.