Arizona Diamondbacks outfielder Corbin Carroll was honored to be chosen for 2018’s U18 World Baseball Classic.

Seven years later, the 2023 National League MLB Rookie of the Year will join the international baseball tournament as an adult Major Leaguer.

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Carroll says the decision to play in the WBC was an easy one.

“I had the opportunity to represent the country when I was 18 in the U18 national team,” says Carroll, 25.

“I had a taste of that at 18. With the WBC, it’s all you can ask for as a baseball player. That’s why you play.”

The 20-country tourney starts with pool play on March 5 in Tokyo, with other pools beginning March 6 in Houston, Miami and San Juan. The championship game is March 17 at Miami’s loanDepot Park.

The qualifiers were held in early 2025 in Taipei, Taiwan, and Tucson.

Besides Carroll, the 2026 Team USA features the likes of American League MVP/New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge, Chicago Cubs centerfielder Pete Crow-Armstrong, Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh and Pittsburgh ace Paul Skenes. Former MLB outfielder Mark DeRosa will serve as manager.

“We have a really good team,” he says. “We will come together and see how we can win.

“I know a couple of the guys personally. I’m really excited to meet the other guys. Regardless of whether I’ve met them or not, it’s just an incredible group of talented players. There’s some personal gain in there for me. I’m able to see how they work and pick their brains.”

The World Baseball Classic is sanctioned by the World Baseball Softball Confederation as the sport’s official National Team World Championship.

A Seattle native, Carroll could have played for Taiwan, as his mom is Taiwanese. He chose the United States.

“I grew up in the United States, and I was shaped by U.S. baseball. Playing the other countries shows how much talent there is. It’s win at all costs.”

The tournament, he says, “is so much bigger than yourself. I started off in that space. A group of players — with different backgrounds and from different teams — can gel as one unit. “When you have a goal like that in mind, it makes it a lot easier and more fun.”

The D-backs chose Carroll in the first round of the 2019 MLB June Amateur Draft. He was selected out of Lakeside School in Seattle and signed with the team for $3.7 million. He debuted in 2022.

In 2023, he signed an eight-year $111 million contract, including $5 million signing bonus. His average annual salary is $13.875 million.

Carroll says staying passionate about baseball is easy. He enjoys the challenge.

“I know how hard it is,” he says. “It’s truly, truly a game that — no matter who you are — tests you every day. I really appreciate the perspective that it’s given me, especially as a position player. There’s obviously a low rate of success, and being able to cope with that in a healthy way is good for life in general, honestly.”