How Dominican Republic sluggers are lighting up 2026 WBC

MIAMI — Fernando Tatís Jr. wasn’t thinking; he was merely reacting. The pitch bolted off his bat at 105 mph, a sold-out crowd went ballistic, and Tatís’ body responded accordingly — by releasing the bat at the height of his swing, sending it spinning into the air and eventually trickling up the third-base line as the ball sailed 394 feet on Wednesday night.

“That bat flip — I don’t know where that came from,” Tatís, speaking in Spanish, said after the Dominican Republic’s thrilling 7-5 victory over Venezuela at LoanDepot Park. “It came out of my hand and I was like, ‘My god, what did I just do?’ And then, imagine — that stadium vibrating, the energy from my teammates. It’s something that you just feel.”

NOW IT’S NANDO’S TURN!!! 🇩🇴 pic.twitter.com/up5kC3iGr7

— World Baseball Classic (@WBCBaseball) March 12, 2026

The Dominican Republic stood out from the start of this World Baseball Classic because of the superstars that line its roster, a level of talent that rivals that of the United States and makes it among the favorites to win the tournament. What has stood out since, after four consecutive pool-play victories, is how much fun its players have, a joy that manifests in the way they celebrate home runs.

Dominican players have homered a WBC-leading 13 times already, and basically every one of them has been theater. They flip their bats or outright slam them. They stop to admire and often yell toward their teammates. They high-step around first base, gesture at the crowd when they reach third, conduct elaborate handshakes after crossing home plate and are met with a series of props — a personalized jacket, a necklace in the colors of their flag, a dumbbell adorned with fake plantains — before reaching their dugout.

Of the six longest home run trots in this WBC, five of them — all except Ozzie Albies’ walk-off for the Netherlands — have come from the Dominican players. All of them took more than 30 seconds to round the bases. That half-minute trip has become the team’s purest form of self-representation.

“It starts with who we are,” said Tatís, whose team faces South Korea in the quarterfinals at 6:30 p.m. ET on Friday. “It starts with our culture. We’re the Dominican Republic, and it’s what we’ve grown up with, what we’ve seen and how we feel and how we dance. It’s all a credit to the Dominican Republic and who we are.”

Tatís is renowned for his bat flips, the type that famously graced the cover of MLB The Show 21. “Iconic,” Dominican teammate Vladimir Guerrero Jr. called them. But his teammates bring their style, too. Oneil Cruz celebrates his prodigious blasts with a smirk. Guerrero and Juan Soto, who have combined for the four longest home run trots in the tournament, savor the moment like no one else. Junior Caminero brings sheer, unadulterated energy.

“Every one of us celebrates in our own way,” Guerrero said in Spanish. “After we do our job, we want to demonstrate who we are.”

IT’S GONE 😤

JUNIOR CAMINERO IS AN ELECTRIC FACTORY ⚡️ pic.twitter.com/SCOYIV7yg4

— World Baseball Classic (@WBCBaseball) March 7, 2026

The question of who does it best is just a matter of preference.

Some Dominican players are drawn to Tatís’ grace.

“It’s just natural,” said Manny Machado, Tatís’ teammate with the San Diego Padres these past seven years.

“He lives it,” Dominican shortstop Geraldo Perdomo said. “He just loves it.”

Others are more partial to Caminero’s exuberance.

“We have really good candidates on our team,” Tatís said, “but I feel the loudest, and the one that people are enjoying more because it’s brand-new definitely has to be Junior Caminero.”

Added Soto, seated next to Tatis: “He’s just so loud. And he’s so fun to watch.”

Early last year, after starring on a championship-winning winter ball team that is also managed by Dominican Republic skipper Albert Pujols, Caminero expressed such a burning desire to play in the WBC that he said he’d serve any role — bench player, towel waver, water boy — if it meant being included.

Caminero has since become an integral part of the nation’s star-laden lineup, highlighted by his two home runs and two memorable trips around the bases.

“I think that’s everything, having fun out there,” Soto said. “Definitely we respect the game, too. But we have to have fun. I think that’s when the best of you comes out — when you have fun out there. When you don’t worry about anything else but having fun, I think it’s one of the things that changes everything for every single player.”

The Dominican Republic won the WBC title in 2013 but was bounced in the second round in 2017 and had its worst showing in 2023, with a loss to Puerto Rico that kept it from even advancing into the quarterfinals. That Dominican team was also loaded with stars, but some believe it was disjointed. Roles were not clearly defined. Ego at times prevented togetherness. The widely held belief is that this time, it’s different.

Pujols, who starred for the 2006 Dominican team and is now managing it 20 years later, said he has never experienced the type of unity this group possesses.

The home run celebrations are its most outward expression.

“It’s a beautiful thing,” Pujols, speaking in Spanish, said of how his players have come together. “And we’re going to keep doing that because, yeah, we have a lot of talent, and talent is going to help you win games. But playing together, united, helps you win championships. That’s our focus — to play as a team. To help one another.”