Astros prospect Whitcomb 'very blessed' to represent S. Korea

Shay Whitcomb #10 of the Houston Astros ducks out of the way of a pitch against the Miami Marlins during the second inningof a spring training game at Roger Dean Stadium in Jupiter, Florida, Feb. 25. AFP-Yonhap

Houston Astros prospect Shay Whitcomb will make his World Baseball Classic (WBC) debut next week for South Korea, the country of his mother's birth, and it didn't take long for the 27-year-old to start appreciating the opportunity at hand.

"It's an honor. I feel very blessed to be able to take part," Whitcomb told reporters after practice at Kyocera Dome on Sunday, the eve of South Korea's tuneup game against the Hanshin Tigers. Whitcomb, along with a handful of other U.S.-based players, joined the national team earlier Sunday.

"Everyone's awesome. The coaches are awesome," Whitcomb added. "I've been really enjoying getting to meet everybody."

The WBC has a loose set of eligibility rules and allows players to represent the country of birth for one of their parents, even if the players themselves weren't born there. South Korea initially selected four such players, with Whitcomb joined by Detroit Tigers outfielder Jahmai Jones, Seattle Mariners pitcher Dane Dunning and St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Riley O'Brien. O'Brien has since been dropped due to injury.

"I think we were all excited, and we've been talking for the past month or so just over text messages and we've just been really excited to get out here," Whitcomb said of his interactions with Jones and Dunning.

Asked about his family's reaction to his selection to the South Korean team, Whitcomb said: "We were all really excited, especially my mom. Being able to represent her in that way is such an honor to me, and so she was really happy."

Whitcomb now wishes he'd learned more Korean growing up.

"I have a joke with my mom that she's fluent but she never taught me when I was little," Whitcomb said with a smile. "So I always joke with her, like getting mad that she didn't teach me Korean, but she's like, 'You didn't want to learn.'"

Whitcomb, a fifth-round pick in the 2020 draft, has 78 major league games under his belt over the past two years. He hasn't had much success there, batting just .178 with a home run and six RBIs, but he has been far more productive in Triple-A.

In 2025, he belted 25 home runs and stole 16 bases in 107 Triple-A games. The year before that, Whitcomb put up 25 homers and 26 steals, with a robust .293/.378/.530 line.

Whitcomb is expected to provide some power in the middle of the lineup, while also offering defensive versatility, having played every infield position and the two corner outfield positions in the minors.

"Defensive positions, I play everywhere," he said. "That's one good thing that Houston's really done for me. They've taught me how to play everywhere. And then batting order, as long as I get to hit, I'm happy."

Whitcomb flashed his power by hitting a couple of balls over the fence in batting practice.

"I think it's right where it needs to be during spring training," he said. "I've been out practicing with (the Astros) and doing everything, so I'm full speed, and I'm ready to go and I'm excited to play."

After two pre-WBC games here, South Korea will travel to Tokyo on Tuesday to prepare for the start of the tournament two days later. South Korea will open play against the Czech Republic on Thursday, and after an offday, a much-anticipated showdown against the defending champion Japan looms on Saturday.

There may not be much of a rivalry between the two countries, though, considering how they have been going in opposite directions of late, with South Korea not having made it past the first round at each of the three editions of the WBC.

But Whitcomb has already circled his calendar for that Japan game.

"I'm so excited for that game. I think that's the one that I'm looking forward to the most," he said. "The Astros have many rivalries as well. And so being able to play in those high-pressure environments has made me excited for the Japan-Korea game."

Whitcomb said the goal is to stay with the national team as long as he can.

"We have some really good players, and I think that the American additions to the team just make the team that much better," he said. "I want to win. I want to stay as long as we can. I want to go back to spring training as late as possible."