Japan WBC 2023 roster: Breaking down heavily favored Asian team's strengths and weaknesses

The World Baseball Classic is set to start on March 8. As always, Team Japan is emerging as one of the favored teams as they boast a roster replete with MLB as well as NPB stars.

Team Japan finds itself in Pool B along with Korea, Australia, China and Czechia. The team will play its first game of the tournament against China at the Tokyo Dome on March 9.

Team Japan has the most titles of any team in WBC history, claiming victory in both the 2006 and 2009 tournaments. However, a lot has changed since then. Let's see how Japan looks as we head into the 2023 World Baseball Classic.

First and foremost for the team is the question of pitching. Japan has traditionally produced some of the world's best pitchers, as its style of play is very-pitching centered. Making his WBC debut will be Los Angeles Angels star Shohei Ohtani. Ohtani struck out 219 batters in 2022. Although he may be used as a reliever in this tournament, he also represents a great offensive asset.

Japan's WBC 2023 rotation will feature some other MLB stars like Kodai Senga and Yu Darvish.

Darvish, the 2020 NL Cy Young runner-up, posted a 3.10 ERA in 194 innings with the San Diego Padres last year. Senga, who recently signed with the New York Mets, is a three-time NPB All-Star. The rotation will be rounded out by Yoshinobu Yamamoto, the two-time NPB Pacific League All-Star in both 2021 and 2022.

When it comes to hitting, Team Japan has less cache. With the exception of Seiya Suzuki and Steven Kwan in the outfield, the hitting lineup will exclusively feature names from the NPB.

Whether or not they will be able to keep up with MLB-type pitching remains one of the biggest questions. It is not uncommon for Japanese players to struggle with the velocity at which MLB pitchers deliver. A good example was Seiya Suzuki, who only managed to hit .262 with 14 home runs for the Chicago Cubs in 2022 after hitting 38 home runs with an average of .317 in the NPB in 2021.

WBC 2023 to feature some of Japan's best home-grown talent

Japan's NPB league has long been seen as a second-tier rival to the MLB. However, as more and more players make the leap between the two leagues, the lines are becoming blurrier and blurrier. The WBC 2023 will give fans the chance to see if Japan's homegrown array of talent is enough for them to succeed on the world stage.