World Series hero Rojas isn’t happy about Latin American ballplayers missing WBC

Miguel Rojas announced last week that he would not be able to participate in the World Baseball Classic due to problems obtaining insurance on his MLB contract.

And during the Dodgers’ annual Fanfest event on Saturday, the Venezuelan infielder didn’t hide his frustration with the situation.

“Absolutely disappointed,” said Rojas, who has never played in the WBC before and will retire after this season. “I didn’t know that my opportunity to represent my country for the first and only time, probably as a player, would be blocked because of an insurance issue. Even though we know we have to be ready for the season and we have to play and be healthy for our contract, ultimately we didn’t know that all those restrictions would be in place as they are now.”

Indeed, Rojas is far from the only player facing insurance issues related to this spring’s WBC.

Team Puerto Rico has had several key players withdraw – including Francisco Lindor, Carlos Correa, José Berrios and Emilio Pagan – leading the baseball federation’s president to publicly float the idea that the country could withdraw from the triennial tournament entirely.

Venezuela has also been significantly affected, with José Altuve and Carlos Narvaez unable to participate due to their own insurance issues.

There are also believed to be several other MLB players awaiting insurance approval.

“There are a lot of things I can say about the process, and I have been very vocal on social media, especially in the last few days,” Rojas said. “I don’t think people understand it.”

Insurance requirements have long been a complication for players interested in playing in the WBC. The policy is generally necessary for MLB participants to protect their major league teams from potential injuries they sustain during the event (with insurance, teams are reimbursed for the time their players miss in the regular season due to WBC-related injuries).

Players with a history of chronic injuries or recent surgeries typically do not receive coverage. For example, Clayton Kershaw had to withdraw from the 2023 WBC for insurance reasons.

This year, however, the growing number of players who have faced such issues has become a source of frustration – especially, as Rojas noted, as Latin American countries have been the hardest hit.

“I don’t see that happening with the United States, or with Japan,” Rojas said. “And I’m not trying to attack anyone, or attack what’s going on, or see what’s going on behind the scenes. But at the end of the day, it feels like it’s only happening to the players who want to represent their country from Latin America. So there are a lot of things I would like to talk about with someone in charge, with someone from MLB.”

Rojas, who has suffered several injuries in recent years (including hernia surgery last season) but has not spent time on the injured list in 2025, was also blindsided by what ESPN reported is a new provision for insurance coverage at this year’s event.

Because he will turn 37 before the start of the tournament, he said he was denied coverage based solely on his age.

“It’s very difficult not to have the opportunity to put my country on my chest, represent it and help win a World Baseball Classic – and not have the opportunity to do that because I’m 37 years old,” he said. “That’s not right. I don’t feel like it’s right. Because if I can still play in the big leagues with the Dodgers, why (can’t I) go play for my team in Venezuela and represent my country?”