US pitching staff taking shape as Webb, Pressly commit to Classic

With the World Baseball Classic set to begin in less than 100 days, team rosters are beginning to take shape. After Nestor Cortes and Adam Wainwright were announced earlier this week, two more arms committed to Team USA on Thursday with Giants starter Logan Webb and Astros closer Ryan Pressly joining the squad.

Armed with a sinker and changeup that generate endless weak grounders, Webb's posted a 2.96 ERA in 340 2/3 innings over the last two seasons -- the 10th-best ERA among qualified starting pitchers in that time.

After winning the World Series with the Astros, Pressly will be looking to add another trophy to his case in the WBC. The Astros closer's 33 saves last season were fourth most in the American League, and he pitched 11 shutout innings in the postseason.

Though rosters won't be finalized until closer to the tournament, here is how the Team USA roster is currently shaping up:

C: J.T. Realmuto, Will Smith
1B: Pete Alonso, Paul Goldschmidt
2B: Trevor Story
SS: Tim Anderson
3B: Nolan Arenado, Bobby Witt Jr.
OF: Mookie Betts, Cedric Mullins, Mike Trout, Kyle Tucker
SP: Nestor Cortes, Merrill Kelly, Adam Wainwright, Logan Webb
RP: David Bednar, Ryan Pressly, Dillon Tate, Devin Williams

Team USA will begin its title defense on March 11 in Phoenix, taking on Mexico, Colombia, Canada and Great Britain in Pool C.