WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. -- Unlike the World Baseball Classic, rosters for the upcoming WBSC Premier12 must be selected among players who are not on Major League 40-man rosters.

Aside from that significant difference, USA Baseball officials are preparing for November’s Premier12 with a process that resembles the lead-in to last year’s memorable Classic.

One major reason: Tony Reagins, Major League Baseball’s chief baseball development officer, is returning in his role as Team USA general manager after building the roster that won silver in the ’23 Classic.

“At this time of the year, there’s a lot of movement as it relates to the 40-man, with the September callups on the horizon,” Reagins said Sunday prior to the MLB Little League Classic. “Player-injury situations are a challenge, so you’re constantly having phone calls and Zooms with our staff to make sure we’re getting the right players. Not all players want to do it, but the guys who have committed already are a talented group.

“Pitching is always a challenge, because at this time of the year some guys have reached their innings limits. Some guys are coming off injury. You have to be flexible and turn over every rock to make sure you’re not missing anybody that’s interested in playing. … We’re having fun going through it.”

To lead the team, Reagins chose a manager with whom he has a longstanding connection: Mike Scioscia, who managed the Angels during Reagin’s tenure as general manager there. Scioscia also managed Team USA at the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games, another competition in which Reagins was the GM.

“I’ve been around him enough to know his attention to detail,” Reagins said. “If you want to be in this type of tournament, it takes detail, not just rolling out the baseballs and going to play. Your attention to detail on the bases, how your pitchers are going to perform, what your bullpen looks like, where we’re going to stack the lineup, the groupings in the lineup -- all those things are important.

“I just know how he operates, how he thinks. I trust him. He’ll be perfect for this type of group.”

Reagins is excited about the experience of the Team USA coaching staff, which includes former Brewers and Red Sox manager Ron Roenicke as bench coach and Dodgers third-base coach Dino Ebel, widely regarded as one of the best in baseball in that role. Jemile Weeks, a rising star in the coaching ranks as the Mets’ baserunning coordinator, will be the first-base coach.

LaTroy Hawkins, who has international coaching experience following his 21-year MLB career, will be the bullpen coach, while Dave Wallace returns as the pitching coach, a role he held at the Tokyo Olympics. Longtime Major League coach Rick Eckstein is the hitting coach, a role he held with the Pirates as recently as the 2021 season.

“They know the game in a deep way,” Reagins said. “You’re not going to trick them on the field. They’re going to be ahead of the game and be able to anticipate moves. The opposition is going to play against the dugout, as well.”

Reagins credited USA Baseball executives Paul Seiler, Eric Campbell and Gene Watson for their work in preparing for the tournament, which opens for Team USA in Mexico on Nov. 9. If the U.S. advances out of the preliminary round, they will travel to Japan for the medal round.

The U.S. roster is expected to be a blend of up-and-coming prospects, veteran Minor Leaguers and Americans thriving in professional leagues outside the U.S., as Cardinals right-hander Erick Fedde did in Korea before returning to MLB this season.

Team USA won silver in the inaugural Premier12 in 2015, when a 21-year-old named Shohei Ohtani was honored as the tournament’s best pitcher. The U.S. barely missed the medal podium four years later, when Mexico claimed bronze with a 3-2 walk-off victory over the Americans.

Shōta Imanaga, Kodai Senga, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Seiya Suzuki and Masataka Yoshida helped Japan win gold five years ago, while Ha-Seong Kim and Jung-Hoo Lee starred as South Korea claimed silver.

The 2019 U.S. roster featured Alec Bohm, Jake Cronenworth, Tanner Houck, Brent Rooker and Daulton Varsho before they debuted in the Majors.

“At that time, they’re still finding their way,” Reagins said. “They’re not the finished product. You can see them elevating their game in big situations. These tournaments are high-intensity. These guys are starting to get used to that type of environment. Once you see guys perform in the heat of the moment, when it’s intense and it’s time to play, you can get a glimpse of what they might be three, four, five years down the line.

“That’s what’s cool about this amateur space and even some of the young Minor Leaguers. You see the talent level is there, but how are you going to perform when it’s on the line? When you see those type of guys break through, you go, ‘Wow, this can be a guy.’”

For that reason, Team USA will benefit from Reagins’ role overseeing operations of the Arizona Fall League. If a player needs to be replaced before the tournament begins, Reagins and his staff can choose from among those in competition mode at a unique time on the baseball calendar.

“Definitely the Arizona Fall League is a resource,” he said. “At that time of the year, pitchers are almost at their max in terms of what they’re slotted to do for the year, but there’s pitchers coming off injury that might need some extra work who can help us. You want to make sure you explore all of those options.”