The Florida Gators led the nation with three representatives on USA Baseball’s 2026 Collegiate National Team roster, which was finalized Sunday. Right-handed pitchers Jackson Barberi, Aidan King and Joshua Whritenour each earned a spot on the 28-man squad.
Florida’s 2026 trio marks the fourth time the program has had at least three representatives on the Collegiate National Team, joining the 2005, 2015 and 2016 squads.
Barberi, King and Whritenour are set to compete in the inaugural World Collegiate Baseball Championship at Taichung City Intercontinental Baseball Stadium in Taichung, Taiwan, from July 11-15. The roster was finalized following 11 days of workouts, practices and intrasquad scrimmages across North Carolina and Virginia.
“After nearly two weeks of an extremely competitive Training Camp, we are excited to finalize the 28-man roster that will represent the United States in the inaugural World Collegiate Baseball Championship,” said Eric Campbell, USA Baseball’s General Manager of Professional and Collegiate National Teams. “The talent at Training Camp was incredible and made this decision difficult, but we are confident that these 28 players will represent the U.S. well in our quest to win a gold medal.”
Over the course of Collegiate National Team Training Camp, Barberi, King and Whritenour combined to throw 11 innings of one-run ball, posting a 0.82 ERA. The trio allowed just five hits and four walks while striking out 13 batters.
Tying for the most appearances at CNT Training Camp, Barberi logged three innings across three relief outings. He allowed one run on one hit and one walk while striking out one batter, finishing with a 3.00 ERA and 0.67 WHIP.
King, who served as Florida’s ace and was named the 2026 SEC Pitcher of the Year, tossed five scoreless innings with nine strikeouts while allowing just four hits and one walk.
Whritenour also made three relief appearances during CNT Training Camp, turning in three no-hit, scoreless innings. He walked two and struck out three, posting a 0.67 WHIP.
21 schools and five conferences are represented on the 2026 Collegiate National Team roster, with Florida leading the way as the only program to place three players on the team. The Southeastern Conference (SEC) leads all conferences with 15 athletes on the roster, followed by the Big Ten (six), Big 12 (four), Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) (two) and Sun Belt Conference (one).
- July 11; USA vs. Korea (pool play); Intercontinental Stadium (Taichung City, Taiwan); 12:30 a.m. ET/12:30 p.m. local
- July 12; Chinese Taipei vs. USA (pool play); Intercontinental Stadium (Taichung City, Taiwan); 6:30 a.m. ET/6:30 p.m. local
- July 13; Japan vs. USA (pool play); Intercontinental Stadium (Taichung City, Taiwan); 12:30 a.m. ET/12:30 p.m. local
- July 14; WCBC semifinals; Intercontinental Stadium (Taichung City, Taiwan); 12:30 a.m. ET/12:30 p.m. local OR 6:30 a.m. ET/6:30 p.m. local
- July 15; WCBC finals; Intercontinental Stadium (Taichung City, Taiwan); 12:30 a.m. ET/12:30 p.m. local OR 6:30 a.m. ET/6:30 p.m. local