On Friday, Japan vs. Chinese Taipei meet in a 2026 WBC pool play matchup as the first week of the 2026 World Baseball Classic gets underway.
It’s the first game of the 2026 WBC for defending WBC champion Japan, while Taipei is 0-1 after a loss to Australia on Wednesday night to start Pool C play. The Japan-Taipei Pool C Friday game from Tokyo, Japan, is set for 5:00 a.m. on FS1.
Below, we’ll break down our Japan vs Taipei prediction and picks for Friday morning’s game. Make your World Baseball Classic picks on PrizePicks and earn real money if you’re right, including on game winners, run lines, and the WBC champion.
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Japan vs. Chinese Taipei Prediction, Run Line, Over/Under
The 20-team World Baseball Classic features four five-team groups with the top two in each group qualifying for the knockout round after round-robin play.
This game will start the tournament for Japan, the favorite to win Pool C, while Chinese Taipei (or Taiwan) will need a win to stay in the hunt to win the pool.
Japan and Taipei have met three previous times in the World Baseball Classic, with Japan winning all three matchups. The two countries also met three times in the 2024 WBSC Premier12, where Japan won in each of the first two rounds, before Taipei won 4-0 in the Championship match, which was the last time the two met.
Japan vs Taipei Winner, Run Line, Over/Under
Japan enters Wednesday's game at 5 a.m. ET as the favorite, returning a 1.08x payout on PrizePicks Team Picks if they win.
Chinese Taipei is the underdog with a 7.14x payout if they win, via PrizePicks Team Picks, where you can earn money with your picks in 34 states.
- Run Line: Japan -2.5 (1.31x payout)
- Over/Under: 8.5 (1.69x payout on over)
- Game Winner Payout: Japan 1.05x | Chinese Taipei 7.69x
Team Picks data is live at the time of writing and is subject to change.
Japan vs. Chinese Taipei Prediction on Winner for 2026 WBC
Here are the key stats to know before locking in your Japan vs. Chinese Taipei prediction on the winner for Friday, March 5, on PrizePicks.
Japan and Chinese Taipei have met three previous times in the WBC, with Japan winning all three games.
Team Japan Preview vs. Chinese Taipei
- Japan has won three of the five World Baseball Classic titles, winning the first two in 2006 and 2009, and then the last in 2023.
- Japan is 29-8 all-time in the WBC, with three titles and two losses in the semifinal round.
- Dodgers SP Yoshinobu Yamamoto is the projected starter for Japan.
- The Dodgers' RHP was 12-8, with a 2.49 ERA in 30 starts in the regular season, and went 5-1 in six appearances (five starts) in the postseason, earning World Series MVP honors, winning three games in the Fall Classic.
- Team Japan features a record nine Major League players, along with 10 members from the previous championship-winning roster.
- Four-time MLB MVP Shohei Ohtani headlines the Japan lineup of hitters. Ohtani, who helped the Dodgers to the last two World Series Championships, was the MVP of the 2023 WBC, helping Japan to its third title.
Team Chinese Taipei Preview vs. Japan
- Chinese Taipei has failed to advance past the first round in four of the previous five WBC tournaments, advancing only in 2013 from Pool B before losing to Japan in the second round.
- Chinese Taipei is 5-10 all-time in the World Baseball Classic.
- The team dropped its WBC opener, 3-0, to Australia, despite being favorites in that game.
- Chinese Taipei won the most recent matchup between the two countries in the championship of the 2024 WBSC Premier12.
- P Hao-Chun Cheng is the projected starter for Taipei. He played for CTBC Brothers of the Chinese Baseball League in 2025, going 5-1 with a 1.49 ERA in 11 starts.
- Former MLB player Yu Chang anchors a Taipei lineup. Chang played for Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Tampa Bay, and Boston over a 5-year career.
Make Japan vs. Chinese Taipei Picks on PrizePicks
Can Japan start its quest for a fourth WBC title with an early pool-play win over Chinese Taipei? Or will Taipei pull an upset and serve notice that the 2026 WBC might be different?
The Japan vs. Chinese Taipei game from Tokoyo, Japan, is at 5:00 a.m. on FS1, as Japan seeks its first win in Pool C.
You can make your Japan vs. Chinese Taipei picks on PrizePicks and PrizePicks Team Picks to earn real money. Just pick players, predict More or Less on their projected stats, and cash in if you’re correct. With Team Picks, make predictions on winners, run lines, and teams to win the tournament, now available in 34 states.
Stick around with the Playbook for continued WBC predictions, picks, and news every day.
