Many papers are reporting that Pedro Martinez and Billy Wagner have withdrawn from the World Baseball Classic, Pedro for medical reasons and Wagner because he wants to spend more time with his new teammates. This is good news for the Mets on both counts, and I only wish the rest of the Mets' players on WBC rosters would follow suit.
The WBC is a nice idea but I think the risks far outweigh the potential rewards. If one superstar player goes down with an injury in this tournament then it's hard to believe the whole WBC will have a black cloud hanging over it. I am usually in favor of progression and change in the face of stagnation, but having ballplayers going all-out in the name of national pride when they should be shaping up in spring training is a crapshoot that I'm really not willing to invest in.
Kudos to Wags and Pedro for pulling out for their respective reasons. It's a smart move for them and I'm sure a big relief to ownership, as well as the fans who pour their money and their hearts into their favorite team. The WBC is not a terrible idea, it just has terrible timing.