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Tigers' Hao-Yu Lee pulled from World Baseball Classic with injury
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- Tigers' Hao-Yu Lee pulled from World Baseball Classic with injury
LAKELAND, FL – The World Baseball Classic is over before it began for Hao-Yu Lee .
The Detroit Tigers ' prospect was removed Wednesday, March 4, from Team Chinese Taipei's roster in the 2026 WBC due to a left oblique strain. The roster move happened the same day as the first game of pool play for Team Chinese Taipei, kickstarting the 20-team international tournament.
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An MRI confirmed the left oblique strain.
"I'm really looking forward to the WBC," Lee said Feb. 26, following his last game in spring training before leaving the Tigers to participate in the event. "I'm getting ready to play a full game there."
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Detroit Tigers infielder Hao-Yu Lee smiles as he walks towards the practice field during spring training at TigerTown in Lakeland, Fla. on Sunday, Feb. 15, 2026.
As a result of the injury, Lee will return to Lakeland – home of the Tigers' spring training complex – for further evaluation.
Lee – a right-handed hitter who plays second and third base – is traveling from Tokyo, which is the location for Pool C in the WBC, featuring Japan, Australia, South Korea, Czechia and Chinese Taipei.
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"It's obviously a very difficult decision to make," Lee said, explaining his decision to leave the Tigers for the WBC. "Both the opportunity [with the Tigers] and the WBC is extremely important to me right now."
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The 23-year-old is the Tigers' No. 6 prospect, according to MLB Pipeline .
Lee spent all of the 2025 season with Triple-A Toledo, hitting .243 with 14 home runs, 65 walks (11.2% walk rate) and 121 strikeouts (20.9% strikeout rate) in 126 games, posting a .748 OPS. He also made 60 starts at third base, 54 at second and 12 at designated hitter.
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He hit .299 with a .919 OPS in 124 plate appearances against lefties, which is his best role moving forward, compared to just .228 with a .702 OPS in 455 plate appearances against righties.
Lee has a track record of success against left-handed pitchers at the upper-levels of the minor leagues, but he is still waiting for his top skill to be tested at the highest level.
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The Tigers acquired Lee from the Philadelphia Phillies in the Michael Lorenzen trade in August 2023 . He then joined the Tigers' 40-man roster in mid-November 2025 , protecting him from the Rule 5 draft in December.
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Lee is expected to make his MLB debut at some point in the 2026 season.
Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him @EvanPetzold .
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Tigers prospect Hao-Yu Lee injury: World Baseball Classic
