FORT MYERS, Fla. – The Red Sox might be sending one of their brightest young stars to the World Baseball Classic after all.

Roman Anthony will undergo an intake physical on Saturday to determine if he’s eligible to join Team USA for next month’s tournament. As first reported by the Boston Globe’s Tim Healey, Anthony would replace Arizona Diamondbacks star Corbin Carroll, one of three major leagues sidelined by hamate injuries this week.

The Red Sox outfielder was one of Team USA’s top choices, a source told the Herald. So, too, was left-hander Garrett Crochet, who isn’t participating in the triennial tournament.

The expectation that Team USA, which lost the ’23 tournament to Japan, will again make another deep run this year, contributed to Anthony’s initial decision to abstain. Team USA’s first game of the tournament is March 6 in Houston, and the championship game is March 17 in Miami. The Red Sox open the 2026 season in Cincinnati on Thursday, March 26.

The Red Sox had 14 major and minor league players spread out across 13 of 20 WBC teams when rosters were announced last week, including Masataka Yoshida, who will try to win gold with Team Japan for the second consecutive tournament. Jarren Duran is back on Team Mexico after playing for them in 2023, while Brayan Bello and Ceddanne Rafaela are set to make their respective WBC debuts for Team Dominican Republic and Team Netherlands, and lefty Jovani Morán is on Team Puerto Rico. Team Italy, which will have Red Sox righty Greg Weissert on its roster, also tried to recruit Anthony.

The club’s heaviest presence is on Team Venezuela, which will have right-fielder Wilyer Abreu, first baseman Willson Contreras and left-hander Ranger Suárez. Catcher Carlos Narváez also wanted to represent Venezuela, but was one of several players around the league to be denied insurance due to injury history. (Narváez underwent meniscus surgery in October.)

If Anthony passes his physical, he won’t be the only Red Sox player on Team USA. Earlier this winter, veteran right-hander Garrett Whitlock was in bed watching football when he sent what he thought was a spam call to a voicemail. It turned out to be Team USA manager Mark DeRosa, who asked the righty to give him a call back.

“I’ve wanted to do this since I was a kid, play for any of the USA teams,” Whitlock said, “and was never good enough to have that opportunity. So the fact that they asked me this time, I was honored.”

“I remember just hanging up the phone call and just kind of like, leaning back in bed and just looking at my wife,” Whitlock said, “being like, ‘Oh my gosh, is that real, or did I just dream that?’ “