Under the bright lights of Houston’s Daikin Park, Alabama State player Caio Araujo stepped onto the mound for Brazil in the 2026 World Baseball Classic and made history on several fronts.
The 6-foot-2, 225-pound right-hander from Indaiatuba, Brazil, entered in relief during Brazil’s Pool B matchup against Italy on March 7, facing a daunting lineup in a game that ended in an 8-0 defeat.
But that wasn’t the story. Araujo is the only Brazilian-born NCAA Division I baseball player in the WBC and the first to represent Alabama State.
Araujo allowed two runs in the eighth—including a towering homer by Italy’s Dante Nori.
But for Araujo, representing Brazil goes beyond the box score or individual performance.
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From HBCU to WBC
Araujo’s journey to the WBC began far from Montgomery, helping Brazil claim bronze at the 2015 Pan American Games before dominating at John Wood Community College as a two-time JUCO All-American.
There, he logged a 6-5 record with 87 strikeouts in 73.2 innings. Transferring to Alabama State, the physical education major redshirted in 2025 due to an arm injury but rebounded brilliantly in 2024.
He posted a 3-1 record, 2.48 ERA, 40 strikeouts, one save, and earned SWAC Pitcher of the Week honors after fanning four at Bethune-Cookman and tossing four scoreless frames in a win at Auburn.
Upcoming tests include Mexico on March 9 and Great Britain on March 10, with the top two teams advancing to the knockout rounds.
Araujo called the honor to play for Brazil “a dream to play in the World Baseball Classic and represent my country on the big stage.”
He isn’t the only SWAC baseball player carrying the flag for his country.
Justin Morales, a 21-year-old native of Aruba – which is part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands — was taken aback by the idea of possibly facing the likes of Fernando Tatis Jr., Juan Soto, and Ronald Acuna Jr. — the biggest stars in baseball.
Bethune Cookman’s Justin Morales has officially made the starting rotation for the Kingdom of the Netherlands
pic.twitter.com/RVoZAMmnsN
— 11Point7 College Baseball (@11point7) February 6, 2026
“It will be my best against their best,” Morales, who has previous international pitching experience, told NCAA.com, “and hopefully I will come out on top.”
At Bethune-Cookman last season, he went 3-4 with a 6.38 ERA in 14 games for the SWAC champions. He has a 6.00 ERA in four relief appearances this spring for B-CU, with one save.
