Por Federico Leiva, CNN en Español

Los amantes del diamante están ante su gran fiesta de 2026. Desde este miércoles 4 de marzo, las 20 mejores selecciones de béisbol del planeta se medirán en el Clásico Mundial. Serán 13 días a puro bateo, carreras, outs y bases robadas. Una oportunidad inmejorable para ver antes de tiempo a Juan Soto, Shohei Ohtani y Aaron Judge, pero ahora defendiendo los colores de sus países de origen.

Para esta edición, el torneo se repartirá entre cuatro sedes: San Juan, Puerto Rico; Tokio, Japón; y Houston y Miami, ambas en Estados Unidos. Cada ciudad será escenario de uno de los cuatro grupos en los que fueron divididas las 20 selecciones clasificadas (cinco en cada zona).

Grupo A – Sede en San Juan, Puerto Rico

• Canadá
• Colombia
• Cuba
• Panamá
• Puerto Rico

Grupo B – Sede en Houston, Estados Unidos

• Brasil
• Gran Bretaña
• Italia
• México
• Estados Unidos

Grupo C – Sede en Tokio, Japón

• Australia
• Taiwán
• República Checa
• Japón
• Corea del Sur

Grupo D – Sede en Miami, Estados Unidos

• República Dominicana
• Israel
• Países Bajos
• Nicaragua
• Venezuela

El hecho de que los partidos se repartan entre Houston, Miami, San Juan y Tokio prácticamente garantiza 24 horas de puro béisbol, debido a la diferencia horaria entre los territorios. Eso sí, a partir de cuartos de final toda la acción se trasladará a Estados Unidos.

El formato de la competencia es simple: cada equipo jugará contra sus cuatro rivales de zona una vez, y al terminar, los dos mejores seleccionados de cada grupo clasificarán a los cuartos de final. Tanto los cuartos como las semifinales y la final se jugarán a partido único, con lo cual no hay margen de error: el que pierde se vuelve a casa.

Grupo A

4 de marzo – Taiwán vs. Australia (10 p.m., hora de Miami)

5 de marzo – República Checa vs. Corea del Sur (5 a.m. de Miami)

5 de marzo – Australia vs. República Checa (10 p.m. de Miami)

6 de marzo – Japón vs. Taiwán (5 a.m. de Miami)

6 de marzo – Taiwán vs. República Checa (10 p.m. de Miami)

7 de marzo – Corea del Sur vs. Japón (5 a.m. de Miami)

7 de marzo – Taiwán vs. Corea del Sur (10 p.m. de Miami)

8 de marzo – Australia vs. Japón (6 a.m. de Miami)

9 de marzo – Corea del Sur vs. Australia (6 a.m. de Miami)

10 de marzo – República Checa vs. Japón (6 a.m. de Miami)

Grupo B

6 de marzo – Cuba vs. Panamá (11 a.m. de Miami)

6 de marzo – Puerto Rico vs. Colombia (6 p.m. de Miami)

7 de marzo – Colombia vs. Canadá (11 a.m. de Miami)

7 de marzo – Panamá vs. Puerto Rico (6 p.m. de Miami)

8 de marzo – Colombia vs. Cuba (12 p.m. de Miami)

8 de marzo – Panamá vs. Canadá (7 p.m. de Miami)

9 de marzo – Colombia vs. Panamá (12 p.m. de Miami)

9 de marzo – Cuba vs. Puerto Rico (7 p.m. de Miami)

10 de marzo – Canadá vs. Puerto Rico (7 p.m. de Miami)

11 de marzo – Canadá vs. Cuba (3 p.m. de Miami)

Grupo C

6 de marzo – México vs. Gran Bretaña (1 p.m. de Miami)

6 de marzo – Estados Unidos vs. Brasil (8 p.m. de Miami)

7 de marzo &#

By Rocio Munoz, CNN

(CNN) — The US military began conducting operations with Ecuador targeting “designated terrorist organizations” in the Latin American country, the Pentagon announced Tuesday, marking a new front in the Trump administration’s efforts to curtail drug trafficking.

US Southern Command said in a statement that the actions represent “a powerful example of the commitment of partners in Latin America and the Caribbean to combat the scourge of narco-terrorism” and emphasized that both countries are taking “decisive action” against groups that it claims have sown violence and corruption across the hemisphere.

The announcement appears to mark an expansion of the Trump administration’s Operation Southern Spear, which has so far killed 151 people in strikes on alleged drug boats in the Eastern Pacific and Caribbean.

CNN has reached out to the White House for comment.

The Pentagon did not specify what the new operations would entail or which groups they would focus on. A short video posted to social media by US SOUTHCOM showed individuals boarding a helicopter.

Los Lobos and Los Choneros, two of Ecuador’s main criminal organizations, were designated as foreign terrorist organizations by the US State Department last September.

SOUTHCOM Commander Gen. Francis L. Donovan in a statement praised Ecuador’s armed forces for their “unwavering commitment” and “courage and resolve” in the fight against drug-trafficking.

Meanwhile, Ecuador’s Ministry of Defense said on social media Tuesday that a “new phase against narco-terrorism and illegal mining” had begun.

“The Ecuadorian Armed Forces will continue to firmly combat organized crime alongside strategic allies, for the security of Ecuadorians and the peaceful future of our families,” the ministry wrote on X.

The announcements come one day after Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa met with Donovan and other defense officials from both countries at the Government Palace in Quito to coordinate actions against transnational organized crime and strengthen hemispheric security.

According to the Ecuadorian presidency, the meeting addressed initiatives to strengthen controls, information sharing, and operational coordination at airports and ports.

Noboa’s administration has maintained a close relationship with Washington focused on security, through cooperation agreements and US interest in establishing a military base in Ecuador – a proposal that was rejected in a referendum last November.

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By Haley Britzky, Taylor Romine, CNN

(CNN) — Emotional tributes began to pour in after the identification of four US service members who perished in a deadly Iranian drone strike while serving in the port of Shuaiba in Kuwait, the first deaths in the large-scale operation against Iran.

While they all served as soldiers under the US Army Reserve, they played many roles, including a “heroic son” and a mother of two who “was almost home.”

The Pentagon identified four of the six US service members killed as Capt. Cody Khork, 35; Sgt. Declan Coady, 20; Sgt. 1st Class Nicole Amor, 39; and Sgt. 1st Class Noah Tietjens, 42. All four were assigned to the 103rd Sustainment Command, an Army Reserve sustainment unit out of Iowa. Two other soldiers who were killed in the strike haven’t yet been identified.

While these are the first American casualties in the large-scale operation launched by the US and Israel Saturday, President Donald Trump said Monday that the “big wave” against Iran is yet to come. Both the president and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said that more casualties are likely.

“They’re great people,” Trump said about the six troops who were killed in a phone interview with the Daily Mail. “And, you know, we expect that to happen, unfortunately. Could happen continuous — it could happen again.”

The soldiers were honored as “relentlessly, consistently, and fearlessly” serving the country, and making “the ultimate sacrifice,” Brig. Gen. Clint A. Barnes, deputy commanding general of the 1st Theater Sustainment Command, said in a release by the US Army Reserve on Tuesday.

1st Theater Sustainment Command is a stand-alone group based out of Fort Knox, Kentucky, composed of troops from units around the country who are assigned to support roles overseas in nine-month rotations.

The operations center was a triple-wide trailer with office space inside; the building was surrounded by concrete barriers that are typically used to protect military structures overseas from things like car bombs and improvised explosive devices, according to a source familiar. However, there was nothing overhead that could shield the building from drones or missiles.

There was no siren or warning ahead of the strike to give the troops time to take cover in a bunker, the source familiar said.

The four service members varied in careers, with titles ranging from Multiple Launch Rocket System/Fire Direction Specialist to Wheeled Vehicle Mechanic, but all dedicated themselves to public service thousands of miles away from their families despite the unmistakable risks.

Here is what we know about the US service members who took that risk.

Capt. Cody Khork

Khork, who was from Lakeland, Florida, enlisted in the National Guard in 2009 as a multiple launch rocket system/fire direction specialist. He commissioned as a military police officer in the Army Reserve in 2014, and deployed to Saudi Arabia; Guantanamo Bay, Cuba; and Poland.

Behind his sense of

By Jessie Yeung, Rhea Mogul, CNN

(CNN) — The latest Middle East conflict continues spiraling days after Israel and the US launched their joint operation on Iran, triggering retaliatory strikes on Israel and neighboring Gulf states and plunging the region into fear and uncertainty.

US and Israeli leaders have issued confident pronouncements that Iran’s military has been battered and is on the back foot. But Iranian missiles and drones keep coming, targeting American assets across the region, while US lawmakers back home remain divided on the war.

The war has disrupted global travel, stranded foreign nationals and families, and spiked global commodity prices. Meanwhile, the number of civilian deaths and casualties in Iran and Lebanon is climbing.

Here’s what to know on day five.

What’s happening in Iran?

• New strikes: Additional US-Israel strikes targeted another set of Iranian leaders, US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday. He praised the operation, claiming Iran’s military installations had been essentially “knocked out,” from its navy to its air force and more. Satellite images taken on Tuesday showed significant damage at Iranian government and military facilities, as well as a hospital.
• Death toll climbs: More than 1,000 people, including children, have been killed in Iran since Saturday, according to the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency. The group said its report is preliminary, and the number could rise.
• New supreme leader: A group of senior Iranian officials has been meeting virtually to select a new supreme leader after the initial US-Israel strikes killed Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, according to Iran’s semi-official Fars News Agency. Khamenei’s son, Mojtaba Khamenei, is among a small handful of clerics tipped as likely successors. But it’s unclear where they are, or even if they are alive.
• Traffic cameras: The Financial Times has revealed new details about that operation – including that Israel had hacked Tehran’s street security cameras, using them for years to build a complex surveillance system.

What’s happening around the region?

• Attacks on Lebanon: Israel is also striking Lebanon, targeting the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah and issuing evacuation orders for dozens of villages.
• Iran strikes back: Arab states in the Persian Gulf are bearing the brunt of Tehran’s ferocious retaliation. Countries such as Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, and Saudi Arabia have intercepted hundreds of missiles and drones in recent days – raising questions about how long their air defenses can keep up, and how many more weapons remain in Iran’s depleted arsenal. For decades, these countries have prepared for such a potential attack, arming themselves with American weapons and hosting American troops – even as they urged the Trump administration just weeks ago not to strike Iran.
• US facilities targeted: The US has closed embassies in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Lebanon, after several were hit with Iranian strikes. A CIA station in Saudi Arabia, and a US military base in Qatar – the largest in the Middle East – were also hit. Non-emergency US government personnel in several Middle Eastern countries have been ordered to leave.
• Toll on US forces: Six American service members have been killed by Iranian strikes since Saturday, a number Trump already warned is likely to increase. The Senate will vote as soon as Wednesday on a resolution requiring Trump get congressional approval to continue the military camp

By David Wright, CNN

(CNN) — Sen. John Cornyn and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton will advance to a May 26 runoff in the state’s Republican primary for US Senate, CNN’s Decision Desk projects, extending an expensive and divisive clash that has drawn wide national attention.

As he seeks a fifth term in the Senate, Cornyn is facing the greatest pressure of his political career over his standing in the GOP and his perceived loyalty to President Donald Trump. Paxton’s checkered personal history presents its own complications.

Neither Cornyn nor Paxton will surpass the 50 percent needed in Tuesday’s primary to avoid a runoff. US Rep. Wesley Hunt, who launched a Senate bid in October, will not advance.

Trump did not endorse a candidate prior to Tuesday’s primary. The president’s potential choice could be decisive in a runoff, with allies of both candidates expected to push the White House to limit damage to the eventual nominee as Democrats nationwide see a surge of enthusiasm.

And while Democrats haven’t won a statewide race in Texas since the 1990s, the party is emboldened heading into this fall’s midterms, having already flipped a longtime GOP-held state Senate seat in Fort Worth this year.

Why John Cornyn is under threat

Cornyn is a conservative with a long history in Texas Republican politics, serving on the state Supreme Court and as the state’s attorney general before his election to the Senate in 2002. He previously served as the Senate Republican whip and lost a bid for the top Senate leadership position in 2024 to Sen. John Thune of South Dakota.

But his relationship with President Donald Trump has been fractious at times. Notably, he criticized the president’s actions on January 6, 2021, calling Trump’s language around the riot “reckless.”

He has also fended off criticism from many state Republicans for his work with Democrats. He was booed at a Texas GOP convention in 2022 for his role in negotiating a gun safety package. Trump called him a “RINO” – a “Republican in name only” – on Truth Social.

In 2023, Trump predicted Cornyn would lose his next reelection campaign, linking him to someone far more critical of the president in public.

“Who is a worse Senator, John ‘The Stiff’ Cornyn of Texas, or Mitt ‘The Loser’ Romney of Massachusetts (Utah?)?” Trump wrote then on social media. “They are both weak, ineffective, and very bad for the Republican Party, and our Nation. With even modestly skilled opposition, they’ll lose their next Election.”

Romney declined to seek reelection in 2024. Cornyn pushed forward.

Ken Paxton enters the race

Many national Republicans and allies of Thune believe Cornyn is their safest bet on retaining the Senate seat in reliably red Texas. But Paxton, the three-term state attorney general, has a record of backing Trump – notably on his debunked claims of election fraud that preceded January 6 – and strong ties to the state Republican grassroots. Turning Point Action, an affiliate of the organization co-founded by Charlie Kirk, endorsed Paxton in the primary.

Paxton launched his campaign last April after years of open feuding with Cornyn. He has linked Cornyn to the “DC establishment” and promoted investigations his office launched against a development connected to a Dallas-area mosque, advocates for immigrants, and organizations with alleged ties to China’s Communist Party.

He and Hunt both ran hard against the veteran incumbent and criticized Cornyn’s efforts at bipartisanship during former President Joe Biden’s administration.

“Trump is right: p