All eyes in the baseball world have been on the sport's premier international championship, and a former member of the Valparaiso University baseball program was right in the midst of it this past weekend.
 
A 2019 Valpo alum, Chase Dawson (Chesterton, Ind. / Andrean) led off and played left field for Team Nicaragua in the squad's four-game run in Pool D of the World Baseball Classic at loanDepot park in Miami.
 
"It was exactly what I dreamed of," Dawson said. "I didn't think it was a possibility until about a year ago. I went to the pre-classic in Taiwan with the team and they said it was looking good that I could be in the World Baseball Classic. It felt too good to be true, as camp came around, I was like, 'Holy cow, I'm going to do this.'"
 
In his first game of the event on Friday, Dawson led off for Nicaragua against a Dominican Republic team that had three-time MLB All-Star and former National League home run leader Fernando Tatis Jr. leading off. In Nicaragua's final game on Monday against Venezuela, Dawson led off for one team and five-time All-Star and former NL MVP Ronald Acuna Jr. did so for the other. Dawson also played against the likes of four-time All-Star and former batting champion Juan Soto, seven-time All-Star Manny Machado and five-time All-Star and former MLB home run leader Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
 
"You play against these future Hall of Famers, but once you get into the games, you settle in," Dawson said. "It turns into another baseball game. Once the game begins, it's still 60 feet, six inches and your instincts and hard work take over."
 
The manager of Team Nicaragua was three-time NL Manager of the Year and World Series winning manager Dusty Baker, who managed the San Francisco Giants (1993-2002), Chicago Cubs (2003-2006), Cincinnati Reds (2008-2013), Washington National (2016-2017) and Houston Astros (2020-2023) during his legendary career, compiling the seventh-most managerial victories in big league history.
 
"Playing for Dusty was even better than advertised," Dawson said. "The knowledge that he has is incredible. Every day, he had a story. Every day, he made me laugh. I felt so free playing for him. He said we're there to hit and we're there to make plays. I didn't feel tense playing for him; I felt like I got to play my game. I'd run through a wall for that guy."
 
Dawson, a product of Andrean High School and Northwest Indiana native, was a longtime member of the Schaumburg Boomers of the independent Frontier League from 2019-2025. Three and a half years ago, he began playing in the Nicaraguan Winter League, a choice that started his path to joining the national team.
 
"I got a text message asking if I wanted to play in the winter league, and at the time I didn't know anything about it," Dawson said. "My dad really pushed me to try it, and I went out there. I didn't know if it was safe; I didn't know anything. When I got out there, I was still nervous as I was the only American on the team and one of two Americans in the whole league. The next thing you know, it kind of became home. I got close with the coaching staff and players. I ended up loving that place almost more than anywhere else."
 
The manager of his winter league team was the manager of the national team at that time, Sandor Guido, and he and Dawson formed a close bond.
 
"He invited me to join the national team, and for the WBC qualifier, we got my residency," Dawson said. "I was there long enough that it qualified me to play for Nicaragua in the qualifier, and that qualified me to play in the WBC. It was an honor that they liked me enough to want me to represent their country."
 
Dawson helped Team Nicaragua qualify for the WBC, but the group dropped all four WBC games to Venezuela, the Dominican Republic, Israel and the Netherlands, and did not make it out of Pool D to advance to the quarterfinal round. However, the opportunity to compete on that stage alongside players with whom he has developed close friendships was one Dawson cherished.
 
"Years ago when I first came to Nicaragua, it was a little uncomfortable," Dawson said. "Now, some of the guys on the WBC team have been my teammates for three years. You're with them for 10 hours a day for three years. There's such a mutual respect. You're working hard with guys for hours with the same goal in mind. It's hard to explain, but it's very powerful to develop a close relationship with someone when you don't speak the same language. They were all so welcoming and great to be around."
 
When reached by ValpoAthletics.com on Tuesday morning, Dawson was at the airport catching his flight home to Northwest Indiana. Although he has some offers on the table, Dawson has not decided upon the next stop in his baseball journey. After nearly three straight years of travel and baseball, he plans to spend the next few weeks resting up, seeing friends and family and deciding upon his next steps.
 
A member of the 2016 Horizon League All-Freshman Team and 2019 All-Missouri Valley Conference Second Team, Dawson has fond memories at Valpo and recognizes the role his time donning the brown and gold played in shaping his baseball journey.
 
"I've always given credit to (Valpo head coach Brian) Schmack, because I went into college as an amateur baseball player," Dawson said. "I was talented and I worked hard – or at least I thought I worked hard at the time – but Schmack and the staff showed me what it was like to be a professional. They paved the way for me to have a future in baseball and even after baseball. I'm very grateful, I've been blessed."