Houston Astros prospect Shay Whitcomb will make his World Baseball Classic (WBC) debut next week for South Korea, the country of his mother's birth, and it didn't take long for the 27-year-old to start appreciating the opportunity at hand. "It's an honor. I feel very blessed to be able to take part," Whitcomb told reporters after practice at Kyocera Dome on Sunday, the eve of South Korea's tuneup game against the Hanshin Tigers. Whitcomb, along with a handful of other U.S.-based players, joined the national team earlier Sunday. "Everyone's awesome. The coaches are awesome," Whitcomb added. "I've been really enjoying getting to meet everybody." The WBC has a loose set of eligibility rules and allows players to represent the country of birth for one of their parents, even if the players themselves weren't born there. South Korea initially selected four such players, with Whitcomb joined by Detroit Tigers outfielder Jahmai Jones, Seattle Mariners pitcher Dane Dunning and St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Riley O'Brien. O'Brien has since been dropped due to injury. "I think we were all excited, an