In recent years, the Dominican Republic has become an escape route and a springboard for the promises of Cuban baseball that are looking for an opportunity in the Major Leagues of the United States. Christian Sáez left the Island this Tuesday, according to public Baseball FR!
“Generally they take out a tourist visa,” he explained to 14ymedio a sports source on the island who asked to remain anonymous.
In the Dominican Republic, athletes are looking for “a place to train and not lose rhythm,” player representative Carlos Pérez told this newspaper. Many athletes perform there “the process to achieve a residence in a third country and apply for free agency”, where they are presented to the scouts.
Sáez, just 14 years old, “is one of the most valued talents of his entire class in the world”, highlighted the journalist Francys Romero. Originally from Cienfuegos, the player is a “switch hitter, which doubles his value.” In the 2019 World Cup-12 he hit four “huge home runs and scored a average of .522 “, in addition to driving 14 runs, which placed him behind Taiwanese Huang Tien-Szu.
Sáez’s departure occurred a day before Granma publish your list of the nine most outstanding athletes of 2021, where there is no player. According to the publication, the characters that appear were “those chosen by the sports press.” The official media omitted to refer to the Cubans Orestes Minnie Miñoso and Tony Oliva, who were recently included in the Cooperstown Hall of Fame.
Sáez’s departure occurred one day before Granma published its list of the nine most outstanding athletes of 2021, where there are no players
The Dominican city of Quisqueya will be the basis for Sáez to be eligible for a promoter or team that could continue preparing him to be a free agent. The player joins the athletes Rafael Alvarez Y Cristian de Jesus Lopez, who are already in the Dominican Republic.
On December 6, outfielder Dariam Gutiérrez was hired by the Philadelphia Phillies, for which he received a $ 20,000 bonus. The player fled Cuba in 2020 and was training in Quisqueya with the Jesús Mateo Academy.
In 2019 Andy Marlon Pérez took the same route to leave the island. The Havana-born confirmed this Wednesday that he will sign next January 15 with the MLB Washington Nationals team. Just on November 1, the athlete had been declared a free agent.
Maikel Miñoso, from Matanzas, also left the island in 2019. A relative of Orestes Minnie Miñoso, he remained in the Dominican Republic for three years, until he was chosen by the Canadian team Toronto Blue Jays, which he will join in January of the following year.
Lázaro Morales is another prospect who left Cuba via this Caribbean country. The 17-year-old was training with at the MVP Sports Academy when he was told that he was wanted by the San Francisco Giants’ ninth. This Wednesday he signed with the Californian team.
________________________
Collaborate with our work:
The team of 14ymedio He is committed to doing serious journalism that reflects the reality of deep Cuba. Thank you for joining us on this long road. We invite you to continue supporting us, but this time becoming a member of our journal. Together we can continue transforming journalism in Cuba.
