The team described the incident as “a deliberate looting that left several players in a situation of total helplessness.”
MIAMI, United States. – The National Baseball Series match between the Crocodiles of Matanzas and the Toros of Camagüey, scheduled for this Tuesday, November 26, was suspended after a massive robbery in the Yumurino team area that left several players without their playing equipment and personal belongings.
The decision was made after the team itself described as “a regrettable and unacceptable incident of theft within the stadium facilities, a cowardly act that has violated the safety and integrity” of the athletes.
The team explained that “during the preparations prior to the match, unscrupulous individuals accessed the dugout and locker room of the Crocodiles of Matanzas” and described the incident as “a deliberate looting that left several players in a situation of total helplessness.”
The statement details that the thieves took a good part of the players’ work tools, as well as their personal belongings. “Batting equipment, personalized gloves with years of use, protectors, sports shoes, mobile phones, wallets and personal effects of incalculable sentimental value were stolen. Some athletes were left literally with nothing, only the uniform they were wearing for the warm-up,” the text states.
Given this situation, the management of the Crocodiles and the sports authorities chose to cancel the clash against Camagüey. According to the statement, “prioritizing the emotional state and well-being of the affected players, the management of the Matanzas team, in consensus with the sports authorities, made the only possible decision: the suspension of the match.”
The note adds that “an athlete cannot be asked to go out on the playing field to give his best when he has just been the victim of a violation of his most private space and has lost his work tools and most essential belongings.”
Likewise, it emphasizes that the impact of theft goes beyond material loss. “This incident transcends the mere theft of objects. It is a stab at the trust and sportsmanship that governs our ball. The dugout, that sanctuary where strategies and camaraderie are forged, was defiled. The outrage is not only because of the material, but because of the message that this act sends: an absolute lack of respect towards the men who dedicate their lives to entertaining and making a people proud.”
In the same statement, the team expresses its expectation that the authorities will act: “From here we hope that the investigation into this incident will be exhaustive and those responsible will be brought to justice.” Furthermore, it adds that it is “imperative that protection mechanisms be immediately reviewed and strengthened,” although it does not specify what specific measures should be adopted.
Sports journalist Yasel Porto confirmed later the events and specified that the assailants “broke the blinds” of the area where the players’ belongings were located to access the briefcases. According to Porto himself, the subseries between Matanzas and Camagüey must continue with a double day on Thursday, to recover the suspended match.
As for the exact place where the robbery occurred, there are contradictory versions in the sports press. Cuban Diary places the incident “in the Camagüey stadium”, where the game was to be played. On the other hand, the specialized portal Full Swing states that “the Victoria de Girón stadium [en Matanzas] “It was the seat of the unwanted experience.”
The statement released by The Yumurina Band On Facebook it only talks about “the stadium facilities” and does not explicitly identify the square.
own Full Swing remember that the Industriales team previously suffered a similar theft during a visit to Santiago de Cuba in the III Cuban Elite Baseball League and mentions another recent case in which a Mayabeque pitcher was detained as a suspect after the loss of several cell phones of his teammates.
