CDMX, Mexico. – The Cuban baseball player Cionel Perezwho currently plays for the Baltimore Orioles, made it clear on Twitter why he refused to respond to the call from the Cuban Baseball Federation.
In recent days, the call for Cuban baseball players residing abroad to the national team for the World Classic was announced. Pérez was one of those who received the invitation, but immediately turned it down.
in your account Twitter The young man from Matanzas wrote: “I have just seen a publication with comments from people who are very biased by a doctrine of more than 60 years. I choose not to participate because of a government that called me a traitor, a country-seller, a worm and more when I left Cuba.”
This answer where he explains the reasons for his refusal came after the complete Swing blog published a note last Thursday. In it, they exposed Cionel Pérez’s publication, where he announced that he would not respond to the call and that he had “left the communists out.” In the comments section of the blog, specialized in sports, several users judged the player’s decision.
Why do I have to play for a government that censors all MLB games? Why can’t my family in Cuba watch me play in my regular season? Ah, but now, since it is convenient for one to represent that dictatorship, they forgot everything they said about me, ”questioned the athlete.
sport and politics
Pérez, who finished the season with a 1.40 ERA, expressed disagreement with the idea that sports and politics are not related. “INDER is another ram of the leaders and I am not going to represent it.”
The pitcher closed his thread by saying: “And I want to clarify, I am Cuban, I feel for my people, I also suffer from everything that is happening in Cuba, I have a family, I have grandparents, I have uncles and I have cousins who still live in that jail. Saying no to representing my country hurts my soul, but I have my moral values very clear.”
Recently the veteran from Pinar del Río Yuniesky Maya, who plays in the Professional Baseball League of the Dominican Republic, also rejected the call of the Cuban Baseball Federation. On the other hand, Yoenis Céspedes and Luis Robert did agree to the invitation.
Cionel, the 26-year-old lefty, pitched 57.2 innings in 66 outings. He finished his best season with seven wins, one loss and one save. He struck out 55 and surpassed 100 in his MLB career.
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