In the last 72 hours, players Edelvis Pérez, Ernesto Santi and Roberto Peña have left Cuba. According to journalist Francys Romero, the three boarded flights to the Dominican Republic. “The current political and economic situation continues to encourage young talents and their families to seek new paths outside the Island,” published the communicator in FR Baseball!
The sport, declared in 2021 Cuban cultural heritageis taking a “beating” for the defections and the various requests for withdrawal of athletes from the Cuban teams. “The National Series is feeling very closely the fateful result of this migration,” Romero stressed.
The image of the mythical Latin American Stadium in Havana, almost empty, is the most representative of this crisis. He shared it on Wednesday on your Facebook account the reporter of Granma Aliet Arzola Lima.
“There are barely 100 people counting custodians, peanut vendors, press, commissioners, players banned from playing today and police officers.” That day Industriales and Granma played, but the match between “the flagship team of Cuban baseball and the national champion” did not attract fans. “The picture of a sport considered Patrimony of the Nation is unfortunate”, he concluded.
The journalist Mario Luis Reyes, based in Madrid (Spain), commented in Arzola’s publication that “the extremely rigid and centralized Cuban political and economic system is a failure” and everything else is its consequence. “Moving baseball players and other athletes throughout that Island would not have to be unsustainable. The only thing unsustainable there is the system and each one of the last 30 years has shown it.”
Francys Romero assured that Cuban baseball is the protagonist of “an uneven tournament, old and without an audience” and lamented that “what used to be a tournament full of glitter now seems to be an old Development League compared to world talent.”
The lack of expectations on the island pushed the pitcher Edelvis Pérez right to travel to the Dominican Republic. The athlete participated in seven games of the National Under-18 Youth Championship with Sancti Spíritus. He has arm power and his pitches average 90 miles.
Left-handed outfielder Ernesto Santi had an acceptable performance in the last National Series with Granma. in 137 innings made only one mistake. With these two athletes, “they have already exceeded more than 150 players who have come out in the last two years,” according to data collected by Romero.
Before these young people, Roberto Peña left Cuba. He was one of the members of the Under-15 team in 2022 during the Premundial in Venezuela, then in the World Cup of the category that took place in Mexico, where they obtained second place.
With the departure of Peña, there are 11 U-15 players who have emigrated from the island in less than a year. Before this man from Granma, Alejandro Prieto, Segian Pérez, Ernest Machado, Dulieski Ferrán, Alex Acosta, Jonathan Valle , Christian de Jesus Zamora, Ronald Terrero, Danel Reyes and Yosniel Menendez.
Others are preparing their suitcases to emigrate. Last Wednesday the commentator Dairon Perez Urbano confirmed that the player of the Villa Clara team, Magdiel Gómez, requested the withdrawal from baseball.
The pitcher Alexander Valiente also requested his discharge, he made it public on his social networks. “I have decided not to play anymore for now, please don’t ask me for explanations.”
“This young man has very good speed, and according to the specialists, a great talent that he will have to mold if he decides to continue his career in other leagues or at another level”, public by the rubber. “The truth of all this is that the casualties of athletes are becoming quite common, especially in baseball, where the relationship (Quality-Remuneration-Inflation) is undoubtedly the biggest trigger.”
________________________
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 accompanying us on this long road. We invite you to continue supporting us, but this time becoming a member of our newspaper. Together we can continue transforming journalism in Cuba.
