Cuba is running out of players. In 45 days six youth athletes left the Island in search of an opportunity in the Major League Baseball of the United States (MLB). This Wednesday the departure of Rafael Álvarez, who is already in the Dominican Republic, was confirmed.
The 16-year-old “is one of the most advanced talents in his category with the bat,” says journalist Francys Romero. Indeed, in 2020, official media He was highlighted as “one of the promises on the Island” after remaining as the home run leader in the national championship in the 15-16 category.
Álvarez, like several of the Cuban prospects, see their continuity in teams of the National Series limited. “Outside they have greater possibilities and a better future as players according to their potential,” said Cuban agent Carlos Pérez. “In Cuba they are always the same, there is no growth.”
The player, originally from Granma, “has speed, defense and arm, so he can be considered a prospect close to the five tools,” said Romero. “Enter a stage of physical preparation before being presented to scouts“.
For the regime, 2021 will be the year of dropouts. The departure of Rafael Álvarez joins that of the prospect Luis Jesús Quesada, who with his flight, on November 19, extinguished the celebrations for the Day of Physical Culture and Sports and the official speech of “the essence of a power world sports “, as well as Darlin Jiménez and Gustavo Urgellés. The youth players are in Colombia, where they joined the group of players represented by Carlos Pérez from Havana and are waiting for the talent evaluators.
The departure of Rafael Álvarez joins that of the prospect Luis Jesús Quesada, who with his escape, on November 19, turned off the celebrations for the Day of Physical Culture and Sports
The main route for the athletes to leave has been the Dominican Republic, and this is what Luis Antonio Pérez Hemmings did. A native of Las Tunas, the player had been included by the National Baseball Commission within the Talent Development Program, despite which he only had three opportunities within the ninth of the Lumberjacks.
“With so little horizon of opportunity and reduced possibilities of economic remuneration, this 19-year-old talent preferred to go to the Dominican municipality of Quisqueya,” said Romero.
Before Antonio Pérez, Cristian de Jesús López’s departure from Cuba in October shook manager Eriel Sánchez’s troops even more. The youth was on the shortlist for the First Junior Pan American Games that is currently taking place in Colombia. The 19-year-old hitter went through the process of attaining a third-country residency, applying to be a free agent, and then appearing before scouts and MLB teams.
The massive flight of the players began at the end of May, when the team that participated in the Baseball Pre-Olympic in Florida registered three casualties: second baseman César Prieto, pitchers Lázaro Blanco and Andy Rodríguez, as well as team psychologist Jorge Sile Figueroa .
In September, during the U-23 World Championship, the Cuban government suffered the greatest bleeding in the history of the sport with the escape of 12 players. With these defections, only 12 athletes remain in the delegation of the Island called for the event.
The authorities insisted on holding the United States responsible for the players’ abandonment. The National Institute of Sports, Physical Education and Recreation (Inder) accused the blocking of the agreement between the Cuban Baseball Federation and the MLB of stimulating “the trafficking of athletes in defense of political interests.”
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