Cuban pitcher Juan Sebastián Contreras arrived in the United States and, after spending the weekend in custody in Arizona, was released. This Monday he is heading to Florida to meet with part of his family. According to Full Swing“his immediate goal is to achieve the necessary documentation to pursue a career in professional baseball” in the Major Leagues.
On the Island he was unable to play in any national competition. The sanction was imposed after seeing his attempt to escape by boat frustrated last June. This athlete originally from Camagüey was arrested along with boxer Andy Cruzpublished the same specialized medium.
Contreras, 23 years old, did not see a future on the island, so he made the necessary arrangements to undertake the journey through the route of the volcanoes. After two weeks of touring, he achieved the American dream.
On the Island Juan Sebastián Contreras was disabled to play in any national competition
Possessor of an exceptional curve and a straight line that exceeds 90 miles, last February he was recognized as the Most valuable Player in the LXI National Baseball Series. In March, the official media Granma he dedicated a space to him in which he highlighted a “superb” baseball player who at his young age had earned a prominent place in the Bulls.
Contreras absorbed the advice of two of his main mentors, José Manuel Cortina and Pedro Luis Lazo from Pinar del Río, and showed his talent since his debut in 2017. He participated in five National Baseball Series, all with Camagüey. In 40 games he broke his record to nine wins and five losses, with a 4.77 earned run average.
With the signing in 2019 of Yariel Rodríguez by the Chunichi Dragons in Japan and the loss of the Toros del pitcher Yosimar Cousin and his subsequent departure for the Dominican Republic in January, Contreras was the natural referent of Camagüey, but his attempt to abandon him placed him as a “traitor” with no place on the Island.
Juan Sebastián Contreras will require “good technical advice to improve his control, the main problem he had in the National Series,” he warned Full Swing.
Contreras joins the unprecedented exodus of players. On Saturday Leodan Reyes left for the Dominican Republic. Originally from Pinar del Río, at 22 years old he impressed with his fastball that reaches 94 miles. In the past U-23 World Cup, he got 7.2 innings and seven strikeoutspublic FR Baseball!
In recent months there has been a flight of experienced pitchers, the most recent being Norge Luis Vera, considered one of the best in the National Series of all time, who this Monday was reunited with his family in the US.
With Vera’s departure, the Island lost a veteran athlete who won the gold medal in the Athens 2004 Olympic Games and silver in Sydney 2000 and Beijing 2008, in addition to winning the national championship six times with Santiago de Cuba and being the unique pitcher with more than 30 postseason wins. Most importantly, he loses an athlete who was aimed at transmitting his knowledge to new generations.
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