MIAMI, United States. — The Cuban National Baseball Series continues to be in the news, and not precisely because of the quality of the contest, which has declined in recent years.
This weekend, one of the matches of the subseries between Cienfuegos and Sancti Spíritus was stopped in the second inning for lack of bats, an incident that adds to the recent announcement by sports authorities about the ball shortage.
Reports appeared in social networks indicate that the clash stopped after the Cienfuegos team ran out of the necessary number of bats to continue the challenge, which was being televised by the Tele Rebelde channel.
Finally, the game resumed, but Cienfuegos kept playing with only three bats, which were not the ones given to the team, but owned by the players themselves.
Last Thursday, the National Baseball Commission (CNB) indicated that there are delays in ball shipments by the TeamMate Company, the main supplier of the National Series.
A note from that entity published by the newspaper Hit indicated that as of May 17, 2023, there were 4,207 lost balls in the stadiums, with the most serious cases in Guantánamo, Villa Clara, Isla de la Juventud, Pinar del Río and Havana, with averages of between 17 and 20 per game.
The situation forced the baseball authorities to use Batos-brand balls purchased as reserves from another supplier abroad.
The recent events linked to logistical problems have increased the criticism of fans against the National Series, a contest that has also accused the massive exodus of players.
Recently, the journalist Francys Romero assured that the National Baseball Series has become an “uneven, old and without an audience” tournament, more similar “to an old Development League” than to the National Series of yesteryear.
