The ambivalent relationship between Cuban stars in Major League Baseball and the island

Havana (EFE).- When Cuban closer for the Boston Red Sox, Aroldis Chapman, achieved this season the feat of accumulating 16 consecutive appearances –against 46 batters– without a hit, the island's sports media practically did not touch the subject.

You may be interested in: LIDOM prohibits the registration of Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz for the 2025-26 season

State television has also not highlighted – or at least not habitually – in its sports summaries the postseason performances of Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Andy Pages; Toronto Blue Jays reliever Yariel Rodríguez or Detroit Tigers third baseman Andy Ibáñez. Historically, Cuba produces baseball stars in droves. Many of whom rise to the top as legendary players in the Major Leagues. But the case of Havana is different from that of other countries exporting baseball players, such as Venezuela or the Dominican Republic, where their fans religiously follow the performance abroad of their stars and are considered idols.

The Caribbean island banned professional baseball, its national sport, in 1962. The extensive fanbase turned to its local league: the National Series. However, as a side effect, the ban left players – legally contracted by the Cuban government – seeking to make the jump to MLB without a clear mechanism.

Leaving Cuba for the Dream of the Major Leagues

This caused the bleeding of talent to become chronic from the eighties onwards. Hundreds of baseball players have abandoned their delegations during games abroad or have left the country illegally to be hired by a franchise as free agents.

From 2016 to 2022 alone, a total of 635 baseball players left the country legally and illegally, according to the state press. On the other hand, once out of the country, many Cuban baseball players have distinguished themselves publicly and have spoken out against the island's government.

This crossfire has left the fans in the middle. At the Latin American Stadium in Havana, Adrián Almeida, 42 years old, supports, leaning back in his seat, the team he loves: Industriales. But just as he is following the Havana team's game, he is also following the Los Angeles Dodgers. Especially one of their breakout players: 24-year-old Cuban Andy Pages, who he predicts will have a future in the Hall of Fame. "I would follow it much more (MLB) if they had the opportunity to broadcast it," he tells EFE. What he does with his friends is go to coffee shops or hotel bars and use the wifi to watch a live broadcast.

Professionals with Cuba

The ostracism of Cubans in Major League Baseball has hit equally hard, even if they are athletes who have been ambiguous about the Government or who, flatly, have preferred never to speak about political issues. Pages, who has said he wants to be called up by the Cuban national team for the 2026 World Baseball Classic (it is still unknown if the island will participate, due to a decision by the U.S.), falls into this last category.

For Willian Álvarez, a 36-year-old fan, the times of sports bans have changed: "That would be wonderful the day it happens. Someday it will happen. There is time for all that. We are not that far away," he tells EFE. Álvarez bases his argument on the significance of the 2023 Classic. It was the first time since 1962 that Cuba called up active Major League Baseball players for its national team. In previous editions, they only called up athletes from the local circuit or players contracted abroad through the Government. Although it didn't have all the stars – the most politicized declined publicly or simply weren't called up – the list was good enough for the islanders to reach the semi-finals for the first time in 17 years. The experiment was hailed as a success by analysts, fans, and authorities. And they hope to repeat the formula.