<\/p>\n\n\n\n
SANTO DOMINGO.\u2013<\/strong> The Puerto Rico team will suffer a significant loss in the next World Baseball Classic after it was confirmed that Javier \u201cEl Mago\u201d B\u00e1ez<\/strong> will not be able to participate in the tournament due to a suspension in effect for doping<\/strong>, derived from a positive result for marijuana use<\/p>\n\n\n\n You may be interested in:<\/a><\/strong>World Baseball Classic 2026: official rosters revealed today<\/a><\/p>\n\n\nUnlike other cases such as those of Francisco Lindor and Carlos Correa<\/strong>, whose absence is due to insurance issues, B\u00e1ez’s absence strictly responds to a disciplinary punishment that disqualifies him from competing in the international tournament, depriving the Puerto Rican team of one of its main figures on and off the field.\n\n\n SANTO DOMINGO.\u2013 The Puerto Rico team will suffer a significant loss in the next World Baseball Classic after it was confirmed that Javier \u201cEl Mago\u201d B\u00e1ez will not be able to participate in the tournament due to a suspension in effect for doping, derived from a positive result for marijuana use You may be interested […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_members_access_role":[],"_members_access_error":""},"categories":[35481],"tags":[611,40231,40813,13766,41186],"class_list":{"0":"post-499511","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-baseball","7":"tag-deultimominuto","8":"tag-dominican-republic","9":"tag-major-leagues","10":"tag-mlb","11":"tag-theperiodicodelatruth"},"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/phj1q1-25WD","dum_api":{"author_name":"Redacci\u00f3n De \u00daltimo Minuto","author_image":"https:\/\/deultimominuto.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/cropped-logo-de-ultimo-minuto-96x96.png","categories_name":["Baseball"],"featured_media_url":null},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/deultimominuto.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/499511","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/deultimominuto.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/deultimominuto.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/deultimominuto.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/deultimominuto.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=499511"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/deultimominuto.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/499511\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/deultimominuto.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=499511"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/deultimominuto.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=499511"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/deultimominuto.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=499511"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}The result that changed the landscape<\/h3>\n\n\nAccording to official records from the International Testing Agency (ITA)<\/strong>, an independent body responsible for anti-doping control at the World Baseball Classic, the Detroit Tigers shortstop tested positive for Carboxy-THC<\/strong>, a metabolite of cannabis.\n\nThe test was conducted on March 12, 2023<\/strong>, after the game in which Puerto Rico fell 9-6 to Venezuela at loanDepot Park in Miami. Although B\u00e1ez produced a run in that game, the post-game control initiated a process that today leaves him out of the World Cup.\n\n\n
Clash of Regulations between MLB and the Classic<\/h3>\n\n\nThe B\u00e1ez case once again brings to the table the difference between the regulations of Major Leagues<\/strong> and international organizations. Since 2020, MLB removed marijuana from its list of prohibited substances<\/strong>, but the World Baseball Classic is governed by the standards of the WBSC<\/strong> and the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA)<\/strong>, where cannabis continues to be penalized during the competition.\n\nThe sanction imposed on the Puerto Rican player began on the April 26, 2024<\/strong> and will extend until April 26, 2026<\/strong>, which automatically leaves him out of the tournament, scheduled from March 5 to 19, 2026<\/strong>.\n\n\n
No appeal options<\/h3>\n\n\nDespite the attempts of the Puerto Rico Baseball Federation (FBPR)<\/strong> to manage an exception, the situation is definitive. According to sources close to the process, national federations do not have the power to appeal or request reconsiderations<\/strong> in cases handled by the ITA, limiting themselves only to an observer role.\n\n\n
A seriously affected infield<\/h3>\n\n\nThe absence of B\u00e1ez worsens the crisis of the Puerto Rican infield, which had already lost Lindor and Correa for reasons unrelated to the playing field. Without its star nucleus from the last editions, Puerto Rico is forced to completely reconfigure its infield<\/strong>, historically one of its greatest strengths.\n\nThe absence of “El Mago” not only represents a defensive and offensive loss, but also a blow to the leadership and experience of a team that will seek to reinvent itself to compete at the highest level in the 2026 World Baseball Classic.","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"