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WBSC signs new agreements with Cuba to promote baseball on the Island
By Luis De Jesus Reyes-January 20, 2022
Havana, Cuba-
With good expectations and having helped to finalize the signing of various international agreements, the president of the World Baseball-Softball Confederation (WBSC), Riccardo Fraccari, recently completed a working visit to Cuba, where he arrived with the main goal of analyzing how to give baseball a boost on the island.
The Italian minister toured several Cuban provinces for four days and met with leaders and sports entities to discuss the signing of new agreements and the possibility of holding international events on Cuban soil.
Fraccari's visit comes at a time when Cuban baseball is not exactly going through its best season. The Cuba team, for decades one of the best in the world, has suffered several setbacks in international events in recent years, decimated in part by the flight of players and by what some local experts classify as a decline in the quality of the Cuban game.
“I have seen that the authorities of the Cuban Baseball Federation (FCB) plan to put into practice a detailed plan to return to the competitive level that this sport has always had, since the potential it possesses with its talented young people is undeniable, ” said the WBSC president at a press conference at the Latin American Stadium in Havana.
Among the most commented news by the specialized press of the island, was the signing of an agreement between the FCB and the company TeamMate to supply the island baseball equipment, as well as the first steps taken with a view to creating the Academy National Baseball Championship under the auspices of the WBSC.
A prominent point on the exchange agenda between the WBSC and the FCB was the signing of Cuban baseball players in foreign leagues, a measure that has been well received among the island's players as it allows them to sign with international professional baseball clubs, at the same time maintain standing with their national league team.
Regarding this proposal, Fraccari maintained that "Cuba has to develop a legal plan for its players, after participating in the Cuban season, to play in foreign leagues to improve their talents", and in this sense be assured that "the WBSC could be the connecting bridge.
"Things do not change overnight, but I very much appreciate the willingness of Cuban managers to carry out the plan satisfactorily," Fraccari concluded.
Other topics of interest discussed during his visit was the proposal of Baseball's Project 5, support for the Cuban Softball Academy and the discussion of possible investments by the Batos Company for the production of baseball equipment and supplies.
When the 61st National Baseball Series opened, Cuba was discussing how to put its delegation back into the international spotlight, as it was in their glory years. It will not be easy because of the well-known economic obstacles that the island faces.
The song and dance, the juicy offers from US clubs to Cuban baseball players continue to cause the desertion of players from the island during world sporting events.
As if that were not enough, soccer continues to gain ground in Cuba, especially among the youngest. The areas that used to host street ball games on the island have today been transformed into makeshift soccer fields and more and more the new Cuban generations talk more about soccer and less about Major League Baseball.
How to make baseball on the island more attractive for the new generations - that is the challenge.
