The Cuban Baseball and Softball Federation (FCBS) described its exclusion from the 2026 Caribbean Series as disrespectful, after the recent change of venue, from Caracas to Guadalajara.
In a statement published on the social network, The FCBS said that “the change of scenario does not justify the non-participation of Cuba, which, in addition, deserves and demands respectful treatment, especially in the case of such a sensitive situation for our sport.”
The Cuban officials stated that although the invitation received to participate in the so-called Little Latin American World Series was generated from Venezuela, as the original venue for this edition, it was endorsed by the Caribbean Professional Baseball Confederation (CBPC), governing body of the tournament, and regretted that “that entity has not maintained any communication with the Cuban Baseball and Softball Federation about such an important decision.”
Cuba’s claim has no place. If someone is hosting a party at your house, you have the right to decide who you invite and who you don’t. The FCBS statement is the typical “alms with a shotgun”, which demands something without merit, and even mentions the fact that Cuba is the founder of the CBPC, but it is obvious that it was the elimination of professionalism by the Fidel Castro regime that forced a ten-year pause in these Caribbean issues.
In 2014, the event was dying in a sea of disinterest and required an injection of revitalizing freshness.
The Caribbean Series needed Cuba and Cuba needed the Caribbean Series, to prove itself in a professional setting, since the years in which the island’s powerful national teams crushed youth teams in amateur events were long gone.
It was then that, in the edition held in the Venezuelan town of Isla Margarita, the return of Cuba took place, represented by the champion Villa Clara, as a guest.
So, the idea was for Havana to officially join the CBPC concert as a full member and assume the financial responsibilities that the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Mexico and Venezuela have, which included the organization of the Caribbean Series from time to time.
A year later, the Vegueros of Pinar del Río won the crown, but the regime once again delayed its commitment to the Confederation and took advantage of the victory in San Juan 2015 to participate, also as an all-expenses-paid guest, in the Santo Domingo 2016 edition.
The CBPC accepted it, because the Caribbean Series would not be complete without its defending champion, but from then until 2019, friction began between the Cuban executives and the president of the Confederation, the Dominican Juan Francisco Puello Herrera, who was pressing for Havana to assume its responsibilities and make its membership official.
And although the Cuban teams cheered the Caribbean classics to a greater or lesser extent in those years, their presence was no longer as essential as in 2014, since the event had taken that second wind that it so needed.
The balance of needs had been misaligned and Cuba now needed more from the Caribbean Series than the Caribbean Series needed Cuba.
From 2020 until now, only in the 2023 version – oh, coincidence – in the Venezuelan capital, the Cubans showed up again, invited by the regime of their political ally Nicolás Maduro.
And they had already dressed to return to the party in Caracas next year, without putting a cent out of their pockets, until what happened happened.
Given the situation in Venezuela and the United States military deployment in the Caribbean, the CBPC announced the change of headquarters to Guadalajara, after the leagues of Mexico, Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic reported that they were not able to attend the event in Caracas.
The Cubans will not go to the capital of the Mexican state of Jalisco, and even the representative of the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League (LVBP) is ruled out for the moment, although his possible participation would depend on how events develop in that country.
Cuba’s failure is due, among other reasons, to the fact that the Caribbean Series would have served to lay the foundation for the team that it will present, a month later, in the World Baseball Classic.
But if Havana had something left over in the recent past, it was opportunities to return as a permanent member. Oh, of course, you had to pay the party costs.
