Cuban Baseball
in San Diego
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico.—It is not easy to organize
one’s thoughts only a few hours after a historic
moment in Cuban baseball. But there is no way around
it: suitcases must be packed and loaded on the plane
that will bring all the delegation members to the
city of San Diego.
I can imagine—we can all imagine— the immense joy
felt by all Cubans from one end of the country to
the other when Vicyohandri Odelín pitched the strike
to Iván Rodríguez marking the 27th out. It was hard
to believe that a formidable team such as Puerto
Rico, cheered on by a feverish crowd of more than
19,000 souls, had fallen behind and was unable to
tie the score despite the advantage of being the
home team.
The Puerto Ricans wanted to win and fought
unflaggingly to do so. They utilized their best
relief players—Kiko Calero, as one example— pulling
out a superstar like Carlos Delgado. But everything
came up against the will of the Cuban players,
determined to show the world that they are as good
as the Major League players.
At the end of the game, the Puerto Rican
journalists—with more than sufficient experience of
covering Major League games and profoundly
knowledgeable about baseball—were immediately full
of congratulations and praise. One of them said to
me: "Pestano doesn’t have to envy any catcher in the
world. He’s as good as the best. He throws well to
the bases, is shrewd, directs the game well, and can
even bat when given the chance."
