After 13 years outfielder Yoenis Céspedes will return to play in the 63rd edition of the Cuban Serie Nacional. The slugger and native of Campechuela, Cuba will once again done the uniform of the Alazanes de Granma. Céspedes’ last season in Cuba was the 2010-2011 season in which he hit 33 homeruns for the Stallions.
Céspedes last played in the Dominican Winter League in 2022 with the Águilas Cibaeñas and hit .188 with four homeruns and 11 RBIs in 18 games with the historic ballclub. In his two seasons in the LIDOM the ex-big leaguer has hit under the Mendoza line.
☑️Según la información brindada por el periodista granmense Osviel Castro Medel, el ex-MLB Yoenis Céspedes, está en la Preselección de Granma de cara a la SN 63 del Béisbol Cubano.
💫 Céspedes estuvo con Cuba en el V Clásico Mundial. Su última Serie en Cuba fue la 50 (2010-11). pic.twitter.com/4syz3XgqwF
— Miguel Rodríguez Hernández (@MiguelRH98) December 28, 2023
During his 8-year career in MLB with Detroit, Oakland, Boston and the Mets he hit .273 with 165 longballs, 528 runs batted in, 43 steals and slashed .327/.497/.824. Over that time he was a two-time All-Star selection, won a gold glove (2015) and a silver slugger (2016). Céspedes also has the distinction on being the first DH to hit a homerun in an official National League Game when he connected for a longball against the Braves on Opening Day in 2020.
The slugger has also seen plenty of international action with Cuba most notably in the World Baseball Classic in 2009 and 2023. Céspedes playing in the Serie Nacional are the final steps in a long and distinguished career that has come to an end.