The Cuban team participating in the VI Caribbean Baseball Cup won its first game of the tournament this Wednesday at the Andre Rogers Stadium, in Nassau, capital of the Bahamas. The Antilleans arrived on the island this Tuesday afternoon and this morning they debuted with a 9-0 blanking of St. Marteen.
In what was the first game of this edition of the Caribbean tournament, the Cubans managed to open the scoring in the third episode when they scored two runs. They then scored one in the fourth and fifth innings and later added another five at the start of the sixth inning.
José Ignacio Bermúdez, starter for the Cuban team, was marvelous for five innings to notch the victory in the game. The hurler gave up three hits, walked two hitters and had 10 of the 14 strikeouts by Antillean pitching. Randy Martinez (1.0 IP, 0H, 0ER, K) and Osdany Rodríguez (1.0 IP, H, 0ER, 3K) went the rest of the way without complications.
The offensive player of the game was Darian Palma, who went 3 for 4 with a double, two runs scored, a stolen base and an RBI. Yuliesky Remón (3-2, R, 2B, RBI), was the other Cuban collected multihits on the evening. Francisco Martínez from was the only starter that did not have a hit, but he drove in a run with a sacrifice fly and scored a couple of runs. Rodolexis Moreno, Denis Peña, Carlos de la Tejera and Jorge Yoan Rojas knocked in runs on the day.
On defense, the Cubans made one error (Randy Martínez), two less than their rivals. In the game, Jean Lucas was ruled out in his first trip to the plate after being penalized for using an illegal bat. Now on October 24 and 25, the Cubans will face the Dominican Republic and the United States Virgin Islands respectively at 11:00 AM, respectively.
The fourth game for the Cubans of the qualifying phase will be against the locals (07:00 PM) and they will close on the 27th against Curacao (03:00 PM). The two first place team will meet for the title at 07:00 PM on Monday, October 28, while the third and fourth will play for the bronze four hours before. This is the second time that the Bahamas will host the main event organized by COCABE (Caribbean Baseball Confederation), as it already hosted the 2022 edition at the same venue this year, where Puerto Rico was crowned champion.
The seventh version agreed for 2025 still does not have a defined venue and will be a qualifier for the Central American and Caribbean Games in Santo Domingo 2026. For the fourth time Cuba will attend said tournament, its best result was in the edition held in Carolina, Puerto Rico, in 2023, when it crowned itself champion by defeating Curacao in the final. During that tournament, the Antilleans participated with a team that later finished in sixth place at the 2023 Pan American Games in Chile. In the editions of Curaçao 2021 and Bahamas 2022, Cuba had fall in the final, first against the host country (Curaçao)and then at the hands of Puerto Rico.
Lineup:
1.Rodolexis Moreno (3B): 4-1, R, 2B, RBI, CS
2.Darian Palma (CF): 4-3, 2R, 2B, RBI, SB
3.Francisco Martínez (LF): 2-0, 2R, RBI, SF
4.Denis Peña (1B): 2-1, R, RBI
5.Carlos de la Tejera (RF): 3-1, RBI
6.Jorge Rojas (C): 3-1, RBI
7.Jean Lucas Baldoquín (DH): 4-1, R, 2B
8.Adrián Jesús Pérez (SS): 4-1, R, 2B
9.Yuliesky Remón (2B): 3-2, R, 2B, RBI
Pinch-hitters:
Leonardo Alarcón: 1-0
Euclides Pérez: 1-0
Eliecer Arrechavaleta: 1-1
Lanzadores:
José Ignacio Bermúdez: 5.0 IP, 3H, 0ER, 10K, 2BB, W (1-0)
Randy Martínez: 1.0 IP, 0H, 0ER, K
Osdany Rodríguez: 1.0 IP, H, 0ER, 3K