Jesús Manso is a very coveted pitching coach in the Liga Mexicana de Béisbol and their winter counterpart the Liga ARCO Mexicana del Pacífico. The native of Villa Clara, Cuba has a reputation of fixing flawed pitching mechanics., Ronald Bolaños had a career year with Los Mochis in 2023-24 under his tutelage.
This season he is working with the Algodoneros de Unión Laguna and is the architect of helping Yoán López right the ship after a rough start to his LMB season and making him his latest reclamation project. Expect Manso as per my sources to be on Cuba’s WBC staff even possibly being the team’s pitching coach.
The ex-Serie Nacional hurler was supposed to be with Cuba in the Premier 12, but professional commitments prevented him from incorporating himself with the squad. The addition of Manso will definitely make Cuba’s pitching corps better in Puerto Rico and would be a huge upgrade from last WBC’s pitching coach, Pedro Luis Lazo.
You’ve been in the Liga Mexicana de Béisbol for several years. What has this experience meant to your career?
Well, this is a very skilled league where many players arrive who have already finished in the Major Leagues but still have quality. So it teaches you how to work in different roles. For example, my pitching is not like I did in Cuba, where it wasn’t as organized. Here, there’s more specialization in different roles: starter, middle relief, long relief, situational relief, and closers.
In the summer, you’re with the Algodoneros and in the winter, with the Cañeros de Los Mochis. What do you think are the main differences between the two leagues?
Well, that league is more national. The main difference is that fewer foreign players play there. It’s also a cold league, and when it’s cold, the ball doesn’t move like it does here. The summer league is very intense, and the ball moves a lot.
You trained in Cuba, and even pitched there. For you, what is the biggest difference between Cuban League and professional baseball?
It’s primarily resources. As a Cuban living in Cuba, I know we lack resources, from the ground up. In my time when I played, we had plenty of resources, we had special areas to play with, and we had a great team and many players. Back then, players didn’t leave the country to improve. So right now, the Serie Nacional doesn’t have the quality it deserves for those reasons. There’s a lack of resources, and the highest-quality players are looking for other places to improve financially.
At the beginning of the season, Yoan López wasn’t at his best, but since the change to closer, he’s looked better. How much did you influence that decision?
He was actually sick during the winter, so he was underweight and wasn’t physically ready. Little by little, we’ve been working with him, especially in the gym. Yoan is a warrior; when he reached his ideal weight, you saw how he is; he’s doing very well.
Would you like to participate with Team Cuba WBC?
I expect to be called for a World Classic at any moment, although I’ve already been called up. I was called up for the Premier 12 but couldn’t attend due to work commitments. I’ve always dreamed of that and I’ve already been on the national team for a couple of years. I have the best intentions for my country and for the people who have watched me grow up there. Even though I work abroad, I’m still Cuban like the rest of us.