Right-hander Brander Guevara will be showcased by Cuba in the upcoming International Baseball Series against Nicaragua in the upcoming week, if it is played. Guevara is easily the best pitching prospect left on the island.
The Cuban hurler recently struck out 10 batters from Las Tunas for the Cazadores de Artemisa in the Cuban Baseball Semifinals. Guevara (22 years old) is being scouted by the SoftBank Hawks, according to Kenta Hagiwara. On the day this was the young flamethrowers repertoire:
Fastball 94-97 MPH
Slider 86-88 MPH
Changeup 89-91 MPH
Splitter 84-86 MPH
Cutter 87-88 MPH
With stuff like that it is only a matter of time before the righty is inked to a deal by a team fro. the land of the rising sun, whether it be SoftBank or any other squad in the NPB. He will not be on hand for Cuba in the WBC due to the country’s tardiness in submitting a visa application for him.
Now the upcoming International Baseball Series between Cuba and Nicaragua which commences February 19th and is part of their preparations for the upcoming World Baseball Classic is in doubt for two reasons:
1. Cubans now need visas to enter Nicaragua.
2. As of now there are no flights from the island to Nicaragua due to fuel shortages.
The series is scheduled to take place in various cities and stadiums in Nicaragua. The fist game will be this Thursday at Roberto Clemente Stadium in Masaya, the next game of the four game series will be on the 22nd in León at the Rigoberto López Pérez, while on the 25 it will be at Yamil Rios Ugarte in Rivas and the series will end at the Estadio Nacional Soberanía in Managua on 27 of February.
Cuba will bring a slightly better team to Nicaragua if the series is played. The squad could include such stars as Raidel Martínez, Liván Moinelo and Ariel Martínez as well as Guevara, which is a very big upgrade from the Serie de las Américas team the is playing in Venezuela.
Cuban roster for a possible International Baseball Series:
Catchers:
Andrys Pérez, Andy Cosme, Leonardo Montero
Infielders:
Yoel Yanqui, Ariel Martínez, Angel Hechavarría, Yuliesky Remón,Erisbel Arruebarrena, Christian Rodríguez, Luis Vicente Mateo
Outfielders:
Yoelkis Guibert, Roel Santos, Alfredo Despaigne, Leonel Moas, Raidel Sánchez, Yasiel González
Pitchers:
Raidel Martínez, Liván Moinelo, Frank Herrera, Dario Sarduy, Yoennis Yera, José Ignacio Bermúdez, Raymond Figueredo, Brander Guevara, Geonel Gutiérrez, Armando Dueñas, Randy Martínez, Yunier Batista, Randy Cueto, Yuniesky García