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Does the World Classic
need Cuba?
Bradenton
Herald. Posted
on Sun, Jan. 22, 2006.
NO
THE MENU
(Offering a meaty issue with your choice
of two sides)
Cuba has been invited to the World Baseball
Classic.
So . . . what?
I'm not a fan of this thing to begin with.
How hard are these guys really going to
play, especially since Team USA isn't signing
their checks?
That's not the point here. Cuba may be
a world baseball power, but even without
it, the World Baseball Classic would have
fielded a gaggle of great teams.
Just imagine a starting rotation fronted
by Johan Santana and Freddie Garcia, with
Frankie Rodriguez summoned to close things.
All three are slated to play for the Venezuelan
team.
The Dominican Republic's lineup will be
dotted with guys such as David Ortiz, Miguel
Tejada, Albert Pujols and Vladimir Guerrero.
All but one has an MVP award, and the guy
who doesn't (Ortiz) placed second last season.
How about an American team featuring Alex
Rodriguez, Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens and
Eric Chavez? We got it.
Heck, even Italy has Mike Piazza!
Cuba is synonymous with great baseball,
but would the World Baseball Classic work
without it?
Sure. Would the baseball be good? Of course.
And would the champion rightfully call itself
the best collection of players in the world?
Without a doubt.
YES
Looks like we'll have to pay attention
to the World Baseball Classic, after all.
And we have that old side-winder, Fidel
Castro, to thank for it.
Castro's offer to donate proceeds to Hurricane
Katrina relief spared the U.S. government
a major embarrassment. Banning Cuba from
the event would make it as interesting as
Olympic hockey without the Canadians or
the Boston Marathon without the Kenyans.
The island nation's contribution to our
grand old game cannot be dismissed. In fact,
Cuban players dotted major league rosters
decades before Jackie Robinson broke the
so-called color barrier in 1947.
You might not remember Dolf Luque - 27-8
with a 1.93 ERA for the Reds in 1923 - but
if you're any kind of fan, you've heard
of Cuban greats Tony Perez, Luis Tiant,
Tony Oliva and Minnie Minoso.
The world champion White Sox received a
major contribution from Orlando "El
Duque" Hernandez, brother of 1997 Florida
Marlins World Series hero Livan. Both Cubans.
No, it can't be a World classic without
Cuba. They've too much talent, too much
passion for beisbol. Cuba won the 2004 Olympics
and holds every International Baseball Federation
title. Heck, the most exciting 2005 Tampa
Bay Devil Rays moment occurred when Eduardo
Perez - son of Tony - blasted a walk-off
home run against Boston in April.
This time, at least, sports trumped politics.
- Mike Henry, Herald Staff
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