Historically, no country has dominated international baseball competition as much as Cuba. They won three of five Olympic gold medals from 1992-2008, not to mention countless other top finishes in other international competitions.
In recent years, however, the Cuban National Team has suffered because so many top players have defected to pursue a career in MLB. Stalwarts like Yoenis Cespedes and Jose Abreu have left the country. Go back a little further and the National Team lost stars like Jose Contreras, Orlando Hernandez, and Livan Hernandez.
So, in an effort to get back to being an international powerhouse, Cuba may soon allow expatriates to play for the National Team. Here's what Cuban baseball commissioner Heriberto Suárez told Jon Morosi of Fox Sports:
"Everything is on the table," Cuban baseball commissioner Heriberto Suárez said in Spanish, when asked about the possibility in Havana during this week's historic trip by President Obama, Major League Baseball and the Tampa Bay Rays.
Suárez went on to explain that any such arrangement would need to be part of a new, overall working agreement among the Cuban and American governments, MLB and the MLB Players Association.
MLB has been working closely with the U.S. and Cuban governments behind the scenes to create a safer way for players to legally leave Cuba and play in the big leagues. No agreement is close, but they're working on it.
Any agreement between MLB and Cuba would likely include some kind of "release fee," similar to how players are acquired from Korea and Japan. The embargo prohibits money going to the Cuban government, however, so this is a sticking point. The government runs Cuba's various baseball teams.
The Rays played an exhibition game against the Cuban National Team earlier this week, and the lack of talent on the National Team was obvious. The pitchers rarely cracked 90 mph and the hitters offered little power. Ben Badler, international baseball guru for Baseball America, called it "the worst Cuban national team in recent memory."
Allowing expatriates -- players who no longer live in Cuba -- to play for the National Team would significantly improve the roster. Here are the Cuban born players who appeared in at least one MLB game in 2015:
C: Yasmani Grandal, Brayan Pena
1B: Abreu, Yonder Alonso
2B: Yunel Escobar
SS: Jose Iglesias, Adeiny Hechavarria, Alexei Ramirez
3B: Hector Olivera, Alex Guerrero, Adonis Garcia
OF: Cespedes, Yasiel Puig, Yasmany Tomas, Rusney Castillo, Jorge Soler, Leonys Martin, Dariel Alvarez
DH: Kendrys Morales, Henry Urrutia
SP: Jose Fernandez, Odrisamer Despaigne, Roenis Elias, Raisel Iglesias
RP: Aroldis Chapman, Dalier Hinojosa, Raudel Lazo
Yulieski Gurriel, one of the best players in Cuba over the last decade, recently defected and is currently in the process of becoming an MLB free agent. He's another player to keep in mind.
Anyway, that's a pretty strong team, is it not? Maybe lacking pitching depth, but there's an awful lot of athleticism and offensive firepower there. They have two outfields' worth of talent.
Clearly Cuba would benefit from allowing expatriates to play for the Cuban National Team going forward. Perhaps an agreement can be put in place in time for the 2017 World Baseball Classic. It would certainly make the tournament more interesting, would it not?
Cuba lost to Japan in the 2006 WBC Championship Game. They then finished sixth in the 2009 WBC and fifth in the 2013 WBC.
