Young Cubans fend off ’Cats in exhibition
The unofficial state religion of Cuba, baseball, brought its salsa beat to Wilson’s Group Stadium at Royal Athletic Park on Monday night.
A university team from Unión de Reyes defeated the Victoria HarbourCats 8-4 before 2,478 fans in an entertaining exhibition game that marked the first time a West Coast League team has played a team from Cuba.
“We come from a small town in Cuba and are here enjoying your beautiful country and beautiful people,” said Unión de Reyes head coach and manager Saul Basallo, through an interpreter.
“We are so proud to play in front of all of you.”
The Cuban style of play was highly animated, which amused the fans to no end.
It was especially revealing for most of the HarbourCats, who are NCAA Div. 1 American players. The U.S. embargo has limited many of these sorts of sporting and cultural exchanges between those two countries.
“It was definitely a different atmosphere,” said HarbourCats slugging star Ryan Ober, who hails from Washington state.
“The Cuban players hustled and got excited about every play. You get caught up in the experience of it. They bring real strong character to their game, no doubt about that.”
Fittingly, the game ended with a Cuban band playing on the field and many of the Cuban players showing off their dance moves, which are as good as their fielding moves.
The Unión de Reyes club has close sporting and cultural links to the Chemainus and District Baseball League, which is the connection that brought them to the Island, where they have been touring and playing games.
The Cubans are 16-to-19 years old and attend the Universidad de ciencias de la cultura Física y el deporte de Matanzas, which translates as the University of Physical Sciences and Sports Culture of Matanzas. They displayed some dazzling defence to hold the older HarbourCats at bay. Unión de Reyes won the championship and placed second and third the past three seasons in the U-20 level of the Matanzas provincial championships, and it showed.
“I have coached these kids since they were seven years old,” said Basallo.
“We have been very busy on this trip but happy and proud.”
Ober, a freshman on the 2018 NCAA College World Series champion Oregon State Beavers, hit a three-run homer in the bottom of the fifth inning to bring the HarbourCats to 6-4. But that’s as close as they got.
The HarbourCats (9-9 in the second half and 23-22 overall) resume league play with a crucial three-game WCL set beginning today in Yakima, Washington, against the Pippins. Victoria is four games behind the Pippins (13-5), with nine games remaining in the race for the North Division second-half championship, and playoff berth that goes with it.
The HarbourCats continue with three road games in Wenatchee, Washington, against the AppleSox, before closing out the regular season next week with three home dates against the Portland Pickles.