It may have been the most embarrassing day for Cuba's communist regime since 2016, when the decrepit Soviet jeep carrying Fidel Castro's corpse broke down mid-funeral procession. And for us capitalist exploiters, it was nearly as much fun.
On Sunday, the Cuban National Team suffered a humiliating defeat at the hands of the counterrevolutionary running dog Yanqui imperialists.in a World Baseball Classic (WBC) game in Miami. The U.S. team trounced Cuba 14-2, the losers suffered a player defection and Miami fans made it a long, uncomfortable day for the team representing the evil of communism.
Anti-Cuban sentiment started well before the game, with Cuban exiles in Little Havana demanding freedom. The sentiment inside the stadium matched their intensity. Home team fans sitting behind home plate held up a sign that read, “Abajato Dictadura.” That’s “down with dictatorship” in English.
In the sixth inning, a protestor walked onto the field displaying another protest sign. Fans disrupting sports events by running on the field are usually booed, but this guy was loudly cheered on because his sign demanded freedom for Cuban dissidents.
Within 20 seconds, security personnel corralled him, but he left the field continuing to hold up the sign reading “LIBERTARD PARA LOS PRESOS CUBANS DEL 11 DE JULIO!!!” Translating to: “liberty for the Cuban prisoners of the 11th of July.”
On July 11, 2021, more than 1,000 Cuban protesters were arrested and 297 of them received prison sentences. That was one of the largest protests since the 1959 Cuban Revolution when communist Fidel Castro turned the nation into a dictatorship.
That wasn’t the final indignity exacted on the Cuban team either. As Outkick writer Armando Salguero tweeted, “The Cuban national team that got its butt whipped by the USA team in the World Baseball Classic returned to Cuba today but catcher Ivan Prieto escaped the team hotel” with the intention of defecting. He did not make the flight home to the communist island. The Cuban delegation called him a “deserter.” Salguero called him “brave.”
Salguero also tweeted:
“You bring the Cuban national team to Miami to play the USA you better expect Miami Cubans to root for the team that stands for liberty and freedom and not be silent about the communists on the island.”
Well said.
Team USA third baseman Nolan Arenado (of the St. Louis Cardinals) spoke up for American freedom, too. He has a direct link to the oppression of the Cuban people, which his grandparents escaped previously by immigrating to the United States. Arenado told ESPN:
To be quite honest with you, there’s a lot of anxious feelings. You know, if it wasn’t for the sacrifices my grandparents made to get here for my parents, I don’t know if I would have been the player I am today, so there’s a lot of feeling I feel toward it. I respect them, I respect the players, but we have a job to do.
With the 14-2 rout of Cuba, Team USA awaited the winner of Monday’s semifinal game between Japan and Mexico for the WBC championship game on Tuesday.
