Wasting no time and hardly resting, the so-called Team Asere (Buddy Team) began the journey in the early hours of Thursday, after beating Australia (4-3) to secure a place in tournament’s semifinals.
Waiting for more information on the Cuban team’s schedule in Miami, it is known that the players will have several hours of rest before returning to the field to keep their physical shape and work on technical-tactical details.
Still without confirmation is the possibility of playing against any Major League franchise that develops “Spring Training” for the 2023 season, which will have its “Opening Day” on March 30.
After an uncertain and unpromising start in the fight, Cuba’s performance broke the mold of imagination, with a nearly unfading capacity for resilience, which will have another chapter in three days, with glory two baseball games away.
Under the aegis of Manager Armando Johnson, the team started the event with defeats against the Netherlands (2-4) and Italy (3-6) before turning history 180 degrees and beating Panama (7-1). and Chinese Taipei (13-4) in Pool A of the WBC.
The tie-break system took Cuba to the top of the pool and the team took the opportunity to pass over the Australians in the quarterfinal match at Tokyo Dome.
In exclusive statements to Prensa Latina, Johnson, 64, thanked the Cuban people for following the team’s performance and stressed that “we have not finished yet, but we have already advanced a good part” on the way to Loan Depot Park, the venue of the finals of the tournament.
Cuba will be in the semifinals of the most prestigious competition for the second time, since it was present in the dispute for the crown of the founding edition in 2006, when it lost 6-10 to Japan.
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