Ricardo Fraccari President of the World Baseball Confederation
Havana, Jan 15 (JIT).- The president of the World Baseball-Softball Confederation (WBSC), Riccardo Fraccari, assured in Havana that his entity can further support the insertion of Cuban players in several professional leagues on the planet. .
This is how he responded to the request for criteria on the rupture by the United States government of the agreement between Major League Baseball (MLB) and the Cuban Baseball Federation, signed in December 2018 and canceled in April 2019.
We all know how the agreement was broken during the Donald Trump administration and it is an issue that we have dealt with at the WBSC. But the problem cannot be only the MLB, there are other leagues in which the island’s players can join and we can help them play and return to their country, indicated the Italian federation.
What we saw in Mexico during the 2021 under-23 world championship should not happen again. I am very happy because the authorities of FCB and Inder are looking in the direction of their athletes playing abroad and here, he added.
Fraccari also addressed matters related to the presence of the sport of balls and strikes on the Olympic stage, regarding which he stated that the modernization of the sport intends to lead to a permanent space in the future calendar of these events.
Reducing the number of participants and the length of the games, and charming young people, are challenges that the WBSC still faces, despite the fact that the decisions made in recent years have reduced the duration of the challenges by 45 minutes , for example.
Fraccari warned the “puritans” of baseball that playing seven innings under the five hoops could reduce the number of participants and the time of the matches.
The possibility of Cuba organizing an international WBSC event could never come before 2024, as long as the demands made in an environment of growing international interest in hosting this type of event are met.
On the development of baseball5, the director highlighted its incredible development even in a continent without a baseball tradition like Africa.
Asked about the WBSC’s position regarding the diplomatic boycott of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics, the experienced leader maintained that Olympism should never be mixed with political issues or limit the participation of athletes.
Fraccari insisted that his visit to Havana aims to participate in the celebrations for the 60th anniversary of the I National Baseball Series, as well as to evaluate the way in which the WBSC can support development projects for both sports on the island.
He will visit Cienfuegos on Sunday to tour baseball facilities and greet a dear friend: Antonio Muñoz, the Giant of the Escambray.
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