By William Sanchez
The Argentine baseball team, through its helmsman, Rolando Armedo, had stated that they were really excited about the qualifiers that were coming for the World Baseball Classic that would begin next Friday in Panama City.
His emotion would be short-lived when he found out that the Panamanian authorities did not see five players on his roster as athletes but as tourists. Let us remember that the Argentine baseball team that would play the World Baseball Classic qualifier in Panama is made up of five players of Venezuelan origin and although they state that they reside in the South American country and have been playing with their clubs for some time, they still do not they were admitted.
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The Argentine Baseball Federation stated that although they carried out procedures with the MLB, WBCI, the Panamanian Federation, the Argentine Foreign Ministry, Panama Migration, the Argentine Consulate in Panama and the Argentine Ministry of the Interior, they never reached a solution that would allow them to make the trip.
The Venezuelan players in question are: Yaferson López, Juan Mujica, William Montes, Luis Jiménez and Samuel Hidalgo. The five were not replaced with the selection due to the hope they had of obtaining a positive response to all the appeals submitted days ago. Today, less than 72 hours after their match against Pakistan, they still have not obtained the necessary permits to travel.
Do you think it is fair that the Venezuelan brothers suffer these obstacles at a sports level? Will there be hidden interests of the Panamanian National Team behind this decision?
