Havana, Nov. 13. – Cuban pitcher Liván Moinelo of the SoftBank Hawks won the first Gold Glove of his career in the Japanese Professional Baseball League on Tuesday, after being recognized as the best defender of his position in the Pacific region.
In the election conducted by Japanese sports journalists, the speedy pitcher from Pinar del Río obtained 76 votes. Thus, he beat by just one point the also left-handed pitcher Kazuma Ojima of the Lotte Marines, and the right-handed pitcher of the Nippon Ham Fighters, Hiromi Ito, who came in third place with 54.
Moinelo thus becomes the first Latino to win such a distinction in the demanding Pacific League. His fellow Villa Clara native Dayán Viciedo previously won it as a first baseman in the Central League, in the 2021 season.
Moinelo combines this defensive award with his spectacular performances on the mound, as he was the most effective in his circuit in the qualifying phase with an average of 1.88 earned runs per game.
Used during the first season as SoftBank’s starter, he finished fourth in wins (11) and strikeouts (155 in 163 innings).
He is now part of the Cuban team that will debut this Wednesday in group B of the Premier 12 Tournament based in Chinese Taipei, and as decided by mentor Armando Johnson, he will open on Thursday against South Korea. (Text: José Luis López Sado) (Photo: Yuhki Ohboshi)
