Reply #33: Cuba's off to a good start at the World Baseball Classics:

[Judi Lynn]

Cigar for Gourriel in Cuba's first win



BY CHRISTIAN RED
DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER

SAN JUAN - Fidel Castro was not one of the 6,129 present at Hiram Bithorn Stadium yesterday, but "El Comandante" was probably smiling a little farther to the west of Puerto Rico.

Despite wasting two early leads, Cuba won its first game of the World Baseball Classic, 8-6, over Panama in a four-hour, 11-inning thriller. The Cubans scored the go-ahead run in the top of the 11th and added an insurance run with back-to-back RBI singles. But this game will be remembered for the performance of 21-year-old Cuban second baseman Yulieski Gourriel, who went 3-for-4 with a two-run homer and four RBI and was stellar in the field.

You can bet that another Boss - the one in the Bronx who owns the Yankees - may already be fantasizing about Gourriel in pinstripes.

"I'm very happy," said Gourriel, after Cuba improved to 1-0 and eliminated Panama from advancing to the second round. "With so many foreign broadcast journalists watching, it was a good opportunity to see that Cuban baseball players play well anywhere in the world and at any level."
(snip/...)

http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/story/398186p-337422c.html

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You may remember _Bush did everything possible to keep Cuba out of this tournament, actually able to keep them from entering Puerto Rico, and finally the baseball commissioner or whatever he is, intervened, along with a lot of other people.