Collaboration plans for the development of baseball and softball, including the production of sports equipment and apparel; the potential for a national academy in the country; the possible return of baseball to the Olympic Games; and the aspiration to hold a tournament of winning clubs, similar to the Champions League in soccer, were among the items on the agenda of Ricardo Fraccari, president of the World Baseball and Softball Confederation (WBSC), during his recently concluded visit to Cuba.
Fraccari is in love with Cuban baseball and our island, where he became, in 1978, the first umpire from abroad to participate in our national series.
With his feelings on his sleeve, his trip included a stop in a Cienfuegos community to interact with children just beginning their training in balls and strikes, participating in a project led by one of his idols, Antonio Muñoz, the Giant of the Escambray, the first player in Cuba to hit more than 200 and then, 300 home runs.
The WBSC president noted - in addition to the technological obsolescence - prospects for expanding the Batos brand, via collaboration with the Teammate, company, which is producing the attractive uniforms and team apparel to be worn this year during the 61st National Series. Toward this end, he visited the the Cuban brand’s workshops, witnessing the spirit and commitment to baseball reigning there.
Regarding baseball’s return to the Olympics, he commented that the sport he leads must attract young people, making games shorter, a challenge that could be met by agreeing to seven-inning games, while also reducing the number of participating athletes, conditions that the International Olympic Committee (IOC) demands.
This is a reasonable line of thinking in pursuit of the longed-for return to the big event, but nations like Cuba should not sacrifice their series to meet these requirements, since what our ballplayers most need is to play, and a cut of two innings per game would be a significant reduction. Another issue to consider is that special training for seven-inning games would be needed.
I believe that the return to the Olympic Games also involves the internationalization of baseball on the competitive order, and the idea outlined by Fraccari of a championship club competition is an excellent one. It would be a sporting event that would keep the media thinking baseball for a large part of the year and the repercussions could illicit a reaction in the corridors of the IOC. The WBSC, under Fraccari's leadership, has what it takes to launch such an endeavor, evolving from an association with barely 70 member countries at the end of the 20th century, to one that now exceeds 200.
Baseball5 and a softball academy were also addressed during the visit, with Fraccari stating that, regardless of the most recent results of Cuban baseball internationally, he sees Cuba focused on a return to the top of the world scene. "It must be so, because Cuba is baseball," he insisted.
