Cuba loses 5-6 to Venezuela in pre-Olympic baseball tournament

HAVANA, Cuba, Jun 1 (ACN) Despite hitting 10 hits and playing immaculate defense, the Cuban baseball team fell today 5-6 to Venezuela and saw how its action in Group B of the Pre-Olympic Tournament of the Americas in Florida, United States, got complicated.

In the game at the Ballpark Stadium in West Palm Beach, starter and loser Lazaro Blanco gave a short-lived performance and allowed four earned runs in 3.2 innings, in which he gave up four bases on balls, with five hits, including a double, a triple and an almost decisive home run by designated hitter Carlos Perez, with two runners on base in the first inning.

The Venezuelans brought out their power and hit another pair of solo homers, by lead-off man and third baseman Hernán Pérez against second reliever Andy Rodríguez, as well as by clean-up hitter and catcher Robinson Chirinos against left-hander Livan Moinelo, the third reliever used by Cuban manager Armando Ferrer.

The Cuban team had hit eight of its 10 hits in the first five innings, including a home run by Erisbel Arruebarruena with Yosvani Alarcón on base in the fourth inning off the bids of starter and winner Aníbal Sánchez, and Cuba reduced the gap to two runs.
But after Yudil Mujica's towering double with Roel Santos on first on a balk in the fifth inning -Cuba got within 3-4 on the scoreboard-, the Cubans were pinned down for 4.2 innings by four relievers. And they did not sound hit again until the ninth inning, when Ferrer brought up Guillermo Avilés and Lisban Correa, after one out.

Avilés hit a single and then Correa hit a huge home run to make the score 5-6, with which the game ended, since Rafael Viñales completed the strikeout of Alfredo Despaigne, who could not complete his at bat when he was injured in a 2-2 count against reliever Moisés Gómez.

After this failure, Cuba is obliged to beat the Canadian team tomorrow, as a second loss would take it out of the path to the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. The starter against the northerners will be Cuban right-hander Carlos Juan Viera.

In the other afternoon game of the day, the Dominican Republic defeated Puerto Rico 5-2 in group A. In the evening, the United States-Nicaragua (A) and Canada-Colombia (B) matches will take place.