Cuban baseball team to attend World Classic continues training in Asia

HAVANA, Cuba, Feb 27 (ACN) Once again victim of its poor offensive performance, the Cuban team that is training for the 5th World Baseball Classic lost 1-3 today in its second and last game against the Fubon Guardians club, which plays in the professional league of Taipei, China.

Many teams in the world would like to have in their lineup a first and second bats like outfielders Roel Santos and Yoelkis Guibert, who are always on the bases because of their good contact with the ball and their speed on the pads. But mentor Armando Jhonson's team has not taken advantage of the good performance of both.

And today, the reason for the failure has been the same as in previous games, low productivity of their men in charge of driving runs. Between the third, fourth and fifth hitters, they went 12-2: the shortstop Erisbel Arruebarrena (3-1), the immovable designated hitter Alfredo Despaigne (4-0 with three strikeouts) and the starter Yadir Drake (5-1).

Right-hander Jose Ramon Rodriguez threw four effective innings, although he allowed Jhang Jin-De's solo home run. The other two runs were fouled off left-hander Naikel Cruz in the bottom of the fifth, on an error by bullpen man Erisbel Arruebarrena, followed by two successive hits.
Cuba scored in the eighth inning on consecutive hits by Santos and Guibert, and a sacrifice fly by Arruebarrena. This was the fourth successive defeat if the last two games played in Japan are added.

The numbers of the Cuban team stand for themselves: only four runs scored in the last 40 innings played if you add some of the hits in Japan.

Cuba-Classic is needing the incorporation to the group of its major league players like Yoan Moncada, Andy Ibañez and Luis Robert Moiran, as well as Yoennis Cespedes to see if it changes the face of the team just nine days before the start of the World Baseball Classic.