Catcher In WBC Reportedly Defected From Cuba After Losing To Team USA

WBC player Ivan Prieto

Getty Image / Norte Photo


The World Baseball Classic has come to an end after Shohei Ohtani clinched the championship for Japan on Tuesday night.

However, some news is trickling in about another team that was eliminated over the previous weekend.

According to the Local 10 News Team in Miami, WBC player Ivan Prieto, a bullpen catcher for Cuba, has reportedly defected from his country.

“The Center for a Free Cuba in Washington has confirmed Ivan Prieto, a bullpen catcher for Cuba’s national baseball team, defected following the World Baseball Classic in Miami on Sunday.”

Nobody is sure where Prieto is right now after his team suffered the loss to Team USA at the WBC.

Ramon Sanchez, an activist and critic of the Cuban government, commented on the situation, per the Local 10 News Team.

“Just before boarding the plane, he just vanished so we suspect he has defected. They tried. We learned that they had kept them in a bus for a couple of hours just before the game trying to contain them.”

From the sounds of it, Prieto may have made a move at the airport while his team was heading home from the WBC.

Cuba, which is a well-known communist country, has people attempting to flee all of the time. Ramon Sanchez reveals that even the baseball players seek freedom from the country.

“Everybody wants to live in a free county. Even as baseball players in Cuba they are a little bit better off. Come on, they make $30 a month.”

Local 10 News reports that the Cuban government has not responded to Ivan Prieto’s defecting after the WBC. Additionally, it is unclear how the USA will handle Prieto if he’s found.