Venezuelan Baseball in Jeopardy
Left handed pitching leftist President Hugo Chavez may be making it difficult for Venezuelan ballplayers to make it to the majors.
Unpredictable Venezuelan Presidant/Dictator Hugo Chavez has been implementing socialist roadblocks in his home country making it more and more difficult for MLB teams to develop and sign players from Venezuela. ESPN has a special feature article on this topic today that I thought was an interesting read. It is called Politics Makes Toxic Mix with MLB’s Investment in Venezuela.
It is an interesting read to be sure. One thing I found to be notable was that in 1999, Chavez pitched 9 innings versus a team of Old-Timers managed by Cuban dictator Fidel Castro. A contest between longtime friends, the game was heralded afterward as strengthening the bonds between Cuba and Venezuela.
The only thing predictable about Chavez is that he’s unpredictable.
Whether this moves into quasi Cuban situation remains to be seen but I just can’t see Chavez taking his players and holding them within the country. His relations on oil & even foreign (ie MLB) management coming into the country may change but I couldn’t see him keeping players out of the MLB.
Whether rule changes effect the practice of signing 16 year olds (which some would call unfair to begin with) to minor contracts in the future, Venezuelan players will mostly likely still venture into the MLB in the future. At least IMO.