MIAMI.- Starting next February 1, Miami will host the Caribbean Series. Seven monarchs of winter ball, in their respective leagues, will seek to establish themselves as the kings of Caribbean ball at LoanDepot Park, home of the Marlins.
This will be the third time that the city of the sun hosts this regional tournament, but the first time in 33 years and also for the first time it will be played in a Major League stadium.
Just a few days after hearing the voice of “play ball” in Miami, some teams have already been crowned in their respective leagues and are preparing for the international tournament, while in other championships they are looking for a ticket to the Caribbean Series.
This Wednesday, January 24, the Naranjeros del Hermosillo team secured its trip to Miami by completing the sweep of the Venados de Mazatlán in the Mexican final.
The Hermosillo team, with its scepter, established itself as the top winner of the Mexican Pacific League by winning the 17th title in its history.
Along with the Mexicans, the Criollos de Caguas (Puerto Rico), Curacao Suns (Curaçao) and Nicaragua also already have their invitation in hand. Although the Gigantes de Rivas became champions, they decided to make a selection.
Meanwhile, in Venezuela the Tiburones de La Guaira lead the Cardenales de Lara in the final series (2-0), while in the Dominican Republic Tigres del Licey or Estrellas Orientales resume the final tonight with two wins per side.
While in Panama, the Panama Metro team awaits a rival for the final series.
Why don’t Colombia and Cuba play in Miami?
Colombia, champion in 2022 in Santo Domingo, and Cuba, which was invited in 2023 after not participating since 2019, will not be part of the tournament in 2024. Several factors contributed. Last year, in Venezuela, it was played in two stadiums, when traditionally it is done in the same venue, as it will be in the Marlins park this year and this makes the schedule difficult.
There are four members of the Caribbean Professional Baseball Confederation (Venezuela, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico and Mexico) that always participate. For the invited countries, they were asked for an entry fee of $300,000 dollars, according to information from ESPN, in addition to covering their own expenses and seeking local sponsorships for $100,000 dollars.
In the case of Colombia, FEDELIGAS AND DIPROBEISBOL did not work at the same time and the requirements were not met in a timely manner. Those from the island, for their part, were not invited, partly due to the fear of desertions, since Miami is one of the cities in the world with the largest population of Cuban exiles.
