Although Cuban-American relations have lightened up immensely in the very recent past, most players have yet to take advantage of the newly-found freedoms. You see, every Cuban-born athlete playing in the Major Leagues defected from Cuba at one point or another, and overcame truly challenging and dangerous obstacles throughout the process (to say the least).
But the largely undiscussed difficulty brought about through defection is the inability to return home or see one’s family ever again. Unlike players from other foreign markets, Cuban athletes thought they were making very permanent decisions upon leaving the island and heading for America.
But now, with the loosened restrictions between the two countries, there can be exhibition games being played – like the Rays played against the Cuban national team today – returning players home to a country and a family they thought they had (reluctantly) left behind:
After 3 years apart, @DayronVarona is reunited with his family in La Habana. #RaysInCuba pic.twitter.com/Bw3sUvWMxK
— Tampa Bay Rays (@RaysBaseball) March 21, 2016
Dayron Varona traveled with the Tampa Bay Rays to Havana Cuba, to participate in the international exhibition game, despite an absence from the 40 man roster and having never played above AA ball. Rays stars Chris Archer and Evan Longoria reportedly lobbied to make it happen (via ESPN):
“It will mean everything to him,” Archer said when asked about Varona’s opportunity to travel with the team to Cuba. “He hasn’t seen his family for three years. I hope he gets the opportunity to go running out to the outfield as a starter and have 40,000 or 50,000 fans screaming for him. It will be a surreal moment for him. He’s got a lot of guts if he manages to hold back the tears, because it will be a special moment.”
You can read more, including quotes from Varona and his family here at The Comeback, as this beautiful, awesome story unfolds. I’m happy for players like Varona, and hope that this is the first step towards eliminating this issue all together and for the foreseeable future.