Puerto Rico national baseball team
Encyclopedia
The Puerto Rico National Baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...

 Team
(Puerto Rico National Baseball Selection or Puerto Rican National Baseball Selection) is a team that is selected by the Puerto Rican Baseball Federation to compete in major international events in representation of Puerto Rico. The team is usually ensembled with thirty players from the Professional Baseball League of Puerto Rico and Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...

.

The team has participated in many international competitions, such as the Caribbean World Series
Caribbean World Series
The Caribbean Series , also called the Caribbean World Series is the highest baseball tournament at club level in Latin America. The league winners from the Winter Leagues of Dominican Republic, Mexico, Puerto Rico and Venezuela participate in the tournament...

, the Central American and Caribbean Games
Central American and Caribbean Games
The Central American and Caribbean Games are a multi-sport regional championships event, held quadrennial , typically in the middle year between Summer Olympics...

, the Pan American Games
Pan American Games
The Pan-American or Pan American Games are a major event in the Americas featuring summer and formerly winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Pan American Games are the second largest multi-sport event after the Summer Olympics...

, the World Baseball Classic
World Baseball Classic
The World Baseball Classic is an international baseball tournament sanctioned by the International Baseball Federation and created by Major League Baseball , the Major League Baseball Players Association , and other professional baseball leagues and their players associations around the world...

 and others. They are currently the 10th ranked baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...

 team in the world.

2008-present

Puerto Rico began this Olympic cycle participating in the 2008 America Baseball Cup. The team debuted on September 26, 2008, defeating Mexico
Mexico national baseball team
The Mexico national baseball team is the baseball team which represents Mexico in international tournaments. They are currently the eighth ranked baseball team in the world.-Pan American Games:*1951 Bronze Medal *1963 Bronze Medal...

 2:1, this game was won by Josué Matos. Puerto Rico concluded the tournament's first round undefeated, with victories over Brazil
Brazil national baseball team
The Brazil national baseball team is the national baseball team of Brazil. The team represents Brazil in international competitions. The team is currently ranked 36th in the world, behind the Belgium national baseball team and ahead of Nigeria...

 (6:3), Aruba
Aruba national baseball team
The Aruba national baseball team is the national baseball team of Aruba. The team represents Aruba in international competitions....

 (7:0) and Guatemala
Guatemala national baseball team
The Guatemala national baseball team is the national baseball team of Guatemala. The team is controlled by the Amateur Baseball Federation of Guatemala, and represents the nation in international competitions. The team is a member of the Pan American Baseball Confederation....

 (8:0). In the first two games, Andy González scored four doubles and Carlos Rivera
Carlos Rivera (baseball)
Carlos Alberto Rivera is a Major League Baseball first baseman who is currently with the Petroleros de Minatitlan in the Mexican Baseball League. He played two seasons at the major league level for the Pittsburgh Pirates.He was drafted by the Pirates in the 10th round of the 1996 Major League...

 hit his second home run of the round. In the game against Aruba, Orlando Román threw a perfect game
Perfect game
A perfect game is defined by Major League Baseball as a game in which a pitcher pitches a victory that lasts a minimum of nine innings and in which no opposing player reaches base. Thus, the pitcher cannot allow any hits, walks, hit batsmen, or any opposing player to reach base safely for any...

 over seven innings. In the second round, Puerto Rico defeated Panama
Panama national baseball team
The Panama national baseball team is the national team of Panama. They are currently the 16th ranked baseball team in the world.- Roster :PitchersManuel Acosta,Albenis Castillo,Bienvenido Cedeno,Bruce Chen,Manuel Corpas,Jorge Cortez,...

 (9:4) to qualify for the 2009 Baseball World Cup
2009 Baseball World Cup
The 2009 Baseball World Cup was an international baseball tournament that started on 9 September 2009. The final was held in Nettuno, Italy on 27 September 2009. It was the 38th time the World Cup took place, and the first time that it was hosted by a continent rather than a single country...

. On the second date, the team lost their only game of the tournament to Venezuela
Venezuela national baseball team
The Venezuela national baseball team is the national team of Venezuela. They are currently ranked seventh in the world by the International Baseball Federation.-World Baseball Classic:...

 (5:4). In the next game, the team defeated Netherlands Antilles by ten runs (14:4). Puerto Rico won the 2008 Americas Baseball Cup on October 5, 2008, defeating Nicaragua
Nicaragua national baseball team
The Nicaragua national baseball team is the national baseball team of Nicaragua. Considered the best in Central America along with Panama It represents Nicaragua in international tournaments.- Placings :Olympic Games* 1992 : did not qualify...

 in the final.

For the Baseball World Cup, Puerto Rico, once again led by Eduardo Pérez, created a rosted compossed of mostly professional players, including several Major League Baseball athletes. The final cut included infielders Alex Cintrón, Rubén Gotay, Melvin Falú, Carlos Rivera and Angel Sánchez; catchers Orlando Mercado Jr., Stephen Morales and Raúl Casanova; pitchers Luis Atilano, Mario Santiago, José Santiago, Orlando Román, Juan Padilla, Angel García, Richard Rodríguez, Miguel Mejía, Alexander Woodson, Nelvin Fuentes, Melvin Pizarro and Efraín Nieves as well as outfielders Miguel Negrón, Luis Matos y Miguel Abreu. José Valentín was selected to perform as both infielder and outfielder. Javier Valentín and Juan González were evaluated, but excluded from the final cut due to previous injuries. The fact that most of the roster was professional received some criticism from the amateur circuit. Journalist Duldin Meléndez of Periodico La Cordillera wrote in a piece that "[Pérez] is not familiar with the [amateur] players and has not even seen them play" expressing a similar concern about the Federation's president, Israel Roldán. Juan Carlos Díaz, infielder of the Bravos de Cidra in Béisbol AA, openly expressed disappointment when he did not receive an invitation, noting that he deserved it after leading the Liga Caribe division with an average of .632 and the league's final in offensive. Making its debut on September 10, 2009, Puerto Rico’s first opponent is Cuba.

For the 2010 Central American and Caribbean Games
2010 Central American and Caribbean Games
The 21st Central American and Caribbean Games took place in Mayagüez, Puerto Rico, from July 18, 2010 to August 1, 2010.-Bid:...

, the number of players per roster was limited to 20. Consequently, players such as Juan González and José Valentín were not included in the final cut. Carlos Delgado was included in the preliminary list, but was unable to compete due to injury. The team was mostly composed of profesional players such as Víctor Raúl González, Orlando Mercado, Jorge Jiménez, Philip Cuadrado, Adrián Ortiz, Efraín Nieves, Ricard Rodríguez Nick Ortiz, Armando Ríos, Christopher Amador, Edwards Guzmán and Mario Santiago, but also included three amateurs, Antonio Acevedo, Joycet Feliciano and Manuel Romero. Amateur pitcher Jean Ortega was a last minute addition due to an injury suffered by Acevedo. Puerto Rico debuted with a victory over Guatemala in seven innings. The following night the team recorded its second victory, 3:2, over Venezuela, in a game that extended to one extra inning. Efraín Nieves debuted with a shutout victory over Panama, allowing only one hit. Puerto Rico was the leader in its group, closing the first round with a 6:0 victory over the United States Virgin Islands.

For the 2010 America Baseball Cup, Eduardo Pérez
Eduardo Perez
Eduardo Atanasio Pérez, a Cuban-American is a former Major League Baseball and Nippon Professional Baseball player. He is currently the hitting coach of the Miami Marlins. He batted and threw right-handed and joined the league in after playing college baseball under head coach Mike Martin for the...

 assembled an entirely different roster. Several players from the Minor Leagues who were unable to compete at the Central American and Caribbean Games, because this event was not sanctioned by the IBAF, now joined the pre-selection. Only few players, such as Irving Falú were kept from the CAC team. The most notable addition was González, who was joined by Fernando Cabrera, Kiko Calero
Kiko Calero
Enrique Nomar "Kiko" Calero is a Major League Baseball relief pitcher, who is currently a free agent.-Professional career:...

, Federico Báez, Saúl Rivera
Saul Rivera
Rabell Saúl Rivera is a right-handed Major League Baseball relief pitcher currently a free agent.-Career:...

, Ramón Vázquez
Ramón Vázquez
Ramón Luis Vázquez is a Puerto Rican professional baseball infielder. Vázquez has played with the Seattle Mariners , San Diego Padres , Boston Red Sox , Cleveland Indians , Texas Rangers , and Pittsburgh Pirates...

, Gabriel (Gaby) Martinez, Luis Figueroa, Jorge Padilla, Alex Cora
Alex Cora
José Alexander "Alex" Cora is a Major League Baseball infielder. He played college baseball at the University of Miami.-Early career:...

 and Christian Colón. Puerto Rico was drafted to Group A, along Argentina, Aruba, Canada, Panama and the Dominican Republic.

Caribbean Series

In 1995, the Senadores de San Juan managed by Luis "Torito" Meléndez
Luis Meléndez (baseball)
Luis Antonio Meléndez Santana is a former professional baseball player. He played all or part of eight seasons in Major League Baseball from 1970 until 1977, for the St...

, assembled one of the strongest teams in the history of the Caribbean Series. The group, which was dubbed "Dream Team", featured Major League Baseball players in most positions, counting with a lineup that included Roberto Alomar
Roberto Alomar
Roberto "Robbie" Alomar Velázquez is a former Major League Baseball player , regarded by many as one of the best second basemen in MLB history. During his career he won more Gold Gloves than any other second baseman in history, and also won the second-most Silver Slugger Awards for a second...

, Carlos Baerga
Carlos Baerga
Carlos Obed Baerga Ortiz is a former Major League Baseball player. After spending most of his career as a second baseman, he was used at various positions late in his career.-Cleveland Indians:...

, Bernie Williams
Bernie Williams
Bernabé Williams Figueroa Jr. is a former Major League Baseball outfielder and Puerto Rican musician.-Early life:...

, Juan González, Edgar Martínez
Edgar Martinez
Edgar Martínez , nicknamed "Gar" and "Papi", is a former Major League Baseball third baseman and designated hitter. He spent his entire 18-year Major League career with the Seattle Mariners. He is the cousin of Carmelo Martínez.-Seattle Mariners:On December 19, 1982, the Seattle Mariners signed...

, Carlos Delgado
Carlos Delgado
Carlos Juan Delgado Hernández is a retired Puerto Rican professional baseball player. With 473 home runs and 1,512 RBI, he holds the all-time home run and RBI records among Puerto Rican players....

, Rubén Sierra
Rubén Sierra
Rubén Angel Sierra García is a former Major League Baseball outfielder. Sierra also goes by the nicknames El Caballo and El Indio....

, Rey Sánchez
Rey Sánchez
Rey Francisco Sánchez Guadalupe is a former Major League Baseball infielder. He attended high school in California and was drafted in the 13th round of the amateur baseball draft by the Texas Rangers. He played in their minor league system until , when he was traded to the Chicago Cubs for minor...

 and Carmelo Martínez
Carmelo Martinez
Carmelo Martínez Salgado is a former professional baseball player. He played all or part of nine seasons in Major League Baseball, primarily as a first baseman and outfielder, from 1983 to 1991. He also played one season in Japan for the Orix BlueWave in...

. Puerto Rico's offensive dominated the tournament, eventually winning the Caribbean Series' championship with an undefeated record of 6–0. The team was responsible for the only two losses of the Dominican Republic, the country that finished second, scoring victories against Pedro Martínez
Pedro Martínez
Pedro Jaime Martínez is a retired Major League Baseball pitcher. He is an eight-time All-Star, three-time Cy Young Award winner, and 2004 World Series champion...

 and José Rijo
José Rijo
José Antonio Rijo Abreu is a former right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball who spent the majority of his career with the Cincinnati Reds .-Playing career:...

 in the third and sixth games respectively.

World Baseball Classic

Puerto Rico competed in the 2009 World Baseball Classic
2009 World Baseball Classic
The 2009 World Baseball Classic was an international baseball competition. It is the only international baseball tournament to feature a large number of players from the major leagues of North America and Asia. It began on March 5, 2009, and finished March 23, 2009.Japan emerged victorious for the...

, hosting the games of Pool D at Estadio Hiram Bithorn in San Juan
San Juan, Puerto Rico
San Juan , officially Municipio de la Ciudad Capital San Juan Bautista , is the capital and most populous municipality in Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the United States. As of the 2010 census, it had a population of 395,326 making it the 46th-largest city under the jurisdiction of...

. Puerto Rico secured advancement into Round 2 with wins over Panama
Panama national baseball team
The Panama national baseball team is the national team of Panama. They are currently the 16th ranked baseball team in the world.- Roster :PitchersManuel Acosta,Albenis Castillo,Bienvenido Cedeno,Bruce Chen,Manuel Corpas,Jorge Cortez,...

 and the Netherlands
Netherlands national baseball team
The Netherlands national baseball team is the national baseball team of the Netherlands. They are currently the top team in Europe and currently the sixth ranked men's baseball team in the IBAF World Rankings....

, but were eliminated by the USA.

Puerto Rico women's national baseball team

In November 2009, the Puerto Rico women's national baseball team made its international debut, participating in the first edition of the Women’s Pan American Baseball Cup, which was classificatory to the 2010 Women's Baseball World Cup
2010 Women's Baseball World Cup
The 2010 Women's Baseball World Cup was an international baseball competition that was held in Venezuela from August 12 to August 22, 2010. Japan successfully defended their title from 2008, defeating Australia 13–3 in the final.-Teams:...

. In its first game, the team defeated Venezuela with scores of 6:3. Puerto Rico scored five runs in the first inning and one in the seventh, while Vezuela scored 1 in the first, second and fourth innings. The game was won by Johana Ramos. In its second game, the team defeated Cuba
Cuba women's national baseball team
The Cuba women's national baseball team is a national team of Cuba and is controlled by the Baseball Federation of Cuba. It represents the nation in women's international competition. The team is a member of the Pan American Baseball Confederation....

 7:5. Cuba scored first with two runs in the first and one in the third, but Puerto Rico took the lead by scoring twice in the third and added two more runs in the fifth, in the seventh inning Puerto Rico scored three times and Cuba two. The game was won by Krizia Rivera, who only had fifteen years, while Elizabeth Santana registered a saved game. For the team, Lisandra batted 3-2 with an RBI, Coralys Ortíz 4-2 and Yariam Rivera with an RBI. In the third date, the team participated in a double-header. In the first game Puerto Rico defeated the Dominican Republic by mercy rule, 10:0. With this victory the team advanced to the finals, classifying to the World Cup. In the second game of the date, they defeated Cuba in a rematch 3:1. After four games, Puerto Rico dominated the statistics in batting average (.347), earned run average (2.24) ans defensive percent (.950). In individual fields, first baseman Berríos, who was twenty years old, led in hits (6), RBIs (5), runs (7) and stolen bases (3) and was second in batting average (.500). In their fifth game, Puerto Rico defeated the Dominican Republic by mercy rule in the third inning, 20:0. The game was won by Ariana Vélez. The team concluded their first participation by winning the silver medal, only losing to Venezuela in the finals. In 2010, the team won the V Cuban Sports Olympics, defeating the Occidentales de Cuba seven runs to one in the final. Yinoska Claudio was selected the tournament's Most Valuable Player, also finishing second in batting average (.571). The team compiled a record of 4-1, only losing to Centrales de Cuba.

World Baseball Classic record

  • 2006
    2006 World Baseball Classic
    ---------Pool B:-------------Pool C:-------------Pool D:-------------Pool 1:-----------------Pool 2:-------------Finals:-Semifinals:-Final:-Final standings:...

     - 5th place
  • 2009
    2009 World Baseball Classic
    The 2009 World Baseball Classic was an international baseball competition. It is the only international baseball tournament to feature a large number of players from the major leagues of North America and Asia. It began on March 5, 2009, and finished March 23, 2009.Japan emerged victorious for the...

     - 5th place

Olympic record

  • 1988
    Baseball at the 1988 Summer Olympics
    Baseball at the 1988 Summer Olympics was a demonstration sport for the seventh time. Eight teams competed in Seoul in the baseball tournament. The format used was the same as the tournament of four years earlier. Five teams that had competed in the 1984 tournament returned.-Preliminary round:There...

     - 3rd place (demonstration sport)

  • 1992
    Baseball at the 1992 Summer Olympics
    Baseball had its debut as an official medal sport at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona. Eight nations competed, with the preliminary phase consisting of each team playing every other team. Playoffs were then held, with the four highest ranked teams advancing...

     - 5th place

Baseball World Cup record

  • GOLD: 1 (1951
    1951 Amateur World Series
    The 1951 Amateur World Series was the 9th Amateur World Series and was unusual in several ways. First off, it was the only Amateur World Series ever held in Mexico, taking place in Mexico City. Secondly, it was the last time the Cuba national baseball team participated in and did not win an Amateur...

    )

  • SILVER: 4 (1947 1948 1973 1976)

  • BRONZE: 4 (1952 1965 1970 1973)

Pan American Games record

  • SILVER: 2 (1959 1991)

  • BRONZE: 4 (1967 1979 1987 1995)

Intercontinental Cup record

  • SILVER: 1 (1973)

  • BRONZE: 1 (1989)

Central American and Caribbean record

  • GOLD: 2 (1959
    1959 Central American and Caribbean Games (baseball)
    The 1959 Central American and Caribbean Games were held in Caracas, Venezuela from January 6 through January 18, 1959. Cuba could not come as the Cuban revolution was going on....

     2002
    2002 Central American and Caribbean Games (baseball)
    The 2002 Central American and Caribbean Games were held in San Salvador, El Salvador from 27 November through 7 December 2002. The defending champion Cuban national baseball team did not come, citing security concerns....

    )

  • SILVER: 3 (1962 1966 1990)

  • BRONZE: 3 (1974 1978 1993)

Caribbean Series record

  • 14 times Champions: 1951, 1953–55, 1972, 1974–75, 1978, 1983, 1987, 1992–93, 1995, 2000

See also

  • World Baseball Classic
    World Baseball Classic
    The World Baseball Classic is an international baseball tournament sanctioned by the International Baseball Federation and created by Major League Baseball , the Major League Baseball Players Association , and other professional baseball leagues and their players associations around the world...

  • Olympic baseball
  • World Cup
    World Cup of Baseball
    The Baseball World Cup is an international tournament in which national baseball teams from around the world compete. It is sanctioned by the International Baseball Federation . Along with the World Baseball Classic, it is one of two active tournaments considered by the IBAF to be a major world...

  • Americas Baseball Cup
    2008 Americas Baseball Cup
    The 2008 America Baseball Cup is being held in the Venezuelan cities of Puerto Ordaz and El Tigre, from September 26 to October 7. The tournament acts as a qualifier for the 2009 World Cup....

  • Pan American Games
    Baseball at the Pan American Games
    The baseball tournament at the Pan American Games has long been considered to be one of the premier international baseball events in the world, even higher than the Olympic Games. This is because the level of competition is higher than in the Olympics, where only two teams from the Americas...

  • Intercontinental Cup
    Intercontinental Cup (baseball)
    The Intercontinental Cup is a baseball tournament between the members of the International Baseball Federation . It was first held in 1973 in Italy, and was held every other year following until 1999....

  • Central American and Caribbean Games
    Baseball at the Central American and Caribbean Games
    Baseball was a sport at the inaugural Central American Games in 1926 and it has remained part of the event's sporting programme throughout its history. Cuba has dominated the tournament since its inception.-Results:-Medal table:-See also:...

  • IBAF World Rankings
    IBAF World Rankings
    The IBAF World Rankings is a ranking system for men's national teams in baseball, currently led by Cuba. The teams of the member nations of IBAF , baseball's world governing body, are ranked based on their tournament results with the most successful teams being ranked highest...

  • List of players from Puerto Rico in MLB
  • Baseball awards
    Baseball awards
    Professional baseball leagues and amateur-baseball organizations around the world, various sportswriting associations, and other interested groups confer awards on various baseball teams, players, managers, coaches, executives, broadcasters, and writers for excellence in achievement, sportsmanship,...


External links

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