Cuba might be opening its doors (baseball)

[Judi Lynn]

01/30/2004 12:31 PM ET
Cuba might be opening its doors
Officials express interest in playing internationally
By Joe Connor / MLB.com



Perhaps at no other time during its post-revolutionary history has Cuba's baseball program been under such a microscope. The attempted December exodus by superstar Kendry Morales was just one of several made by Cuba's top players in recent months. And with the Olympic Games looming -- and the bitter taste of the 2000 Olympic defeat to the United States still fresh in Cuban minds -- what does the future hold for Latin America's baseball superpower?

In an exclusive interview with MLB.com, Cuba's National League commissioner, Carlos Rodriguez, expressed surprising interest in future contact with Major League Baseball, including possible participation in a projected 2005 World Cup, future exhibition games, and even Spring Training invitations by Major League clubs.

"We are willing to listen," Rodriguez said. "We are open to future contact, yes. Of course, the problem is not ours. It depends on the U.S. government, the State Department, granting us permission. If the situation changes, we would have a conversation then."

According to officials with the U.S. State Department and the Office of Foreign Asset Management Control (OFAC), a division of the U.S. Treasury Department, which grants licenses for travel, that may not be a major impediment.
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