As I am in Phoenix for Spring Training a lot of
the players in many of the camps here, specially
the Hispanic players are trying to follow, when their
time allows this first World Baseball Classic and
it is nice to see the passion they are exhibiting.

By Amaury Pi-GonzalezCan’t help to feel passionate about this World
Baseball Classic, specially when I watch a game
that is played at Hiram Bithorn Stadium in San Juan,
Puerto Rico. The Puertorican fans should be commended for the support they have showed
their team. They have done it with class, with
dignity and with respect to the game.

Isn’t great to see people enjoying a baseball game
and rooting for their teams without an organist
or a scoreboard telling them when to clap,when to
make noise, when to scream ?

This reminds me a lot when I was a young kid and
my father used to take me to the old Cuban
Professional Winter League games in Havana,
Cuba. We used to root for the Havana Lions
and the Alacranes Scorpions where the
“eternal rivals”. Something like the Giants
vs. Dodgers rivalry or the Yankees vs Red Sox.
When they played the passion was evident and
the fans supported their team for the whole game,
nobody left early,everybody was into the game
and it was baseball the way I remember.The
real game of baseball as they intended it to
be played.

The games between Dominican Republicf and
Cuba, Venezuela and Dominican Republic,
Puerto Rico vs Cuba and such where played under
an ambiance of great support by fans that simply
love the game, love their players and love their
country.

I joined Doug Greenwald during his broadcast from Scottsdale between the Giants and the Rangers. The webcast was well received and we got lots of e-mails from people asking yours truly questions about the WBC. One e-m asked me if I felt that Latin fans showed more emotion than american fans. Others asked about the great example the fans in Puerto Rico have shown with an all-out support of their team.

All the Latino players I have spoken with here have told me they loved the idea and (when they can)they have been watching the games,rooting for their countries. Inside the Mariners dressing room
in Peoria, Raul Ibanez of the Mariners said this
looking at the television set inside their clubhouse and when the Cuba vs Dominican game got under way:
“get a hold of those uniforms by the Cubans” Ibanez who was born in New York and lives in Miami during the off season is of Cuban-born parents. The Cuban team uniform are solid
red like the red you see in a Fire truck, I am
sure the old Soviet Union would be proud of
that solid communist color.

Inside the Giants dressing room in Scottsdale
Abraham Nunez was telling me he didn’t really wanted Alex Rodriguez to play for the Dominican team and he added than he prefers to see Miguel Tejada or Adrian Beltre in the Dominican infield than Alex Rodriguez.

Alex Rodriguez was born in New York City and
raised in Miami,Florida. His mother and father
were born in the Dominican Republic and he
could have chosen to play for the Dominican
team, but chose to play for the USA team.

I know some people like to use stereotypes like
“Latinos are more emotional”. I do not see
anything wrong with showing emotion,showing
passion for the game of baseball.

As we watched and commented about the game
today at Scottsdale Stadium between the Giants
and the Rangers we saw something as rare as
the over 1 inch of rain they got here last weekend.
We witnessed Barry Bonds bunting the ball and
advancing a runner from second to third, who later scored. Bonds went 3 for 3 with a home run.

At least during a few weeks this Spring Training
many baseball fans are talking baseball and not
steroids zand that is a good thing. The World
Baseball Classic has a lot to do with that and
I welcome that.

I have no idea what the Commissioner meant
when he said that he will “make a decision
on Bonds after he read the book that the
two SF Chronicle reporters wrote and will be
out later this month”. He cannot suspend Bonds
because he read on a book that 200 people that
were interviewed swear by it, that Bonds used
steroids. This is America and although Bonds might
have been already convicted in the court of
public opinion the truth is that he has never
been proven positive for the use of steroids.

Nevertheless, a lot of people are interested to
see what (if anything) Selig is going to do.
I am not defending Bonds, I am only saying that
you cannot punish a person because he broke
a law that really was not in existence.

I wonder also about a guy like Roger Clemens
who is over 40 also and seems to be stronger,
but nobody has ever questioned Clemens or
insinuated that he might have been using
some form of human growth hormones.

The World Baseball Classic will probably be
here to stay. Next one is scheduled for the
year 2009 and hopefully more countries
(more than 16) can form a team. I am sure
that Nicaragua and Colombia can form a team
at least as good as those of China,Taipei,
Netherlands and South Africa.

Orestes Destrade, wbo host a Baseball Talk
show in Spanish for XM Satellite Radio in
Washington, D.C. was hired by ESPN to do colorr commentary during this WBC and has done a
great job. I am a regular participant as a correspondent on his show. Jose Mota, one of
Manny Mota’s siblings is also doing work for
ESPN during this Baseball Classic and doing
a very good job. I substituted Mota a couple of
days ago when the Angels faced the Mariners
in Peoria and was asked to sit for Mota and
work the game over 830 AM radio the new
Spanish radio station for the L.A Angels of
Anaheim. For the record that is the most
powerful radio station in the USA and was
recently bought by Angels owner Artie Moreno.

This has been a great Spring here in the
Valley of the Sun, the World Baseball Classic
has added to the baseball chatter and specially
among Hispanic players there has been a
very very positive reaction to this event.

Adios, for a while…