October 31, 201312 yr Greetings and Salutations, I have a team Cuba Abreu's jersey (79). I have worn the jersey a couple of times. I went to an AA game to see Orioles Urrutia and they showed me on TV. At a MLB ball park, one guy told me he remembered Abreu when he was playing for the Phillies. Obviously, he was referring to Bobby Abreu. I will be the most popular fan if I show up at U.S. Cellular Field. I am debating whether or not I should sell it. It is in very good condition. As for Abreu's makeup, he is very quiet guy. He is the anti-Puig. Both were teammates for the Cienfuegos Elephants. The Elephants SS was trying to leave too and he is not on this year roster. Abreu's favorite book is the Bible and he loves watching cartoons with his son. Remember, he IS NOT accustomed to play in cold weather and he needs to get accustomed to MLB pitching. I think he will hit for a higher average than Cespy. Cubano
October 31, 201312 yr Hold on to that jersey until he has his first MVP season. Q - Do you think he will suffer from Alexei-itis (aka Blanket syndrome - gotta get back to the dugout and under those blankets!) in his first seasons in Chicago?
October 31, 201312 yr Bienvenido, Cubano. Quedate el jersey de Abreu hasta se vuelve un estrella. Nos faltan tus opiniones y tu conocimiento aqui. Espero que tu empieza escribir de nuevo.
October 31, 201312 yr Cubano, if you were to rate Puig, Soler, Cespedes and Abreu 1-4 based on their hitting only, how would you rate them?
October 31, 201312 yr QUOTE (KyYlE23 @ Oct 30, 2013 -> 08:10 PM) Cubano, if you were to rate Puig, Soler, Cespedes and Abreu 1-4 based on their hitting only, how would you rate them? You should throw Despaigne in there as well. By the way, whatever happened to Gourriel (SS)? Wasn't he the best player on those teams 3-4-5 seasons ago? What about Viciedo, haha? Edited October 31, 201312 yr by caulfield12
October 31, 201312 yr QUOTE (daggins @ Oct 30, 2013 -> 06:47 PM) Hold on to that jersey until he has his first MVP season. Q - Do you think he will suffer from Alexei-itis (aka Blanket syndrome - gotta get back to the dugout and under those blankets!) in his first seasons in Chicago? He's a little more insulated than the thin Alexei . We can start throwing around excuses for him already if we want. Adjust to ML pitching, cold weather, longer season but hopefully that bonus he got will motivate him to stay in peak physical condition and wear his hitting shoes from the get go.
October 31, 201312 yr QUOTE (Cubano @ Oct 30, 2013 -> 08:36 PM) Greetings and Salutations, I have a team Cuba Abreu's jersey (79). I have worn the jersey a couple of times. I went to an AA game to see Orioles Urrutia and they showed me on TV. At a MLB ball park, one guy told me he remembered Abreu when he was playing for the Phillies. Obviously, he was referring to Bobby Abreu. I will be the most popular fan if I show up at U.S. Cellular Field. I am debating whether or not I should sell it. It is in very good condition. As for Abreu's makeup, he is very quiet guy. He is the anti-Puig. Both were teammates for the Cienfuegos Elephants. The Elephants SS was trying to leave too and he is not on this year roster. Abreu's favorite book is the Bible and he loves watching cartoons with his son. Remember, he IS NOT accustomed to play in cold weather and he needs to get accustomed to MLB pitching. I think he will hit for a higher average than Cespy. Cubano Welcome back, Cubano! I was wondering what your take on Abreu would be. I hope you post here again more often - it's always good to hear your opinions, especially your evaluations of the Cuban players.
October 31, 201312 yr QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Oct 30, 2013 -> 10:02 PM) You should throw Despaigne in there as well. By the way, whatever happened to Gourriel (SS)? Wasn't he the best player on those teams 3-4-5 seasons ago? What about Viciedo, haha? Viciedo is a known quantity. Despaigne isnt on a MLB team (or signed by a MLB team) so he doesnt apply
October 31, 201312 yr Good to see you back as well Cubano. Missed your contributions around these parts. Very interesting to see what you posted about the guys personality, as it really seemed to jive with his reactions on his press day.
October 31, 201312 yr Author His grandfather used to play a guitar and he took little Abreu with him. Little Abreu used to call him Pito Pin. Everybody started to call little Abreu Pito without the Pin. I think cold will be a factor. We are not used to that kind of weather. I remember my first years, I had a tough time. Now, I am a Gringo and cold weather is a non-issue for me. His athletic ability is underrated. Despite his size, Abreu runs well for a big guy. He won’t be last in a race among big guys. His biggest problem will be good breaking balls toward the outside corner of the strike zone. He will adapt. We do not have the depth in pitching like MLB does. On top of that, many of our good guys have left. Chapman, Maya, Onelkis Garcia (Dodgers), Raicel Iglesias who just left, Raimar Navarro (FA), Yoanis Quiala (FA), Miguel Alfredo Gonzalez (Phillies), Dalier Hinojosa (Red Sox), etc. I never saw Soler play, but his speed is not as great as Puig or Cespy. He was still in the juniors and it is harder to follow these guys. Cespy’s power is surreal. That HR Derby performance was incredible. Puig was a young phenom coming up the ranks so is kind unfair to throw him in this discussion. He is the better talent of all, but the worst makeup. I am afraid he will do something crazy on one of these off-seasons. Puig and Chapman are my best bets to become HOF among all these Cubans. Hitting only: Not including Soler Puig because talent and youth Abreu because power and intelligence. He will use all fields. In fact, 55% of his connections went to either CF or RF. He has competed in many HR Derbies. Cespy is all or nothing swing so he will struggle to hit above .300. I know many Americans do not care about WBC, but I would love to see Cuba hitters vs. USA pitchers. Cuban Line-up reminds me of the first Dominican WBC line-up. 1. RF Puig 2. Jose Fernández 2B (Still in Cuba), Dodgers Guerrero or Hector Olivera. You can see him here making this play in the WBC # 2. 3. DH Cepeda (WBC hitting average leader) Cuba 4. 1B Kendrys/Abreu 5. LF Depaigne Cuba 6. CF Cespy 7. 3B Gourriel (His dad has some health issues and lives in Havana now. Yuliesky Gourriel, Lourdes Gourriel Jr and the older brother who plays CF will play for the Havana Lions after playing many years for the Santi Spíritus Rooters. Lourdes Jr reminds me of Alexei. 8. C Alarcón Cuba or Brayan Pena 9. SS Alexei Bench Viciedo Soler Rusney Castillo Cuba Yasmany Tomas big time power in WBC # 3 Urrutia Orioles Martin Texas Alexei Bell Cuba Did somebody mention fireworks night? The Cubans are enjoying their best contracts ever. A rising tide lifts all boats. These guys are coming younger and they use wooden bats unlike the 90’s guys and these are the two reasons why they are doing well. In addition, the new comers are helped by the ones who came first. Edited October 31, 201312 yr by Cubano
October 31, 201312 yr Author QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Oct 31, 2013 -> 07:59 AM) Very interesting to see what you posted about the guys personality, as it really seemed to jive with his reactions on his press day. I only saw the conference in the White Sox site. He did not use any slang. Abreu was born in the old Sugar Mill Mal Tiempo (Bad Weather) in the town of Cruces, Cienfuegos. He is from a very small town. I am talking SMALL. I think he moved to Cienfuegos city which is the capital of Cienfuegos. Cuban speak fast often mispronouncing words. I forgot he will get hit a lot.
October 31, 201312 yr Im curious if Cuba will ever take the Japan route and try the posting fees and such in order to cash in. Keeping the guys on the island just isnt working out for them
October 31, 201312 yr Author QUOTE (KyYlE23 @ Oct 31, 2013 -> 08:45 AM) Im curious if Cuba will ever take the Japan route and try the posting fees and such in order to cash in. Keeping the guys on the island just isnt working out for them Tony Castro, the son of Fidel Castro, said to ESPN that Cubans are allowed to play in other leagues and comeback to play for Serie Nacional or team Cuba. Puig said he will play for Cuba in the next WBC or Mexico if Cuba does not allow him to play. Castro met with Cespy in Toronto and I think named him the Captain. They announced salaries increases for players, but still Cuba pays the least money among organized baseball leagues around the world. In addition, you CANNOT compete against $68 M and the guys from the north. http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=9878993
October 31, 201312 yr QUOTE (Cubano @ Oct 31, 2013 -> 09:40 AM) I only saw the conference in the White Sox site. He did not use any slang. Abreu was born in the old Sugar Mill Mal Tiempo (Bad Weather) in the town of Cruces, Cienfuegos. He is from a very small town. I am talking SMALL. I think he moved to Cienfuegos city which is the capital of Cienfuegos. Cuban speak fast often mispronouncing words. I forgot he will get hit a lot. I probably shouldn't have used the word "jive". I meant it as your report on Abreu matched up with how I saw him act during his presser and his on the field time. It was an agreement with your observations.
October 31, 201312 yr QUOTE (Cubano @ Oct 31, 2013 -> 09:51 AM) Tony Castro, the son of Fidel Castro, said to ESPN that Cubans are allowed to play in other leagues and comeback to play for Serie Nacional or team Cuba. Puig said he will play for Cuba in the next WBC or Mexico if Cuba does not allow him to play. Castro met with Cespy in Toronto and I think named him the Captain. They announced salaries increases for players, but still Cuba pays the least money among organized baseball leagues around the world. In addition, you CANNOT compete against $68 M and the guys from the north. http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=9878993 Oh I totally agree they cannot compete. But they can start taking a little piece by offering up their players for a price, like Japan does
October 31, 201312 yr QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Oct 31, 2013 -> 08:59 AM) Good to see you back as well Cubano. Missed your contributions around these parts. Very interesting to see what you posted about the guys personality, as it really seemed to jibe with his reactions on his press day. Fixed it for you.
October 31, 201312 yr These players are good, but I always wondered what the Cuban team I remember could have done in the ML. Lourdes Gourriel, Orestes Kinderlain and El Niño linares were something.
November 1, 201312 yr Cubano!! Any thoughts on this guy... Cuban catcher Yenier Bello is expected to work out for big league teams on Nov. 5 in Tijuana, Mexico. The powerful 28-year-old hasn't yet been cleared by the United States Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), though MLB cleared him a month ago.
November 1, 201312 yr QUOTE (CaliSoxFanViaSWside @ Oct 30, 2013 -> 10:14 PM) He's a little more insulated than the thin Alexei . We can start throwing around excuses for him already if we want. Adjust to ML pitching, cold weather, longer season but hopefully that bonus he got will motivate him to stay in peak physical condition and wear his hitting shoes from the get go. I think cold weather is a pretty legit excuse if you never have hit in it.
November 1, 201312 yr QUOTE (scs787 @ Nov 1, 2013 -> 12:12 PM) Cubano!! Any thoughts on this guy... http://cuban-play.com/estadisticas/labor-d...er-bello-veloso Looks like a backup
November 1, 201312 yr QUOTE (Jake @ Oct 30, 2013 -> 09:04 PM) Bienvenido, Cubano. Quedate el jersey de Abreu hasta se vuelve un estrella. Nos faltan tus opiniones y tu conocimiento aqui. Espero que tu empieza escribir de nuevo. I don't speak Spanish, but I can only assume that this post is freaking out about the Bulls.
November 1, 201312 yr Cubanooooo....YES!! Great to see you back on the board. Edited November 1, 201312 yr by Stan Bahnsen
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