MIAMI — A mix of protesters and fans gathered in Miami on Sunday as Team Cuba began its World Baseball Classic semifinal game against the United States.
Jose Vilela fled Cuba for the U.S. when he was 14 years old after spending six months in a concentration camp. Like many of his compatriots, he settled in Miami’s Cuban neighborhood, Little Havana.
Vilela, now 68, paced Sunday afternoon outside loanDepot Park, the Miami Marlins’ home stadium, where the Cuban national baseball team later lost to the United States 14-2 in the World Baseball Classic semifinals.
For prideful expats eager to separate sports from politics, the country’s first ever baseball game in Miami was cause for celebration.
But for Vilela and hundreds of others, it was reason to protest the political oppression they escaped.
Vilela stalked the stadium Sunday, yelling outside for anyone associated with the late Cuban leader Fidel Castro, who embraced Soviet-style communism, to leave the community. That included many Cuban players who are technically government employees.
“We don’t want them here,” Vilela said. “None. People that work for the Castro family. We don’t want them. They can go any place they want. Go to New York. Go to California. Not Miami. I hope this is the last time they come here.”
Three protestors were escorted out of the ballpark after running onto the field during the game.
In the sixth inning, a demonstrator waved a flag that said “Libertad Para Los Presos Cubanos Del 11 de Julio, which means “Freedom for the Cuban Prisoners of July 11” — referring to the day thousands of Cubans took to the streets in the island in 2021 to protest shortages of goods, power blackouts and economic hardship. Hundreds of people who participated are in prison. Saturday, the crowd erupted in “¡Libertad!” chants as that protestor exited the field.
All day, there had been a heavier police presence outside the ballpark than for previous games in the tournament. About 15 Miami…
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