Durham, N.C. — USA Baseball and the Cuban Baseball Federation announced on Tuesday the two international baseball powers will face off in North Carolina this summer in a series of games to be played in Cary, Durham and Charlotte.
The two nations will open and close the series at the USA Baseball National Training Complex in Cary on July 1 and 6, while the Durham Bulls will host games on July 2 and 3 at Durham Bulls Athletic Park, and the Charlotte Knights will host play on the Fourth of July at BB&T Ballpark in uptown Charlotte.
“It is a thrill to bring the Cuban National Team to North Carolina for five competitive, entertaining games in Cary, Durham and Charlotte, this summer,” Paul Seiler, USA Baseball’s executive director/CEO, said in a statement. “Building on the success of the first three years of this renewed friendship series should make for an incredible experience for the players, coaches, fans and the international baseball community.”
After a 16-year hiatus, USA and Cuba resumed a yearly international friendship series on the baseball field in 2012 with the USA Baseball Collegiate National Team traveling to Havana for an intense five-game series that saw the host nation score a 3-2 series victory. In 2013 (in the U.S.) and 2014 (in Cuba), the host nations dominated play with five-game sweeps. In three years of renewed rivalry, Cuba leads the series 8-7.
“It’s exciting to be entering the fourth consecutive year of international friendship series between these two historic baseball countries,” World Baseball Softball Confederation ambassador Antonio Castro said in a statement. “The games in Cuba in 2014 were an incredibly positive experience for the players and fans, and we look forward to the same kind of atmosphere this year in the United States.”
Tickets for the USA Baseball vs. Cuba series at Durham Bulls Athletic Park go on sale March 6.
Credits: Web Editor Kelly Hinchcliffe
wralSPORTSfan, February 18, 2015
