Skip to content
January 31, 2023
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Instagram
  • Reddit
  • Telegram
  • TikTok
  • LinkedIn
  • Discord
Orinoco Tribune – News and opinion pieces about Venezuela and beyond

Orinoco Tribune – News and opinion pieces about Venezuela and beyond

From Venezuela and made by Venezuelan Chavistas

Primary Menu
  • News
  • Opinion
  • About us
    • About us
    • Who we are – Becoming a Volunteer
    • Editorial guidelines for contributors
    • Our Sources
      • Venezuelan Sources
      • International Sources
    • Contact us
  • Categories
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Security and Defense
    • International
      • Africa
      • Asia
      • Europe
      • Oceania
      • US/Canada
    • Latin America and ALBA-TCP
      • South America
      • Central America and the Caribbean (+Mexico)
    • Ideology-Commune-Labor
    • Health-Education-Sport-Culture-Technology
    • Solidarity and Social Movements
    • OT Specials
  • Support Us
Light/Dark Button
YouTube Channel
  • Home
  • Opinion
  • Imperialist Economic Warfare Continues: MLB Bans Participation in Venezuelan Winter League
  • Health-Education-Sport-Culture-Technology
  • Opinion

Imperialist Economic Warfare Continues: MLB Bans Participation in Venezuelan Winter League

September 4, 2019

By Leon Koufax

On Aug. 22nd of this year, Major League Baseball announced its decision to ban all MLB-affiliated players from participating in the Venezuelan Winter League. The MLB’s statement cited the “Executive Order issued by President Trump on Venezuela” as the reason for the ban.

The Liga Venezolana de Beisbol Profesional (LVBP), also known as the Venezuelan Winter League, is a storied baseball league. For 75 years, professional ball players from around the globe have played there in the winter as a source of additional income and a way to stay in shape. More than that, Venezuelan players in the MLB have relished the opportunity to return home and play in front of their communities. It is particularly common for minor league players and less experienced major league players to play in Venezuela in the winter time for the above reasons.

MLB’s adherence with Trump’s executive orders is another escalation of the economic warfare being waged on the democratic Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela and its citizens. It is important to note that the LVBP works closely with the Venezuelan government. This is likely the core excuse for the ban.

RELATED CONTENT: “I am Venezuelan and I Have the Right to Play”: Guillermo Moscoso to the MLB (US Blockade)

This is the second time that the Trump administration has launched economic attacks on baseball leagues in progressive Latin American countries. Earlier this year, President Trump scuttled a deal between Cuba and MLB that would allow the Cuban National Series to be compensated for players recruited to play in the United States. The administration said the decision was in support of human rights. However, the reality is that destroying the deal opens up Cuban players to smugglers.

Venezuelan players react

The decision has been rightfully met with outrage from Venezuelan baseball players currently in the U.S. Salvador Perez, the star catcher for the Kansas City Royals, came out strongly against the ban.

Peres stated: “I don’t like it, seriously. I don’t know why they do that, because players like me — in the big leagues for a long time — we don’t need to play in Venezuela. We don’t have to play. We do because we like our fans. They don’t have a visa to come here to watch you play. That’s why we do that.”

Peres went on to say: “Guys in High-A, Double-A, people who don’t play in the big leagues, they still need the money because they only get paid here until September. How are they going to survive after that? They’re not going to let them play in the Dominican [Republic] or play in another country. I don’t like it.” Peres touches on an important point here.

RELATED CONTENT: MLB Joins Trump’s Blockade: Prohibits Players Participation in Venezuelan Professional Baseball League

All this ban will serve to do is financially squeeze lower-paid ball players and damage the Venezuelan economy as a whole. The ban also deprives the Venezuelan people of seeing their country’s best players. Several other players, including Royals infielder Humberto Arteaga and MLB veteran Guillermo Moscoso have decried the ban.

Venezuela has a beautiful and storied baseball tradition. It is a country that has supplied the MLB with some of its brightest stars. These players include future Hall-of-Famer Miguel Cabrera, all-star shortstop Omar Vizquel, and star pitcher Carlos Zambrano.

The MLB team owners and other capitalists are happy to make billions off the backs of Venezuelan players while simultaneously launching attack after attack on the Venezuelan economy. The U.S. should keep its hands off Venezuela!

Lift the sanctions, end the embargo, and retract the ban on the LVBP!

 

  • https://orinocotribune.com/mlb-joins-trumps-blockade-prohibits-players-participation-in-venezuelan-professional-baseball-league
  • https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/27442220/mlb-bans-playing-venezuela-amid-trump-order
  • https://www.kansascity.com/sports/mlb/kansas-city-royals/article234476007.html

 

Source URL: Struggle – La Lucha

 

Want More?

Don't want to be a victim of the Algorithm?

SIGN UP TO RECEIVE OUR WEEKLY NEWSLETTER WITH ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT VENEZUELA

We don’t spam! Read our privacy policy for more info.

Leon Koufax
+ posts

Leon Koufax is a Jewish communist and writer for Struggle-La Lucha who has participated in many anti-fascist demonstrations, most recently he was part of the Venezuela Embassy Protection Collective.

  • Leon Koufax
    #molongui-disabled-link
    October 6, 2019
    Why do progressive Democrats slander Venezuela?
Tags: LVBP MLB unilateral coercive measures US Sanctions US Solidarity Venezuela

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Telegram (Opens in new window)
  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window)

Continue Reading

Previous Previous post:

Alaska’s Sea Ice Completely Melted for First Time in Recorded History

Next Next post:

Who Lies; Who Saves Lives

Subscribe to Our Weekly Newsletter

We keep your data private and share your data only with third parties that make this service possible. Read our Privacy Policy.

Check your inbox or spam folder to confirm your subscription.

NEWS: Most Viewed 72 Hours

Calendar

January 2023
M T W T F S S
 1
2345678
9101112131415
16171819202122
23242526272829
3031  
« Dec    

Categories

OPINION: Most Viewed 72 hours

We are on Telegram


Receive our news directly in your cellphone or PC, join us on our TELEGRAM channel: https://t.me/OrinocoTribune1

 

Download TELEGRAM, click the link above and then press the JOIN button.

We are on Discord


Now we are also on Discord you will be able to follow our every move and interact with our team.

Join us by clicking here



All our work is free to use and licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0.

We are on Reddit

If you are more into REDDIT, join our Orinoco Tribune Community.

 

Just click below and then click JOIN
https://www.reddit.com/r/OrinocoTribune/

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Instagram
  • Reddit
  • Telegram
  • TikTok
  • LinkedIn
  • Discord
Copyleft, No rights reserved.