Training camps in Cienfuegos and Havana, starting September 14, will mark the beginning of preparations for Cuba’s under-23 baseball preselection, which will be announced in the coming days in advance of the sixth World Cup in the category, scheduled for November in Nicaragua.

Alain Álvarez Moya, methodologist for the National Baseball Commission, explained exclusively to the Cuban News Agency (ACN) that they will call up 45 players, a list that includes those fulfilling contracts in foreign leagues and who must join in October.

The group’s preparation, the official explained, will begin on the 14th of this month in Cienfuegos, where they will stay for one week before relocating to the capital for an equal period.

At both venues, quadrangular tournaments are being arranged with local preselections for the 65th National Series, and if conditions permit, teams from neighboring provinces will be invited.

Following both training camps, the players will rejoin the final training stage of their respective teams for the country’s main baseball tournament, with which they will play four or five subseries, which in many cases will determine the final confirmation of the national selection.

After October 20, the roster of 24 athletes will be finalized to carry out the final portion of preparations in Havana, while arrangements are being made for a warm-up series in Mexico at the end of that month, just days before the World Cup begins.

Álvarez Moya, who managed the Cuban under-23 team at the 2022 World Cup, considers that training should focus on run-production tools, as pitching and defense have performed better in the two editions in which Cuba has participated.

The methodologist believes that the island’s selection finds itself in the most difficult of the two groups formed for the world event, having been paired with Japan—holder of three titles and one silver in the category—Venezuela, with one gold and one bronze, and Korea, which has secured one silver and one bronze medal.

Cuba will make its preliminary-round debut against Korea on November 6, followed by South Africa (7), Japan (8), Venezuela (9), and Great Britain (10).

The other bracket in the qualifying phase includes Puerto Rico, Panama, Chinese Taipei, Australia, Czechia, and the Nicaraguan hosts.

The top three finishers from each group will advance to the super round, scheduled for November 12–14, concurrently with the consolation round to determine placements from seventh to 12th.

On Sunday the 15th, the bronze medal game will be played, followed by the world title matchup.

Cuba’s best performance in world events at this category occurred in 2021, in a tournament postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, when they placed fourth; one year later, they finished in tenth place.