The Barrhead Midget Orioles baseball team may have lost all their games during a recent seven day tour of Cuba, but everyone who was involved in the tour returned home winners.
That is because the trip was never about playing the game itself. Rather it was about growing as individuals, learning about another culture and making friendships. It is also something Thorston Jevne, Tyler Caughlin and Branden Meier believe they accomplished.
“It was an amazing trip and a once in a lifetime experience,” said Jevne during a visit to the Barrhead Leader.
The Barrhead contingent of 12 players, two coaches and 35 parent fans and chaperones left for Cuba under the moniker of Team Canada from the Edmonton International Airport Jan. 27.
After about a five hour flight the group touched down in Varadero, Cuba where they were shuttled to the resort they were staying at.
“I think we were all pretty tired,” Meier said, adding by the time they arrived at the resort it was 4:30 a.m.
After taking the rest of the day to recoup the Canadian contingent headed for the baseball diamond, located in a small town about 45 minutes away, to play against the first of what was supposed to be three different local teams.
However, they ended up playing the same team three consecutive days in a row. All games started in the early afternoon.
“All the kids play on all the teams. The one we played consisted of players from the rural areas, of Matanzas,” said Caughlin.
After taking part in a brief opening ceremony which consisted of the playing of both nation’s national anthems, the exchanging of gifts, and a demonstration by local youths performing traditional Cuban dancing, it was time to play baseball.
The first thing the Orioles noticed was the diamond itself. It was located on an old steel mill site.
“It isn’t what we are used to because they don’t have everything. There were rocks everywhere,” Caughlin said.
Jevne agreed, adding that instead of grass, the majority of the outfield consisted of a type of shale and dirt and that instead of fences the outfield boundaries consisted of either dense brush or a cliff and the backstop was a small hill of lava rock.
Meier noted that the players also had to contend with a number of distractions that took place in the middle of the game from motorcycles to livestock, more specifically a herd of goats, that used the field as a travel way.
In addition to the differences in the playing field there were differences in the rules. Instead of having a set batting order the Cuban team would substitute batters at will.
“If they had the bases loaded or if runners were in scoring position they would put in their best batters,” Jevne said, adding the Cuban coach occasionally would bat as well. “It is what they were used to and when you are in their country you play by their rules.”
As a result of the differences, it took a little while for the Barrhead players to feel comfortable and the final scores reflected that.
Although they couldn’t remember the final scores, they said the first game was a blowout, with Cuba winning handily. In the second game they lost by three to four runs and in the last game they only lost by one or two runs.
“It was really competitive and you could tell everyone really wanted to win,” Caughlin said of the final two games.
In between the games former major league baseball player Bill ‘Spaceman’ Lee would visit and tell the kids about what it is like to play professional baseball at the highest level. Lee played in the major leagues from 1969 to 1982 pitching for the Boston Red Soxs and the Montreal Expos.
On the fourth day, instead of playing in an intersquad game intermixed with Cuban and Canadian players, they went to a school in the area.
“We got a chance to see more of their culture,” Meier said. “We danced with them and exchanged gifts.”
It was also where they left the almost 900 pounds of assorted baseball equipment and school supplies the Orioles have been collecting since the spring.
The next day, a small closing ceremony was held, where the team unfurled the Town of Barrhead flag.
After the closing ceremony the Orioles were joined by seven or eight players from the Cuba team and they spent the afternoon and evening together playing soccer and making use of the resorts facilities.
Although a translator was provided to Team Canada, they rarely took advantage of the service, choosing to communicate directly using a combination of hand signals and speech.
As for what they will remember most about the tour, the trio said it was the connection they made with their Cuban counterparts.
“The fact that we got to go and change their lives first hand and get to see the smiles on their faces, that is what I will remember the most,” Caughlin said.
“Even though we have different cultures and speak completely different languages, we all had one thing in common and that was our love and passion for baseball,” Jevne said.
Meier agreed, but added he will also take away the joy and fun the Cubans brought to the game.
“For them it is much more than just the fundamentals or winning. It’s about having fun. Kids would come down from the stands and sit with the players in the dugout. There was dancing throughout the whole game.”
