CubaDugout

Happy Birthday to good friend Mike Boehmer, CubaDugout supporter and a key builder in bringing Cuban ballplayers to Canada

Typically I travel with my camera trying to find Cubans but this time the Cuban found me.
I didn’t do my usual research before heading on a baseball road trip which culminated in Tupper Lake, NY and the Empire League of baseball.
Raquette Pond stadium is a quaint local ballfields with some nice touches that still make it feel like a bit more than just a ball diamond. The crowd was small and I stood out as the only photographer at the game. A young gentleman saw me and asked if I could take some photos of his friend the centre fielder. Ultimately it made my job a bit easier in having someone specific to focus on...

I jumped on line and saw that the North Country Thunderbirds did have a Cuban on the roster but my ears heard Francys being announced and the Alvarez elbow pad made me think maybe the info was outdated or the Cuban player wasn’t playing that day.

I exchanged my page info for Sports Phillustrated with the other player acting as agent but upon getting home had a message and quickly found out the player I had been shooting was actually Ramses Velazquez who is from Guantanamo and spent time in the Padres system.

The 21 year old centre fielder is obviously trying to make his way back into affiliated baseball via the Empire League. It’s a tough road and playing in the lesser known leagues in Upstate New York is a grind but looking to follow his path moving forward, one I hope leads to bigger things down the road.

Congrats to Yoenis Yera who threw a No-hitter for Tabasco de Olmecas of the Mexican league.
He K’d 10 while walking just 1 batter.
That’s some Hot Sauce.

Industriales are Cuba’s Elite

!FELICIDADES, CAMPEONES!



INDUSTRIALES 🦁💙

Dyan Jorge and Andy perez hit leadoff and 3rd and both contributed 1-4 1 RBI w a BB as the Hartford Yard Goats fell 5-3 to the Somerset Patriots 07/03/2025

While we’re revisiting the 2023 National Series final
the starter in game 1 for Industriales was Silvano Hechevarria who would sign with the Blue Jays and has recently been promoted in the organization.

El pitcher prospecto 🇨🇺 de los Blue Jays, Silvano Hechavarría fue movido a Vancouver, Clase-A avanzada.

Herrevarria, 23 años, lanzó 33.1 innings de rehab assignment en Dunedin, Single-A empezando la temporada 2026.

✍️ Es el prospecto #12 de la organización, según MLB Pipeline.