By Gian Franco Gil
The Cuban team that will participate in the V World Baseball Classic held its first preparation game this Sunday. This featured all the figures from his 30-player roster and among the good news of the challenge was the work of Onelki García.
In the defeat of the Cuban national team against the Monos de Rakuten 5×4, the native of Guantánamo replaced Yoennis Yera and stepped onto the pitching board in the bottom of the seventh inning.
Onelki García faced four batters during his inning performance. And he faced an Asian team that in the first six innings hit eight hits and went through the register five times.
However, Onelki Garcia, after enduring a hit from the first man he faced, retired the next three batters he faced via strikes.
Onelki García spoke with the Cuban press
For this reason, the Cuban press accredited in Taichung approached the incident to gather their impressions about his last outing with the Antillean cast and the left-handed man was satisfied with the evolution of his preparation and the result on the ground.
“I am very happy with this start,” pitcher Onelki García said in a video published by the digital newspaper “JIT” on his Twitter account. In addition, he explained that: “I already feel ready, thank God, and I am prepared for the coming competition.”
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Onelki Garcia is a regular in organized baseball in the United States as a starter. But, the presence of Yariel Rodríguez, Elián Leyva, Roenis Elías and Ronald Bolaños caused him to have new responsibilities as reliever for the Caribbean squad.
“They know that I am a starter, but with the new pitching restrictions I have no problem working as a reliever, we are here to help the team,” García concluded.
With a perfect inning of three strikeouts, lefty Onelki García signed another good outing with #elCubaClasicowho lost 4×5 to Monos de Rakuten in a preparation match for the #WorldBaseballClassic. #Cuba #BaseBall #CubanBaseball pic.twitter.com/AL79N4P2Ek
— JIT Cuban Sport (@jit_digital) March 5, 2023