Cuban pitcher Miguel Neira, originally from Sancti Spíritus, escaped in Nicaragua from the baseball
delegation competing in the Pre-World Championship U-23 in search of a spot in the World Cup in China, which will be held in 2024.According to sports reporter Francys Romero on his
Facebook profile, Neira had been chosen to start the crucial match against Panama but escaped from the hotel before the night game with the Panamanians.“Sources: The Cuban left-hander Miguel Neira (19) left Cuba's training camp in Managua, Nicaragua
and will seek to sign with an MLB organization. Neira left the hotel around noon. Cuba will play today’s decisive match against Panama in the U-23 Pre-World Championship. I ranked Neira as the #3 prospect on my list of the top 25 U-18 talents of 2022,” wrote Romero.The specialist specified that with this escape “the count of Cuban athletes who have left deleg
ations or contracts in 2023 has reached 70.”
Neira was one of the best pitching prospects from Cuba; in 2022 he achieved
a perfect game to his credit in a match against Peru at the Pan American U-18 Baseball Championship.“I am super excited and happy for the team. It’s the first perfect game of my career and it came
on an important day (...) I tried to throw strikes almost always with the fastball because the batters had a slow swing,” he stated last year to Prensa Latina.He also added that he hoped to “maintain the results” in his career since he was preparing “
well at all times; I come to the field only to reap the fruits of my work.”In this U-23 tournament in Nicaragua, Neira had been used in the match against Curacao, which ended
in a victory for the Cubans. The left-handed pitcher from the Gallos de Sancti Spíritus was the hero of that game, as he pitched six flawless innings, allowing only one hit, with seven strikeouts.After that game, Neira told the Cuban press that he felt very good and in control of his pitches.
“I didn’t issue any walks and combined my fastball with the breaking ball,” he told the sports newspaper Jit.
