La Habana is July 26, historic Revolutionary Day celebrated in Havana each year. Havana was Vegas before Las Vegas became Vegas and what a Havana A’s team would look like (Getty file photo)
Havana was Vegas before Vegas was Vegas
That’s Amaury News and Commentary
By Amaury Pi-González
Cuba is the perfect country for the Oakland A’s because there will be no more complaints about ownership. In Cuba, the government owns everything, including baseball. No free enterprise or capitalism is allowed. Bad news for some fans.
1-If you are a fan and you show up at a game in Cuba with a sign that reads SELL, the government will arrest you and call you an “enemy of the State.” They will incarcerate you and use you years later as hostage-trade-bait with the US government, which will pay good money for your return.
2-Revenue sharing. Sure, “one-stop shopping.” All 29 teams will pay the Cuban government for the right to have an MLB team in La Habana. Cuban government officials will get many perks, like a free trip to Las Vegas and other tourist spots and twelve months a year to stay in luxurious hotels. In other words,since private ownership is not allowed, the money goes to the Cuban government.
3-No more negotiating. In Cuba, you do not need the MLPA; the Cuban government pays the players, and there is no Unionized work in Cuba on anything. One owner, one check, no “in-between”or, like some like to call it, no Outsourcing.
4-Promotions for the fans? According to government laws, all players with the Cuban A’s will sign autographs for all the fans on special days. Players cannot charge for autographs or go to a special show where they get paid for autograph signing; that doesn’t happen in Cuba.
5-Non Profits? No problem; in Cuba, the only profit is made by the Cuban Government. So you do not have to worry about that. The government gets the funds, they take care of themselves and their families first, and whatever is left, they “re-distribute” with the Cuban citizens.
6-No Habla Spanish? No hay problema. They will learn the official language, Spanish, according to the Cuban government, so that players will have no problems. The government will have tutors waiting for you to let you know about the Cuban communist revolution.
You will get a complimentary invitation to the Fidel Castro Museum to learn. Some might even memorize (Like Cuban kids are forced to do) some of Fidel’s great five hour speeches, not to mention when he was a pitcher for the Universidad de La Habana. Legend has it that in the 1950s, the NY Giants offered Fidel a $5,000 bonus, but being the excellent communist he was, he denied it and never came to play in the United States Major League Baseball.
Special Day? The only special day for the Cuban A’s while they make their home in La Habana is July 26, historic Revolutionary Day. This is the day that Fidel Castro’s revolution began, eventually taking over the country in 1959 and ruling Cuba since today.
Remember, Havana was Vegas, before Vegas!
Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the lead radio voice on the Oakland A’s Spanish radio network at 1010 KIQI San Francisco and 990 KATD Pittsburg and does News and Commentary at http://www.sportsradioservice.com
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