Carlos Sarduy's outstanding performance leads Cuba to win the II U-15 Caribbean Cup title

Carlos Sarduy had a great start against Bahamas in the championship game. (Photo by Torrell Glinton)

Carlos Sarduy led the Cuban U-15 team to a 1-0 win against the Bahamas by striking out twelve batters in six scoreless innings during the gold medal game of the II Caribbean Baseball Cup. The game took place on Monday night at Andre Rodgers Stadium in Nassau, Bahamas.

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Cuba's title in this initial participation in the U-15 Caribbean Cup marks their first, complementing the one won by the senior team in the 2023 edition of the tournament.

In the afternoon, for the bronze medal, the United States Virgin Islands beat Sint Maarten 12-2.

In the tournament's championship game, Cuban manager Walmer Urrutia fulfilled his promise, made just 48 hours earlier, to secure a victory against the Bahamas and bring the title to Cuba.

Urrutia was confident in the performance his star pitcher Carlos Sarduy could deliver against a team like the Bahamas, which had been recognized for its promising future in Caribbean baseball and had previously defeated the Cubans 11-8 in the tournament's qualifying round.

The 1.87-meter-tall young player exceeded his mentor's expectations by consistently attacking the strike zone throughout the game. Against a perplexed Bahamas team, he delivered six innings for Cuba, allowing only one hit, achieving 12 strikeouts, two walks, and a hit by pitch. Sarduy was dominant, putting at least one runner on base in the first three innings, but each time he neutralized the threat with his fastball and a sharp curveball that perplexed the opponents. He concluded the second and third innings without conceding any runs. Following his sole hit allowed in the third inning, a double to left by third baseman Marlon Bostwick, he proceeded to strike out the next two batters to end the inning.

"At first I started a little bit off, but then I got better and the work came out," Sarduy told journalist Evyan Guerra after the game, adding, "The whole game was very tense, 1-0, in a game like that, anyone can score a run."

With the lead already slim, the most challenging moment of the game occurred in the bottom of the sixth inning. With one out, he hit Bostwick on the foot and then made an error when turning to first base, allowing the runner to move to second base with the potential tying run. Nevertheless, Sarduy remained composed and, after a brief conversation with his coach, he returned to his best strategy of the night by attacking the strike zone. He ended the threat by striking out the third and fourth Bahamian batters. This was a key aspect of Cuban pitching throughout the night, as they held the first four batters in the Bahamas lineup to a 1-for-10 performance.

As Sarduy performed his work, Cuba's hitters were equally stifled by the impressive performance of Bahamian/American right-hander Colton Cubbage, who maintained a scoreless game for four innings, striking out four and allowing just one hit. However, in the fifth inning, the Cubans exhibited patience and provided their starter with minimal support, which ultimately proved sufficient.

In the top of the fifth inning Cubbage appeared to be performing exceptionally well, having retired thirteen of the last fourteen batters he faced, when with two outs, left fielder Marcos del Toro singled to shortstop. Right after, second baseman Damián Díaz hit a double to right field, driving in del Toro from second base and giving Cuba a crucial 1-0 lead.

The Bahamas, wouldn't go any easy. In their final offensive chance during the bottom of the seventh inning, they posed their biggest threat of the game. Facing left-handed reliever Cristian Aguilera, Cubbage started the inning with a single to center field and advanced to second base following a walk to Amari Knowles. The Cuban manager wasted no time and summoned right-hander Javier Roque from the bullpen. Roque swiftly neutralized the threat, retiring the first batter he faced with a fly ball to the catcher on a failed sacrifice attempt. He then retired the eighth batter, Khayle Watkins, with a ground ball to the mound that advanced the runners, positioning the potential winning run on second base. Nevertheless, Roque dashed the Bahamas' hopes by ending his impressive relief performance with a strikeout of Javan Smith, sparking celebration on the Cuban bench.

Roque secured the impressive shutout victory with his relief, marking Carlos Sarduy's second win as a starter in the tournament. Roque also earned the save for the crucial inning that clinched the title for Cuba.

The performance of the Cuban pitchers maintained the trend of Cuban pitching seen throughout the tournament, particularly in the two crucial games. In these key matches, both the starting and relief pitchers excelled by preventing any runs, allowing the offense to take charge.Right-hander Lekian Acosta's relief performance in the semifinal game against the Virgin Islands, where he pitched five innings allowing four hits and striking out eight, was precise and effectively managed by the Cuban manager. Furthermore, in three out of Cuba's five tournament games, the Cuban pitchers kept the opposing team scoreless. The starting pitchers achieved 12 1/3 innings without allowing a run. Sarduy was particularly impressive, pitching ten of those innings, allowing only two hits and striking out 20 batters.

Bahamas earned a well-deserved silver medal. (Photo by COPABE)

In the final match, Roque once more excelled against the tournament's toughest team. Overall he pitched 3 1/3 innings against Bahamas, allowing just one hit, with three strikeouts, and securing his first save in the most important game of the tournament.

“I feel very good about everything. It was an excellent performance. Bahamas is a very good team and they gave us a fight. I am happy. We beat a very good team,” said Cuban coach Heriberto Corbea after the game.

Bahamas manager Albert Cartwright, also mentioned to the local media: "Both pitchers were incredible tonight. They were throwing strikes and attacking the zone. Sometimes, that's how the ball goes,” said Cartwright. “There was a battle - offensively - in the first game and we just went in the opposite direction tonight. We felt we had some opportunities. Whenever you have the opportunity to win the game in the last inning, that's all you can ask for. We just have to accept that their pitchers were very good tonight and it was difficult to match their pitches. You have to give them credit. They made the right pitches when they needed to make them.”

Following the end of the game, the awards ceremony took place, during which Cuban left-hander Carlos Sarduy was chosen as the tournament's Most Valuable Player.

Four additional Cuban players were named to the All-Stars in this second edition of the Caribbean Cup, featuring catcher José Muñíz, shortstop Miguel Chirino, reliever Lekian Acosta, and designated hitter Antonio Nolazco. Sarduy also earned the title of the tournament's best pitcher.