Yulieski Gourriel, baseball players from the Cuban Team signed on May 12, a contract for 900, 000 dollars, a non-official amount, with Yokohama DeNA BayStars Team, from the Professional Japan League visiting our country and published in the Japanese media.
Although it has been published by the Japanese media before it was made official on Monday, May 12 by the chief of operations from the Japanese team, Shun Kakazu who officially signed it with the participation of Antonio Castillo by the Cuban Federation and Gourriel too.
According to declarations from Kakazu in Havana, the idea is to use the player in second base; although it is not ruled out the leaders of the Japanese team could use him in Gourriel’s favorite third base.
In declarations of several Asian specialists, they will have to move defense Takehiro Ishikawa in the next 15 days to the fields to place Gourriel there and place him in the third position to bat.
Yokohama has so far three foreign players: Venezuelans Aarom Baldiris, Jorge Sosa, and Guillermo Moscoso, the two last ones are pitchers. Meanwhile, the Dominican Tony Blanco could wear the Japanese uniform again after a fruitful campaign in 2013 with an average of 333.
Gourriel’s first declarations to the Japanese media express his pleasure with this contract and his inclusion in the famed Yokohama DeNA BayStars Team. “The level is high; I have to play hard and with discipline. I am happy for this opportunity and I want to demonstrate the best of our Cuban baseball.”
At present Yokohama DeNA BayStars Tea mis in the fifth position in the Central Leaque with 14 victories and 31 defeats nine positions of difference with Hiroshima’s Carps (24-13) after the leaders are Yomiuri Giants (22-15), the Tigers of Hanshin (22-17), Chunichi’s Dragons (16-21), while Yakult’s Swallows close with (13-24).
