The primary amateur baseball competition in the country of Cuba is called the Cuban National Series. It was founded in 1962 after Fidel Castro abolished the Cuban Professional League, and all participants in the Series must be amateurs and must be born or reside in the province of Cuba that is represented by their team.
The series has 16 teams organized into two zones (or zonas), Oriental and Occidental. Each team represents a province in Cuba, and two teams represent the capital city of Havana. The regular season is comprised of 90 games and runs from November through March or April. At the end of the season, the top eight teams participate in a tournament for the league championship title.
Teams are allowed to have 30 players on their roster; there are no foreigners or free agents allowed. Since player contracts are signed with the league and not with individual teams, there is little or no player movement between the teams.
The Occidental Zone (also known as the West League) consists of the following eight teams:
• The Isla de la Juventud team, aka the Grapefruit Cutters (Toronjeros), from Nueva Gerona;
• The Matanzas team, aka the Crocodiles (Cocodrilos), from Matanzas;
• The Pinar del Rio team, aka the Lowlands (Vegueros), from Pinar del Rio;
• The Metropolitanos team, aka the Warriors (Guerreros), from Havana;
• The Industriales team, aka the Blue Lions (Leones Azules), from Havana;
• The Cienfuegos team, aka the Shrimpers (Camaroneros), from Cienfuegos;
• The Sancti Spiritus team, aka the Roosters (Gallos), from Sancti Spiritus;
• The La Habana team, aka the Cowboys (Vaqueros), from San Jose de las Laias.
The Oriental Zone (also known as the East League) is comprised of the following eight teams:
• The Camaguey team, aka the Cattle Dealers (Ganaderos), from Camaguey;
• The Ciego de Avila team, aka the Tigers (Tigres), from Ciego de Avila;
• The Las Tunas team, aka the Woodcutters (Lenadores), from Victoria de las Tunas;
• The Villa Clara team, aka the Oranges (Naranjas), from Santa Clara;
• The Granma team, aka the Chestnuts (Alazanes), from Bayamo;
• The Guantanamo team, aka the Indians (Indios), from Guantanamo;
• The Holguin team, aka the Bloodhounds (Sabuesos), from Holguin;
• The Santiago de Cuba team, aka the Wasps (Avispas), from Santiago de Cuba.
In the past ten years, the Santiago de Cuba team has won the series championship six times, the Industriales team has won the title three times, and the Holguin team has won the series once. The top athletes from the Cuban National Series form the Cuban National team, which in 2006 took second place in the prestigious World Baseball Classic competition in San Diego, California.
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