Two of Cuba’s top batters, Alfredo Despaigne and Yordanis Samon, will play soon in the Mexican professional baseball league after an agreement between that organization and the Cuban sports authorities, reported Baseballdecuba.com.

After two decades that seemed like an eternity, Villa Clara finally achieved the coveted title and is champion of the Cuban baseball league for the fifth time. They defeated Matanazas 8-5 on Tuesday and took the best-of-seven series four games to one. Ariel Petano blasted a grand slam to lead the charge.

Villa Clara (3-1) hopes to seal their first Cuban baseball title in 18 years tonight at home against a desperate Matanzas (1-3), looking to take the series back west for a game six. Ramon More is scheduled to start for Villa Clara and Matanzas is expected to go with Joel Suarez or Alain Dela.

The Cuban judoka Asley Gonzalez was crowned on Sunday with the gold medal in the 90 kg division of the Grand Prix of Miami and moved up to first place in the world rankings, reported Jit Online.

It has now been little more than two weeks since the latest refugee from Cuban baseball settled into the big leagues and Puigmania has now apparently taken full root in the City of the Angels (appropriately enough, since LA was also erstwhile home to a phenomenon known as Fernandomania more than three full decades in the past).

Seven innings of one-run pitching from Misael Siverio and three hits and excellent fielding from shortstop Yordan Manduley led Villa Clara to a convincing 8-1 win over Matanzas in the second game of their best-of-seven championship series.

Australian swimmer Chloë McCardel has abandoned her quest to swim from Cuba to the United States after being bitten repeatedly by jellyfish, her team said today in the social networks.

Cuban swimmer Hanser García, finalist in the London Olympics in the 100 meter freestyle, won a gold medal on Tuesday at the Barcelona Grand Prix, part of the Mare Nostrum European ciruit.

Freddy Asiel Alvarez allowed only four hits over eight innings and Villa Clara shut out Matanazas 4-0 in the first game of the championship series of the Cuban baseball league. Yordan Manduley drove in two with a bases loaded single and Ariel Borrero hit a solo blast to lead the visitors.

Australian swimmer Chloë McCardel begins on Wednesday an attempt to swim across the Florida Straits from Cuba to the United States, a challenge that others have failed to accomplice in recent years. “It is the world’s toughest swim,” said McCardel today in Havana.