Cuba-Japan coverage: INDER seeks to toughen contracts for Cuban players

By Jerry Díaz / @ Jerryto94

It is no longer a secret that the majority of Cuban players who sign contracts with Japanese clubs under the aegis of the Cuban Federation they do it without knowing the terms. There are not a few who, despite having a pact in force, have decided to break ties with the Federation and signed it to seek a better level of baseball and life.

The most recent case is that of Andy Rodríguez, Industriales reliever in the National Series who stayed in Miami after his tour of Florida in the Americas Pre-Olympic Qualification in May-June. But he is not the only one, names as well known today as José Adolis García or Oscar Colás also took that path.

As reported by Radio Rebelde, the Vice President of INDER Raúl Fornés is on a tour of Japan in talks with five baseball franchises in that country. The objective is to increase hiring and establish new clauses.

«We will continue to reinforce the letters of the contracts to provide greater protection to our athletes and to the Federation itself. We will try, based on the clauses of the contracts, to prevent our players from abandoning the agreement looking for other horizons, “he said.

The question of “greater protection for athletes” is debatable. Nothing is better to protect yourself than to be able to make your own decisions and not depend on INDER as the sole and obligatory representative. What he is looking for in this case is to avoid cases such as Héctor Mendoza, Andy Rodríguez or José Adolis, to ensure complete control over the player, as usual.

Fornés also commented on how the hiring process is:

«As it has been until now, they are interested in certain players through their scouts, sometimes they evaluate the athletes through videos in case they cannot be there. One important aspect is what they demand, which is primarily power hitters and young speed pitchers. After these evaluations they make the proposal of time and amounts to the Cuban federation. Subsequently, it is taken to the INDER negotiating group, corrected, if necessary, and signed between the club, the player and the FCB itself. “

He added that they are already presenting some talents through videos and assured that in the coming months they could sign a greater number of players for a greater number of franchises in Japan.