The Cuban team waits to find out who their next opponent will be in the semifinals of the World Baseball Classic, but manager Mandy Johnson does not “choose” rivals for the quarterfinal duel from which his opponent will emerge.
«The one who advances. The mentality will be the same, with the adaptations of the work based on the studies that we have of both, and the decision that the team continue having fun, doing what it has shown to know how to do”, declared the strategist.
The island’s team is one of the two confirmed semifinalists so far, along with Japan, and the looming stumbling block will emerge from the confrontation between two baseball powers, such as Venezuela and the United States.
«We have done part of the task, but full compliance would only come if we return home with the title, and for that we are going to leave our lives on the field,» added Mandy Johnson, in statements to the Jit site.
Pending the date of Sunday, this Friday it was agreed that only the pitchers would work, but the position players also joined to do «something light.» Already on Saturday, a practice session will be held.
Regarding playing in Miami, at the Marlins stadium, Mandy Johnson declared: “We have talked about it with the guys, and everyone knows that we are going to play in a venue where unfortunately we will face provocations. But in that sense we are also prepared to prevent these maneuvers from achieving their objectives, and we are also convinced that we will also find support”.
Cuba qualified for the semifinals again some 17 years after the first edition, when the team was runner-up after losing in the final against Japan.
“I insist that the task is not over yet, because now the challenge is to surpass that feat, but I recognize that it already constitutes the most important thing that has happened in my career of more than 30 years, after having won world and Pan-American championships in categories inferior, and for that reason the goal is to try to respond to one hundred percent”, declared Mandy Johnson.
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