Latin America

Cesar Brioso, USA TODAY
Mon, August 14, 2023 at 6:24 a.m. CDT·7 min read

In the scene, Luis Gurriel Sr. gets choked up when he explains his one wish. "I told my wife once, 'I want to be alive to see my son play on a Cuban national team,' " he says in the documentary "Little League Dreams," which premieres Monday. "Oh, boy, he's only 12 years old and he already gave me that joy."

That’s because Luis Sr.’s son will be playing on a team representing Cuba for the first time in the 76-year history of the Little League World Series. Luis Gurriel Jr. pitches for Bayamo Little League, which won the Cuban tournament in March to qualify for the Little League World Series, which begins Aug. 16 in Williamsport, Pennsylvania.

And if their last name sounds familiar it's because father and son are related to Miami Marlins first baseman Yuli Gurriel and Arizona Diamondbacks left fielder Lourdes Gurriel Jr. Luis Sr. is the major-league players’ uncle. Luis Jr. is their cousin. Yuli Gurriel, who hasn't seen his uncle and cousin since before he left Cuba in 2016, first learned last week that his cousin would be playing in the LLWS.

“I was very happy. The chance he’s getting to play here in the Little League World Series is very important," Yuli Gurriel said in recorded comments provided by the Marlins to USA TODAY Sports. "It’s something big because it’s the first time a team from Cuba is participating in the Little League World Series. … It’s a big step forward. In the past, nobody would have thought this would happen and thank God it did and with the presence of my cousin, it’s something very beautiful."

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Luis Gurriel Jr. will be pitching for Bayamo in the 2023 Little League World Series, the first time Cuba will be represented in the 76-year history of the tournament.

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https://ca.movies.yahoo.com/movies/cubas-first-little-league-world-112409755.html