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Baseball United Bringing Players From Around the World To 2023 Dubai Showcase

 Leif Skodnick - World Baseball Network  |    Nov 23rd, 2023 6:20am EST

Bartolo Colon of the Dominican Republic is one of the better-known international players who will be playing at Baseball United’s Dubai Showcase this weekend. (Photo: Leif Skodnick/World Baseball Network)

By Conor Liguori
World Baseball Network

Baseball United, a new league bringing baseball to the Middle East and Indian subcontinent, will host the Dubai Showcase, featuring a pair of All-Star Games on November 24-25 at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

The rosters of the All-Star teams will feature players who were recently selected in the draft as well as prospects from around the world.  

The Dubai Wolves, Abu Dhabi Falcons, Karachi Monarchs, and Mumbai Cobras are the first four organizations in Baseball United, an upcoming professional baseball league in the Middle East and South Asia. The league’s first draft was held on October 23 via a live stream on Baseball United’s website. 

Baseball United will not have a regular season this year, but the Dubai Showcase will preview what fans can expect come next season. 

The Dubai Showcase will be streamed live on BaseballUnited.com free of charge in collaboration with StreamAMG, and will also be broadcast or streamed in 127 countries around the worldm with both showcase games beginning at 10 a.m. EST.

Of all the drafted players in the Baseball United draft, 69 percent have played in Major League Baseball, Nippon Professional Baseball, or at the Triple-A level in minor league baseball. Besides the United States, players in Baseball United will represent 28 additional countries between the Dubai Showcase and the league’s first season.  

There are 36 players on Baseball United rosters whose hometown resides in the United States. Notable players from the United States include Shed Long and Brandon Laird of the Mumbai Cobras and David Huff of the Karachi Monarchs. All three players have playing experience in Major League Baseball.  

Right-handed starting pitcher Karan Patel was the first overall pick in this year’s draft and was born in Houston, Texas. Patel reached as high as Double-A Birmingham in the Chicago White Sox organization in 2022 and was the first Indian-American selected in the MLB Draft. Patel will play for the West All-Stars in the Dubai Showcase and was selected by the Mumbai Cobras. 

Infielder Christiaan Beyers of the Dubai Wolves has had an exciting journey to Baseball United. He has played for Saudi Arabia in the 2008 Little League World Series, the Paderborn Untouchables in Germany’s Baseball-Bundesliga, South Africa in the 2022 World Baseball Classic Qualifiers, and most recently in a Dubai men’s league. Although Beyers has never played in Major League Baseball, his journey to Baseball United is unique. The Wolves drafted him in the eighth round.  

Aside from Patel and Beyers, there are players from multiple countries that fans in the United States do not typically link baseball to, including but not limited to Cameroon, Finland, and Kuwait.  

Below are the additional countries, excluding the United States, with players appearing at the 2023-24 Dubai Showcase and for their respective organizations. 

Australia  
Todd Van Steensel, RHP – Dubai Wolves  

Brazil 
Andre Rienzo, RHP – Abu Dhabi Falcons  
Tiago Da Silva, RHP – Mumbai Cobras  

Curacao  
Andrelton Simmons, SS – Mumbai Cobras  
Juremi Profar, INF – Karachi Monarchs  
Jair Jurrjens, RHP – Dubai Wolves  
Aldrich De Jongh, OF – Dubai Wolves  

Canada  
Jacob Robson, OF – Mumbai Cobras  
Connor Panas, 1B – Dubai Wolves  
L.P. Pelletier, OF – Dubai Wolves  

Colombia  
Carlos Martinez, C – Karachi Monarchs  

Cuba  
Rusney Castillo, OF – Abu Dhabi Falcons  

Cameroon  
Ernest Ohandza, RHP – Dubai Wolves  

Dominican Republic  
Bartolo Colon, RHP – Karachi Monarchs  
Jefry Marte, 1B/3B – Karachi Monarchs  
Denis Phipps, OF – Karachi Monarchs  
Wilin Rosario, C – Dubai Wolves  
Robinson Cano, 2B – Dubai Wolves  
Gabriel Guerrero, OF – Abu Dhabi Falcons  
Alejandro de Aza, OF – Abu Dhabi Falcons  

Finland  
Konsta Kurikka, RHP – Abu Dhabi Falcons  

Germany  
Vincent Ahrens, C – Dubai Wolves  

Italy  
Alex Liddi, 1B – Abu Dhabi Falcons  
Federico Celli, OF – Abu Dhabi Falcons  
Alberto Mineo, C – Abu Dhabi Falcons  

India  
Saurabh Gaikwad, RHP – West All-Stars  
Akshay More, RHP – West All-Stars  
Akshay Mogal, INF – West All-Stars  

Japan  
Shungo Fukunaga, RHP – Abu Dhabi Falcons  
Shingo Hirata, RHP – Karachi Monarchs  

Kuwait  
Sam Abbott, 1B – Abu Dhabi Falcons  

Lithuania  
Dovydas Neverauskas, RHP – Dubai Wolves  

Mexico  
Carlos Garzon, C – Mumbai Cobras  

Netherlands  
Didi Gregorius, SS – Dubai Wolves  

Panama  
Severino Gonzalez, RHP – Abu Dhabi Falcons  
Enrique Burgos, RHP – Mumbai Cobras  

Pakistan  
Yunis Halim, RHP – West All-Stars  
Syed Muhammad, INF – East All-Stars  
Wahid, INF – East All-Stars  

Puerto Rico 
Steven Moya, OF – Karachi Monarchs  

Sri Lanka  
Hashan Senewirathna, INF – East All-Stars  

Sweden  
Leo Backstrom, C – Abu Dhabi Falcons  

South Africa  
Christiaan Beyers, IF – Dubai Wolves  

Sint Maarten  
Franklin Van Gurp, RHP – Karachi Monarchs  

Uganda  
Dennis Kasumba, C/OF – East All-Stars  

U.S. Virgin Islands  
Akeel Morris, RHP – Mumbai Cobras  

United Kingdom  
Raul Shah, OF – Mumbai Cobras  

Venezuela  
Pablo Sandoval, 1B/3B – Abu Dhabi Falcons  
Hernan Perez, 3B – Dubai Wolves  
Hector Sanchez, C – Karachi Monarchs  

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Leif Skodnick - World Baseball Network