The Cuban Profesional Baseball Federation (FEPBCUBE) announced that Cuban-American outfielder Peter O’Brien will play for them against the Miami-Dade College Sharks on January 18 at the Kendall Campus in Miami, Fla. at 12:30 p.m. EST.
¡Más talento sumado! Peter O’Brien confirmó su presencia con nuestro equipo para el juego amistoso del próximo día 18 💪🇨🇺#oneteamonedream #todossomoscuba #OrgulloCubano pic.twitter.com/zbsjdUcUfq
— FEPCUBE (@fepcube) January 13, 2025
The other FEPCUBE players who will play against Miami Dade College are right-handed pitcher Pedro Echemendia, right-handed pitcher Elih Villanueva, right-handed pitcher Sandy Gastón, infielders Luis Medina and Eddy Díaz, catcher Gabriel Rebozo, outfielder Andy Martín, and outfielder Maikol Pérez.
Echemenida was announced to play with FEPCUBE from their Instagram profile on January 9.
Villanueva, Medina, Gaston, and Rebozo were announced to play for FEPCUBE on January 7.
¡Se siguen sumando! Cuatro nuevos peloteros se sumaron y estarán junto al equipo en el juego del próximo día 18 🔥🔥🇨🇺#oneteamonedream #todossomoscuba #OrgulloCubano pic.twitter.com/VRm3n7b1Bg
— FEPCUBE (@fepcube) January 7, 2025
Yordano Carmona and Abel Zaldívar of Pelota Cubana USA reported on January 10 that Martin will play with FEPCUBE against Miami-Dade College on January 18.
Andy Martín jugará partido amistoso con el equipo de Fepcubehttps://t.co/1iDAy7HhkM
— Yordano Carmona (@YordiMLB) January 11, 2025
Raidel Orta, Yasser Diaz, Marco Romero, and Maikol Perez were also announced to play for FEPCUBE on January 11.
Yunesky Maya was announced to play for FEPCUBE on their Instagram profile on January 9.
O’Brien, 34, was born in Hialeah, Fla., and played four seasons in Major League Baseball with the Arizona Diamondbacks from 2015 to 2016 and the Miami Marlins from 2018 to 19.
In his four seasons in the majors, O’Brien played in 72 games, had a -0.8 WAR in 200 plate appearances, and hit .209 with 38 hits, eight doubles, 11 home runs, 26 RBI, 16 walks, 73 strikeouts, and a .709 OPS.
O’Brien was drafted in the second round by the New York Yankees in the 2012 MLB June Amateur Draft and signed on June 2, 2012, after his senior season at the University of Miami.
O’Brien played in eight minor league seasons between the New York Yankees from 2012-14, the Arizona Diamondbacks from 2014-16, the Cincinnati Reds, Kansas City Royals, and Texas Rangers in 2017, the Los Angeles Dodgers from 2017-18, and the Miami Marlins from 2018-19.
O’Brien has also played in nine winter league seasons in the Liga ARCO Mexicana del Pacífico with the Naranjeros de Hermosillo in 2015-16, the Yaquis de Obregon in 2017-18, and the Tomateros de Culiacán in 2023-24,, the Liga de Béisbol Profesional de la República Dominicana with the Toros del Este from 2018-22 and the Leones del Escogido in 2022-23, the Liga de Béisbol Profesional Roberto Clemente in Puerto Rico with the Criollos de Caguas, and the Liga Venezolana de Beisbol Profesional with the Navegantes del Magallanes in the 2024-25 season alongside playing for the Dominican Republic at the 2020 Caribbean Series in San Juan, Puerto Rico at Hiram Bithorn Stadium.
O’Brien helped Toros del Este win their first Caribbean Series championship in 2020 while playing in seven games, hitting .348 with 29 plate appearances, cracking eight hits, two doubles, one home run, three RBI, swiping two bases, five walks, and five strikeouts alongside beating the 2019-20 LVBP champion, Cardenales de Lara in the championship game 9-3.
After the COVID-19 pandemic, he took his talents to the Liga Mexicana de Béisbol with the Toros de Tijuana in the 2021 season and played with the Pericos de Puebla from 2022 to 24.
O’Brien won two Serie del Rey championships with the Toros de Tijuana in 2021 and the Pericos de Puebla in 2023.
In his four seasons in LMB, O’Brien played in 305 games with 1,246 plate appearances and batted .292, smacking 323 hits, 75 doubles, eight triples, 84 home runs, 218 RBI, four stolen bases, 112 walks, 362 strikeouts, and a .601 OPS.
In his nine winter league seasons, O’Brien has played in 295 games, hitting .204 with 1,199 plate appearances, 207 hits, 44 doubles, five triples, 44 home runs, 148 RBI, 11 stolen bases, 150 walks, 361 strikeouts, and a .707 OPS.
In the 2024-25 LVBP season with the Navegantes del Magallanes, O’Brien batted .130 with 65 plate appearances, playing in 17 games with seven hits, two doubles, three home runs, 12 RBI, six walks, and 20 strikeouts.
O’Brien was with FEPCUBE and played against the Houston Apollos in the team’s second exhibition game on January 29, 2024. According to FEPCUBE’s Instagram profile, O’Brien reported to their camp on January 27, 2024.
Last year, FEPCUBE was supposed to play in the 2024 Intercontinental Series in Barranquilla, Colombia, at Estadio Edgar Renteria alongside other club teams with the 2023-24 champion Caimanes de Barranquilla of the Liga Profesional De Béisbol Colombia and the Willemstad Cannons, who took second place in the 2023 Curacao Professional Baseball League.
The other teams that were supposed to participate in the 2024 Intercontinental Series were the Nihonkai Baseball League in Japan, the Western League in the United States, an independent league that would have built its roster with players from its own league, and the Pecos League, which is based in the Southwest region of the United States.
The Gyeonggi-do Baseball Softball Association in South Korea’s Gyeonggi Province Independent League was slated to be the other participant at the 2024 Intercontinental Series.
FEPCUBE announced on January 9, 2024, that they had changed their team name slogan from “Patria Y Vida” to “Dream Team” due to political conflicts between the El Ministerio de Deportes de Colombia and the Colombia Olympic Committee, Francys Romero of beisbolfr.com explains.
The leagues, teams, and entities involved have expressed their full willingness for the series to take place, however, the Ministry of Sports, together with the Olympic Committee, issued a statement expressing that it was impossible to grant endorsement for the holding of the series. In addition to the non-recognition of the FEPCUBE team, which is one of the participants,” the communication stated, Leif Skodnick of World Baseball Network reported on January 17, 2024.
Before that week last January, reports indicated that the Cuban Professional Baseball Federation, or FEPCUBE, and the Colombian government had been notified of the Cuban government’s objection to FEPCUBE’s use of the Cuban flag and national anthem, as well as the country’s name and the slogan “Patria y Vida,” by a group of players who they do not view as Cuban, Romero followed from his tweet listed below.
El Ministerio de Deportes de Colombia 🇨🇴 y el Comité Olímpico Colombiano (COC) aclaran en un comunicado, seguramente presionado por @InderCuba y la @CubanaBeisbol que no reconocen la Serie Intercontinental.
También dicen que rechazan las acciones de la FEPCUBE que pretende… pic.twitter.com/Y2Dhe1xgMK
— Francys Romero (@francysromeroFR) January 10, 2024
Notable major leaguers such as Aroldis Chapman, Lourdes Gurriel Jr., Yandy Diaz, Yulieski Gurriel, and Yennier Cano were listed on FEPCUBE’s preliminary roster for the canceled 2024 ICS:
Brayan Pena was the manager of FEPCUBE last year. They played against Miami-Dade College in their first exhibition game on their campus on January 17, 2024, and played at Alex Rodriguez Field on the University of Miami Campus in Coral Gables, Fla., on January 29, 2024, against the Houston Apollos of the Western League and Pecos League.
FEPCUBE still has listed all the officials for their team on their website: https://fepcubeusa.com/about-us/ since the team was founded on August 8, 2023.
FEPCUBE reported that the ICS will be withdrawn from their account on December 30, 2024, from January 25 to February 1.
Fanki, the event and game ticket agency in Colombia, is apparently the sponsor for the 2025 CS event.
