Nicaragua is taking confident strides at the Taipei Dome during the 2025 World Baseball Classic Qualifiers. In game one, catcher Ronald Ramirez delivered a dramatic 2-1 walk-off single against South Africa on February 21, and on February 22, Benjamin Alegria powered a second 2-1 win against Spain with his clutch hit.
Nicaragua’s recent WBC history reflects both challenges and comebacks. At the last tournament, the team went winless at loanDepot Park in Miami, falling to Venezuela, Israel, Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic under manager Sandor Guido in a 20-team field. At the 2022 qualifiers in Panama City, Panama at Estadio Rod Carew, Nicaragua secured a berth in the 2023 tournament by beating Brazil 3-1 in the final game. Earlier in that double-elimination event, they lost 4-1 to Brazil and then rallied with a 12-0 win over Pakistan in seven innings followed by a 6-5 victory against Argentina. New Zealand, Pakistan and Argentina were not invited back for this year’s qualifiers after participating in 2022.
New Zealand, Pakistan and Argentina are absent from the 2025 qualifiers due to a mix of ranking placements, financial challenges and strategic talent considerations that ensure Nicaragua faces strong competition. Pakistan currently ranks 38th in the world and eighth in the WBSC Asia region. New Zealand stands third in the WBSC Oceania region and 48th overall, while Argentina is ranked 33rd globally and 13th in the WBSC Americas region.
Nicaragua Baseball Background
Baseball has played a significant role in Nicaragua since the 1880s. American businessman Albert Addlesberg, based in Bluefields, introduced the sport around the autonomous Mosquito Reserve—an area already steeped in British cricket traditions.
Addlesberg was instrumental in persuading two prominent cricket clubs to adopt baseball and supplied local players with equipment imported from New Orleans. By 1887, those clubs evolved into teams known as the Southern and Four Roses, and by 1888 baseball had taken root along the Mosquito Coast, paving the way for the first official game in 1891 between Managua and Granada.
Despite enduring political challenges, economic struggles and corruption that have affected professional leagues over the past 135 years, Nicaragua has consistently produced MLB talent. Fifteen Nicaraguans have played on an MLB diamond, beginning with Dennis Martinez, who debuted on September 14, 1976 for the Baltimore Orioles. He was followed by Tony Chevez, Albert Williams, David Green, Porfi Altamirano, Marvin Bernard, Vicente Padilla, Oswaldo Mairena, Devern Hansack, Everth Cabrera, Wilton Lopez, Erasmo Ramirez, Cheslor Cuthbert and Jonathan Loaisiga.
The robust professional baseball environment in Nicaragua has helped spur rapid development in neighboring Central American countries. Honduras, for instance, has seen growth in the sport as players like Houston Astros utility man Mauricio Dubon advanced through the ranks, earning a 2022 World Series championship and a 2023 Gold Glove Award.
In international competitions, Nicaragua has earned seven gold medals at the Central American Games in 1977, 1986, 1994, 2001, 2006, 2013 and 2017, five silver medals at the Baseball World Cup in 1939, 1940, 1973, 1974 and 1990, four silver medals at the Central American and Caribbean Games in 1935, 1978, 1998 and 2014 and two silver medals at the Pan American Games in 1983 and 1995, reflecting some of the nation’s highest achievements.
During the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, Nicaragua made its deepest run in international competition by reaching the bronze-medal round at Fulton County Stadium. The team posted a 4-3 record in the preliminary round but lost 10-3 to the United States and finished fourth behind Japan (4-3), the United States (6-1) and Cuba (7-0), before dropping 8-1 to Cuba in the semifinals.
Nicaragua missed the Olympic roster in 2000, 2004, 2008 and 2021, and it also failed to qualify for the World Baseball Classic in 2013 and 2017. The WBC was an invite-only event, and Nicaragua did not appear in the International Baseball Federation’s World Baseball Rankings in 2006 and 2009.
In the 2013 WBC Qualifiers, Nicaragua competed in Pool 3 at Estadio Rod Carew against host Panama, Colombia and Brazil but fell short after losing consecutive games to Colombia (8-1) and Panama (6-2).
At the 2017 WBC Qualifiers held at El Nido de los Águilas in Mexicali, Baja California, Mexico, Nicaragua edged Germany 5-4 in the preliminaries to advance to the semifinals. The team then lost 11-0 to Mexico on March 18, 2016, defeated the Czech Republic 7-6 on March 19 to set up a final qualifying game, and ultimately fell to Mexico 12-1, missing a berth in the 2017 event.
Now, under Federation Nicaraguense de Beisbol Asociada president Nemesio Porras, Nicaragua is actively scouting and building consistent rosters through its domestic leagues—the Campeonato German Pomares Ordonez spring-summer league and the Liga de Beisbol Profesional Nacional—as well as professional global leagues. This strategic approach aims to assemble a stronger national team capable of competing with the top countries in international competitions.