Cuba will play two exhibition games during Major League Baseball spring training on March 2 and 3 in Florida or Arizona in 2026, according to a post on Pelota Cubana’s X account on July 13. These friendlies, organized by MLB, will feature Cuba facing players on MLB 40-man rosters. The games are part of Cuba’s extensive preparations for the World Baseball Classic (WBC) in March.
Cuba jugaría dos juegos de exhibición en Spring Training de MLBhttps://t.co/JnK2zqnmgv
— Pelota Cubana USA (@pelotacubanausa) July 13, 2025
In February, Cuba will train in either Mexico or Nicaragua and play games against clubs from the Liga Mexicana de Beisbol or Liga de Beisbol Profesional Nacional. These new efforts are a response to Cuba’s 14-2 loss to Team USA in the 2023 WBC semifinals at loanDepot Park in Miami.
Cuba, which has competed in all six editions of the WBC, is aiming to rebound from that defeat. The country’s best WBC finish was second place in the inaugural 2006 tournament, where it lost 10-6 to Japan.
For the 2026 WBC, Cuba returns to Puerto Rico to play at Hiram Bithorn Stadium in San Juan, as it did in 2006. All Pool A games will be held at this venue. Puerto Rico, which reached the WBC gold medal game in 2013 and 2017 but lost to the Dominican Republic and the United States, respectively, is also in Pool A.
Pool A consists of Cuba, host nation Puerto Rico, Canada, Colombia, and Panama. Cuba will face a challenging schedule with games against Panama, Colombia, Puerto Rico, and Canada. Each team plays four games, and the top two seeds advance to the quarterfinals, with tiebreaker scenarios in effect if necessary.
Team Cuba’s Pool A Schedule
March 6 – Cuba vs. Panama, 11 a.m. EDT
March 8 – Cuba vs. Colombia, 12 p.m. EDT
March 9 – Cuba vs. Puerto Rico, 7 p.m. EDT
March 11 – Cuba vs. Canada, 3 p.m. EDT
WBN Cuba: https://worldbaseball.com/league/cuba/
