The winner of WBN’s International Player of the Week is Cuban catcher Ariel Pestano Jr.
Pestano, 27, is a switch hitter who was declared eligible for the for the First-Year Player Draft per Cuban Baseball Digest on March 20. The draft will take place this upcoming July and will provide Pestano with the opportunity to land on with a Major League Baseball organization.
Cuban catcher Ariel Pestano Jr. will be declared eligible for the upcoming @MLB draft tomorrow. Pestano is represented by @agent_alonso of @AFSportsAgency1. pic.twitter.com/wXo3LV55t4
— Cuban Baseball Digest (@CBaseballDigest) March 20, 2025
To be eligible for the First-Year Player Draft, players must be residents of the United States or U.S. territories or Canada. Players who have graduated high school but have not attended college are eligible for the draft, as are those who have completed at least one year of junior college per MLB.com.
Pestano Jr. follows the footsteps of his father Ariel, who was a Cuban Legend. The older Pestano was also a catcher in the Serie Nacional de Cuba for 24 years from 1991 to 2024 with the Naranjas de Villa Clara. He won gold with Team Cuba at the 2004 Athens Olympics and played for Cuba in the 2006 and 2009 World Baseball Classic. In 2006, Cuba took second place in the WBC with a 10-6 loss to Team Japan at Petco Park in San Diego.
However, the elder Pestano never left Cuba and didn’t pursue this opportunity his son has. Last June, Pestano Jr. left Cuba after he requested his release from the Federacion Cubana de Beisbol. He then took a flight to Managua, Nicaragua, and traveled to various other countries in Central America before finding his way to the United States.
Pestano Jr. is represented by Gladys Alonso of A&F Sports and had a private workout for MLB clubs earlier this year. In October of 2024, he arrived in Mexico and he worked out for the Caneros de Los Mochis. He played on the same team as his father for four seasons from 2017-24 in Serie Nacional de Cuba with the Naranjas de Villa Clara.
His breakout season came in 2023-24 when he appeared in 66 games, with eight home runs, 31 RBI, and a .276 batting average. This was apparently enough for him to feel ready to take the jump to leave Cuba and attempt an MLB career.
Pestano is expected to sign with an independent organization to showcase his skills before the MLB Draft per Cuban Baseball Digest.
Photo: Ariel Pestano Jr. at a workout for the Caneros de Los Mochis of the Liga ARCO Mexicana del Pacifico. (Photo via @pestanojr_13 on Instagram)
