The Three Cuban Musketeers

CubaEncuentro, a site dedicated to Cuban news, has a nice article giving a little background on three current Major League shortstops that came from Cuba: Yuniesky Betancourt (Mariners), Yunel Escobar (Braves), and Alexei Ramirez (White Sox).

For those of you that can't read it because it's in Spanish, here are the highlights:

• Neither one of these guys could get a starting job at short while playing in Cuba. There were veteran players with "name power" that would not be moved to give these guys a shot. Betacourt played 2B, Escobar played 3B, SS, and rode the pine. And Alexei played all outfield positions and even served as a kind of utility player in the infield. All of them are current ML starters at the SS position.
• They all made around $432 a month down there.
• Changing teams down there isn't as simple as you'd think, so they couldn't just switch teams to go to one that allowed them to start at SS. You could have three, great shortstops and you would have to play some of them out of position. Hmmm...sounds like the Dodgers outfield situation.
  

The crazy thing is how much these guys make now and how good they are at their position: Ramirez now makes around $100,000 per month, Escobar is at around $35,000 per month, and Betacourt makes around $192,000 per month.

And they get to start at the position they love/excel at.

So all politics and family issues aside, it's no wonder coming to the US is such an appetizing decision. It's amazing that more players don't try to come over more often.