Major League Baseball

Source: Top Cuban player left team in Dominican Republic

Updated Mar. 4, 2020 8:06 p.m. ET

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A baseball official in the Dominican Republic says star Cuban infielder Yulieski Gourriel has abandoned his team following the Caribbean Series.

The official tells The Associated Press that Gourriel left his hotel before dawn on Monday in the Dominican capital. He was with his younger brother, Lourdes, also a highly sought player.

Their plans are not known. But Cuban players in the past have established residency in the Dominican Republic and then signed contracts to play in Major League Baseball.

The official says managers of Ciega de Avila, which lost to eventual champion Mazatlan of Mexico in the semifinals, asked police to help locate the brothers.

He spoke to AP on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the situation. Cuban officials had no immediate comment.