Team Cuba is the national baseball team of Cuba, run by the Federación Cubana de Béisbol and managed since June 2025 by Germán Mesa, the former Industriales shortstop. Cuba won 25 amateur World Cups and three Olympic golds, and was the top-ranked team in the world as recently as December 2012. It has not won a major title since 2005, and in March 2026 it failed to get out of the first round of the World Baseball Classic for the first time.
World Baseball Classic record
| Year | Finish | Record | Eliminated by |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Runner-up | 5–3 | Lost the final to Japan, 10–6 |
| 2009 | 5th–6th | 4–2 | Second round, Japan and South Korea |
| 2013 | 5th | 4–2 | Netherlands, deciding second-round game |
| 2017 | 7th–8th | 2–4 | Second round, 0–3 in Pool E |
| 2023 | 4th | 3–3 | United States, 14–2 in the semifinal |
| 2026 | 10th | 2–2 | Pool play — no knockout game |
Cuba has never won the Classic. Its overall record across the six editions is 20–16. The 2026 roster and results are here, and the 2023 squad is broken down player by player here.
What happened in 2026
Cuba beat Panama 3–1 and Colombia 7–4, then lost 4–1 to Puerto Rico and 7–2 to Canada at Hiram Bithorn Stadium in San Juan. Canada and Puerto Rico both finished 3–1 and advanced; Cuba finished third in Pool A at 2–2 and tenth overall. Several high-profile Cubans — Luis Robert, Andy Pagés, Andy Ibáñez, Zach Neto and Daysbel Hernández among them — withdrew before the tournament.
Olympic record
| Games | Result |
|---|---|
| 1992 Barcelona | Gold |
| 1996 Atlanta | Gold |
| 2000 Sydney | Silver |
| 2004 Athens | Gold |
| 2008 Beijing | Silver |
| 2012 & 2016 | Baseball not on the Olympic programme |
| 2020 Tokyo | Did not qualify — the first time Cuba had ever failed |
| 2024 Paris | Baseball not on the programme |
| 2028 Los Angeles | Not yet qualified |
Baseball returns at Los Angeles 2028 with a six-team field. The United States qualify as hosts; the two Americas places went to the Dominican Republic and Venezuela on the strength of the 2026 World Baseball Classic, which Venezuela won. Asia and Europe/Oceania berths come through the 2027 Premier12. Cuba’s only remaining route is the final global qualifier, due to be played by March 2028.
Other competitions
| Competition | Cuba’s record |
|---|---|
| Amateur World Cup | 25 titles between 1939 and 2005; the competition ended in 2011 |
| Premier12 2015 | 6th — lost the quarterfinal to South Korea |
| Premier12 2019 | 10th |
| Premier12 2024 | 6th in Group B, 1–3, missed the Super Round |
| Pan American Games 2023 | 5th, no medal |
| Central American and Caribbean Games 2023 | Silver — the final was rained out and gold awarded on record |
| Central American and Caribbean Games 2026 | 4th — lost the bronze game 9–1 to Puerto Rico |
The 2026 result in Santo Domingo was Cuba’s first time off the podium at those Games in 64 years. Cuba has already qualified for the 2027 Premier12 on ranking, with the opening round in Taipei in November 2027 and the Super Round at the Tokyo Dome.
Caribbean Series
Cuba returned to the Caribbean Series in 2014 after a 53-year absence and played every year to 2019, winning it in 2015 with Vegueros de Pinar del Río — a first Cuban title in 55 years. It did not take part between 2020 and 2025. Cuba had been expected back for 2026, but was dropped from the field when the tournament moved from Venezuela to Guadalajara. The Cuban federation called the exclusion disrespectful, noting that Cuba co-founded both the confederation and the Series itself.
Where Cuba stands now
Cuba was ranked 10th in the world by the WBSC as of 31 December 2025, against a peak of first in December 2012. That figure predates the 2026 Classic. The decline has several causes at once: a sustained exodus of players, the cancellation in 2019 of the only legal route into MLB, an economy in crisis, and a domestic league whose 2026–27 season had to be shortened to save fuel. How the sport is organised, and how players leave, is explained on the Cuban baseball page.