US beats Cuba 5-3 at baseball World Cup; Venezuela, Canada and Puerto Rico also win

October 1st, 2009 Police: Wounded Marlins prospect 'innocent victim'SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — A Florida Marlins shortstop prospect wounded in a drive-by shooting on this U.S. island was the innocent victim of gangsters battling for control of drug distribution in nearby public housing projects, police said Thursday.

September 30th, 2009 After Olympic shutout, baseball WCup is a successNETTUNO, Italy — International baseball officials are starting to get over the shock of being shut out of the Olympics, and the recently concluded World Cup was hailed as a success in spreading the sport's reach in Europe. The United States beat Cuba 10-5 in Sunday's final to cap a 22-team tournament spread over seven countries, several of which were almost completely new to baseball.

September 30th, 2009 US beats Cuba 10-5 to win baseball World CupNETTUNO, Italy — The United States defended its baseball World Cup title on Sunday with a 10-5 victory over Cuba that was powered by four RBIs from Lucas May, including a three-run home run. "Other than playing in a World Series, this is as big as it gets," said May, a Los Angeles Dodgers prospect who went 2 for 4.

September 30th, 2009 Shortstop signed by Marlins shot in Puerto RicoSAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — Police in Puerto Rico say a 21-year-old shortstop signed by the Florida Marlins has been shot several times in a drive-by attack. Police spokeswoman Maria Rivera says Osvaldo Martinez Pizarro was wounded while he was driving Wednesday through the city of Carolina, just east of the Caribbean island's capital, San Juan.

September 21st, 2009 Cuban defector Chapman establishes residencyNEW YORK — Cuban pitcher Aroldis Chapman, who defected in July, has established provisional residency in Andorra. In a statement Monday, Chapman's agent said the pitcher "has been granted provisional passive residency" in the country pending completion of the process.

August 26th, 2009 Dent meets NY club at LLWS; Canada gets wild winSOUTH WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. — At face value, Bucky Dent draws few looks from the young ballplayers.

July 30th, 2009 Puerto Rico Islanders top Toronto FC 1-0TORONTO — Kendall Jagdeosingh lifted the Puerto Rico Islanders to a 1-0 win against MLS team Toronto FC on Wednesday night in the first leg of the CONCACAF Champions League preliminary round. San Francisco of Panama beat San Juan Jabloteh of Trinidad 2-0 at home, and Liberia of Costa Rica also secured an opening win with a 3-0 home victory over Honduran club Real Espana.

July 7th, 2009 US tops Puerto Rico at under-19 championshipsAUCKLAND, New Zealand — Howard Thompkins III had 14 points and nine rebounds and the United States qualified for the quarterfinals with an 82-61 win over Puerto Rico at the FIBA under-19 world championships Tuesday. Gordon Hayward had 11 points, seven rebounds and three steals for the United States, which clinched first place in Group E.

July 6th, 2009 AUCKLAND, New Zealand — United States stayed perfect with an 85-69 win over Greece in a second-round game at the FIBA under-19 world championships Monday. Also, Rutgers guard Michael Rosario scored a tournament-high 54 points and Puerto Rico edged France 90-89.

July 3rd, 2009 Report: Top prospect defects from CubaA top Cuban pitching prospect with a 100 mph fastball has defected from the national team while playing in a tournament in Rotterdam, Netherlands. ESPN The Magazine reports that several unidentified sources confirmed that Aroldis Chapman walked out of his hotel room and did not return.

July 1st, 2009 Gerba's 2 goals lift CanadaOXNARD, Calif. — Ali Gerba scored twice in Canada's 3-0 victory over Guatemala on Tuesday in a warmup game before the Gold Cup.

June 25th, 2009 Cubs' Soto tested positive for marijuana at WBCDETROIT — Chicago Cubs catcher Geovany Soto says he is embarrassed after testing positive for marijuana at this year's World Baseball Classic. Soto says he will accept any consequences for his mistake.

June 25th, 2009 Cubs C Soto tested positive for marijuana at WBCDETROIT — Chicago Cubs catcher Geovany Soto will not be suspended by Major League Baseball or his team after testing positive for marijuana at this year's World Baseball Classic. Soto, last season's NL Rookie of the Year, drew a two-year ban from international competition by the International Baseball Federation.

June 21st, 2009 103-year-old Navarro throws out first pitchSAN DIEGO — Emilio Navarro still has some accuracy, if not the range. Navarro, who at 103 is believed to be the oldest living professional baseball player, threw out the ceremonial first pitch before the Oakland Athletics-San Diego Padres game on Saturday night.

June 11th, 2009 Mets' Beltran proud of cousin drafted in 1st roundNEW YORK — Carlos Beltran couldn't help himself. Busy with a game against Philadelphia, he wanted a quick update on baseball's amateur draft Tuesday night.