Cuban activists were among the men arrested Sunday after storming the field during the World Baseball Classic game between Team USA and Cuba.
One night after a thrilling quarterfinal win over Venezuela, Team USA crushed Cuba 14-2 in front of a sold-out crowd at loanDepot park in Miami on Sunday.
The game was met with mixed feelings by the South Florida community as protests erupted in Little Havana over the weekend.
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Cell phone video shows one of the men rushing to the field, holding a banner in protest of the dictatorship in Cuba as security comes to stop him and kick them out.
Other cell phone footage shows another man walking on the field holding a Cuban flag as security tackles him to the ground and the crowd chants "libertad," or freedom, from the stands.
According to the Miami-Dade Police Department, three men were arrested and charged with trespassing. NBC 6 confirmed that Antonio Fernández, Danilo Maldonado Machado — a Cuban artist and activist known as El Sexto — and Carlos Álvarez — a well-known journalist and activist — were among the arrested.
"I hope the regime and everyone around the world gets the message," Machado told NBC 6 outside of jail. "There are young people in jail for no reason, or simply walking the streets demanding freedom in Cuba."
Miami Dade PD also confirmed that a fourth arrest was for simple battery and that the person did not run onto the field.
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High-performing athletes on the island earn a salary from the government to train and compete, but Cuba has prohibited professional sports in the island since the Cuban revolution 60 years ago.
Longtime sanctions by the U.S. make it largely impossible for Cubans to play professionally for an American team without defecting. Meanwhile, Cuba historically has not allowed Cuban players who defected on their national team rosters.
The United States for the first time is letting Cuban-born MLB stars play for their homeland in the WBC, making this a rare mixed roster of current Cuban players and defectors.
Bond was set at $1,000 and the men are expected to be released from Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center where they were transferred to later in the day, according to the arrest record.
