Who is Luis Gurriel Jr.? Exploring Little League World Series pitcher's MLB roots

On Aug. 16, Luis Gurriel Jr. and his Cuban teammates will take on Japan in their first game of the 2023 Little League World Series. Miraculously, the tournament will feature a Cuban team for the first time in its 76-year history.

Gurriel Jr. is a 12-year old pitcher who plays for Bayamo Little League, based in southeastern Cuba. While he is a promising young player in his own right, Gurriel's name carries a lot of weight in his homeland.

Gurriel Sr., the father of Luis Gurriel Jr., is the brother of Lourdes Gurriel, an iconic and historic Cuban baseball player. Widely regarded as one of the best players never to feature in MLB, Lourdes consistently ranked among the top of the Cuban leagues, and won several Gold Medals on the international baseball stage.

"Bayamo’s Little League team will make Cuba's historic debut in the @LittleLeague World Series. The kids have said goodbye to their families and arrived in the U.S. Next Wednesday, they play their first game against Japan at the annual event in Williamsport, Pennsylvania." - Belly of the Beast

Due to the embargo between Cuba and the USA, Lourdes Gurriel was never able to pursue a career in MLB. However, in 2016, he was able to pass his dream on to his two sons, who are first cousins of Luis Gurriel Jr.

Although Lourdes' sons, Lourdes Jr and Yuli, were promising baseball stars in Cuba, and could easily garner big-time MLB deals, they swore allegiance to their homeland. However, things soon changed in 2016, when both sons defected to the Dominican Republic. Within months, Yuli had signed a five-year, $47.5 million deal with the Houston Astros, Lourdes Jr. inked a deal with the Blue Jays in November of that year.

Since their defection, neither has been able to return to their Communist homeland to see most of their family. However, both are excited to see their cousin, Luis Gurriel Jr. appear statewide for the LLWS.

"On Father's Day at Minute Maid Park: Lourdes Gurriel Sr with his sons Yuli and Lourdes Jr." - Mark Berman

Yuli now plays for the Miami Marlins, and won a pair of World Series rings in Houston. Meanwhile, Lourdes Jr. is hitting .259/.308/.469 with 19 home runs and 64 RBIs for the Arizona Diamondbacks, which were enough to give him his first-career All-Star appearance in 2023.

Luis Gurriel Jr. has some serious baseball talent in his gene pool

While Cuba produces some of the best baseball players on the planet, the political situation in the country only serves to hold the talent back. While his cousin's defections have undoubtedly put strain on the family, Luis Gurriel Jr. will need to focus on making a big splash on his first trip to the USA this week.