Nicaragua names roster for Olympic baseball qualifier in Florida

The Nicaraguan National Baseball Team 26-player roster has been unveiled for the WBSC Baseball Americas Qualifier, where eight top baseball nations will compete for one Olympic ticket to the Tokyo 2020 Games.

Nicaragua’s manager Marvin Benard selected 12 pitchers, 2 catchers, 7 infielders and 5 outfielders for the qualifier, which runs from 31 May to 5 June in Port St. Lucie and West Palm Beach, Florida.

World No. 15 Nicaragua, the lowest-ranked team in the tournament, will compete in Group A, a "group of death" that features powerhouses No. 2 USA, No. 10 Dominican Republic and No. 11 Puerto Rico.

Nicaragua will be represented by a team with a majority of players from the domestic Nicaraguan Professional Baseball League (LBPN). Four players are currently under contract with MLB organisations: Catcher Melvin Novoa (Texas Rangers), shortstop Brandon Leyton (Cincinnati Reds), outfielder Ismael Munguia (San Francisco Giants) and left-handed pitcher Dilmer Mejia (Chicago White Sox). Lefty Carlos Teller plays for the Mexican Baseball League’s Rieleros de Aguascalientes.

The list includes 12 players from the Pan American Games bronze-medal winning team in Lima 2019, where the Central American nation earned their spot in the Olympic qualifier.

The team is managed by former big leaguer Marvin Benard, joined by Julio Sanchez, Cairo Murillo, Henry Roa, Yader Roa, Sandor Guido and Mario Peña.

Nicaragua will fly to Florida on Friday, 28 May, and will make their debut in the tournament on Monday 31 May, at 7 pm local time against host USA -- the top-ranked nation in the qualifier -- at Clover Park in Port St. Lucie.

Nicaragua is attempting to return to the Olympic Games for the first time since 1996, where the squad finished in fourth place in their only Olympic appearance. They lost the bronze medal game against USA, 10-3.