Anyone See Last Night's Baseball All-Star Game?

[Bigg Rigg]

Nice, bro! I haven't even set foot in Citi Field yet. Cespedes looked incredible the other night. It must've been something to watch that guy launch those shots live. I was feeling really good to watch two Cubans pitch back-to-back in the All-Star game: Jose Fernandez and Aroldis Chapman. I would've loved to see Gourriel come over a few years ago. Abreu and Despaigne look really good, too. But the guy I really wish had defected years ago is Frederich Cepeda. That guy is a switch-hitting Manny Ramirez. What a damn shame these guys are languishing in communism.

I'm beginning to feel that "Canelo" is bigger than I imagined. He's got quite a bit going for him. He can be huge. As you said, if he manages to beat Floyd, it's gonna get crazy.

I hate the mets but their stadium is beautiful!! Way better then the Yankees stadium. It's huge too! I had to work back when the Yankees hosted the all star festivities so I missed hamiltons performance all together. Just saw highlights on sports center. This though made up for it. Cespedes made citi field look little. The last shot he hit was amazing to end the derby. Straight away center and just threw the bat like what!!!! Crazy swag bro..... I remember seeing all the Cubans for the first time during the first WBC. Them boys impressed me. I love baseball and I feel so bad for the Cubans man. That communist **** is wack. So much talent stuck over there. Cepeda, Gourriel those guys would have been stars in the MLB. Smh Fernandez' story on how he got here to the states almost made me cry. It's crazy stuff when u really think about it. He's gonna be great and Chapman is unbelievable. 103??? You gotta be kidding. That's not even fair. And he's a lefty too. Puig should have been there aswell. He's a phenom. I didn't buy into his hype til I saw him live in the Bronx for the double header we played against LA. That dude is fast as hell. Caught Gardner sleeping and turned a single into a double. The crazy part is the dude is huge!!! 6'3 230+ running like a young jimmy rollins. He's gonna be special. And if Canelo can ****ing do it on sept 14th, he's gonna be a once in a life time type of athlete. Might sound a bit crazy but I'm so serious. Canelo has something about him that draws the casuals. The girls love him and to dethrone Mayweather would make him the ultimate celebrity fighter.

[CubanGuyNYC]

I remember some old boxing guy told me Puerto Rico should be grateful that Cuban boxers were never allowed to go pro. I wonder what he meant by that?

Puerto Rico has had some great champions that would've been great no matter what Cubans were there to fight them. The same goes for some Mexicans, and others. What would've happened, in my opinion, is that a few Cubans would've taken over a few belts. We would've taken our rightful place among the boxing powers. A few champions from a few other countries would've lost their place. That's all. The ATGs weren't going anywhere. The biggest question in my mind is: What potential Cuban ATGs never got their chance? It's a sad thought.

[CubanGuyNYC]

I hate the mets but their stadium is beautiful!! Way better then the Yankees stadium. It's huge too!

I'm one of those rare fans that likes both the Mets and the Yanks (although I'm a Yankee fan). I haven't been to either stadium yet. My boy had tickets for us to attend the first game at the new Yankee Stadium, but the game got rained-out. I'll never forget that. I left NYC shortly thereafter, and I don't know when I'll catch a live game again.

I had to work back when the Yankees hosted the all star festivities so I missed hamiltons performance all together. Just saw highlights on sports center. This though made up for it. Cespedes made citi field look little. The last shot he hit was amazing to end the derby. Straight away center and just threw the bat like what!!!! Crazy swag bro.....

Hamilton's performance was once-in-a-lifetime. Not even the all-stars on hand had ever seen something like that. Josh was hitting the ball to places no one had ever reached in Yankee Stadium. It was literally breathtaking.

Cespedes was unreal. The home run derby is all about stamina. I was afraid Yoenis would be burnt by the next round. He just kept hitting bomb after bomb. People are still talking about the bat-flip. lol

I remember seeing all the Cubans for the first time during the first WBC. Them boys impressed me. I love baseball and I feel so bad for the Cubans man. That communist **** is wack. So much talent stuck over there. Cepeda, Gourriel those guys would have been stars in the MLB. Smh

There's a lot of talent on the island, but they only get to play among themselves and inferior talent from other countries. To be the best, you've got to play the best. It would be interesting to see what some of those Cuban guys would look like if they got a chance to play major leaguers on a regular basis. The general level of play would improve.

Fernandez' story on how he got here to the states almost made me cry. It's crazy stuff when u really think about it. He's gonna be great and Chapman is unbelievable. 103??? You gotta be kidding. That's not even fair. And he's a lefty too.

Fernandez was a happy surprise for me. I never heard of the kid until this year. No one had. Jose came over from Cuba at age 14. A woman fell off his boat on the trip over; Fernandez jumped in to save her. It turned out to be his own mother! Jose went straight from high school to single-A and right to the Bigs. Now he's the youngest player since "Doc" Gooden to play in the All-Star Game. What a story.

Chapman is holding up. I was afraid he might derail himself in his second year. Aroldis could be one of the great closers. That raw talent, combined with maturity, will make him even more difficult to hit. Scary. Now that "Mo's" retiring, don't be surprised to see the Yanks aggressively pursue Chapman in the future. An ace Cuban closer on the Yankees might be too much for me to take. lol

Puig should have been there aswell. He's a phenom. I didn't buy into his hype til I saw him live in the Bronx for the double header we played against LA. That dude is fast as hell. Caught Gardner sleeping and turned a single into a double. The crazy part is the dude is huge!!! 6'3 230+ running like a young jimmy rollins. He's gonna be special.

Puig is another guy that flew under my radar. What a find! The kid is a specimen, a physically impressive five-tool player. He does it all, and with the enthusiasm of a colt. If he doesn't hurt himself too bad with his all-out style of play, he's going to be a superstar. He's too good to be "figured out."

And if Canelo can ****ing do it on sept 14th, he's gonna be a once in a life time type of athlete. Might sound a bit crazy but I'm so serious. Canelo has something about him that draws the casuals. The girls love him and to dethrone Mayweather would make him the ultimate celebrity fighter.

You're not talking crazy. "Canelo" has star quality. To use an old industry term, the camera loves him. And, as you point out, so do the chicks. It just remains to be seen if Alvarez is as good a fighter as his fans think. If he is, the sky's the limit. I welcome it. As long as the guy is positive, I have no qualms about it.

[PR ESQ.]

Look the part be the part....ah those dominant European ancestral bloodlines do wonders for advancement in modern day amerika…. And all those past and future Aztec infused warriors sit in shear befuddlement wondering when the subjection will end…

[PR ESQ.]

I remember some old boxing guy told me Puerto Rico should be grateful that Cuban boxers were never allowed to go pro. I wonder what he meant by that?

What he meant was pretty evident and correspondingly asinine but inherently consistent with the majority of attitudes and bias held here by many on NSB.

[CubanGuyNYC]

...Bump...

[elgranluchadore]

canelo is the truth, all bow down to the ginger god

[CubanGuyNYC]

canelo is the truth, all bow down to the ginger god

lol We'll see soon enough....

[hectari]

Puerto Rico has had some great champions that would've been great no matter what Cubans were there to fight them. The same goes for some Mexicans, and others. What would've happened, in my opinion, is that a few Cubans would've taken over a few belts. We would've taken our rightful place among the boxing powers. A few champions from a few other countries would've lost their place. That's all. The ATGs weren't going anywhere. The biggest question in my mind is: What potential Cuban ATGs never got their chance? It's a sad thought.

it is sad, remember Teofilo and Felix Savon? never went pro it would have been nice to see them go pro especially Teo.

The guy who said that to me was an old white boxing fan he was really high on cuban boxing.

Cubans would probably dominate because if they were allowed to go pro there would be so many boxing.

Boxing and Baseball would be their key out of the barrio, just like Dominicans love baseball it is the key to riches.

Cubans would probably over-saturate boxing lol thats how many Cubans would be boxing if they were allowed to go pro if you think Mexico has a lot of boxers now imagine Cuba?

[CubanGuyNYC]

it is sad, remember Teofilo and Felix Savon? never went pro it would have been nice to see them go pro especially Teo.

The guy who said that to me was an old white boxing fan he was really high on cuban boxing.

Cubans would probably dominate because if they were allowed to go pro there would be so many boxing.

Boxing and Baseball would be their key out of the barrio, just like Dominicans love baseball it is the key to riches.

Cubans would probably over-saturate boxing lol thats how many Cubans would be boxing if they were allowed to go pro if you think Mexico has a lot of boxers now imagine Cuba?

Mexico has a much larger population. Cubans would probably take a roughly proportionate share of the belts.

On a similar note, we always think of guys like Stevenson when we consider the Cuban boxers that never went pro. Yet, there might've been several Cuban men we never heard of in the last 50 years that could've been champions. Many of the greatest pro fighters didn't have much of an amateur career, if any.