FILE - In this Feb. 7, 2015 file photo, Cuba’s Yadiel Hernandez slides safe at the home plate during a Caribbean Series baseball semifinal game against Venezuela in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Cuba is confirming that two baseball players, including Hernandez, have defected while in the United States for a series of friendly games against U.S. collegians. (AP Photo/Ricardo Arduengo, File) (The Associated Press)
HAVANA – Cuba is confirming that two baseball players have defected while in the United States for a series of friendly games against U.S. collegians.
Official sports website Jit said Friday that third baseman Luis Yander La O and outfielder Yadiel Hernandez left the team in North Carolina, where the Cuban team has been playing tuneups ahead of the Pan American Games in Toronto.
The 25-year-old La O batted .329 in the Cuban league last season for Santiago. Hernandez is a 28-year-old who averaged .355 for Matanzas in 2014-15.
Defections have continued to hit Cuba's national team despite a decision in late 2013 to raise athletes' salaries and let them sign lucrative contracts to compete overseas during the offseason.
Fox News' "Antisemitism Exposed" newsletter brings you stories on the rising anti-Jewish prejudice across the U.S. and the world.