Baseball's presence was strengthened when it was banned by Spanish oppressors in 1869 in favor of bullfighting. Cubans played baseball as an expression of freedom. The ban also prompted Cubans to join Major League Baseball (MLB) teams. The Cuban League existed from 1878 to 1961 and received enough attention to become a league used for player development during the offseason by MLB in 1947. From 1891 to 1959 the American Series pitted Cuban teams against American teams. After the Cuban Revolution, Cuban baseball was no longer a farm system for MLB. During a period of anti-Americanism, Cuba began retaining its best players to represent Cuba. “Producing athletes capable of competing on the international stage served as proof that the island nation was on equal footing with the United States” . (Doherty) Cuba currently has a national team that competes in the World Baseball Classic. Cuban baseball players are considered some of the most talented baseball players around and are heavily recruited by the United States whenever possible. Cuban patriotism and the difficulty of defecting cause many of those talented players to remain in Cuba. The same cannot be said of players from islands that are not so strict, many of their star players leave home for greener pastures in the