Cuban pitcher Lázaro Leyva will be with the Caimanes de Barranquilla next winter

Cuban pitcher Lázaro Leyva will pitch in the Colombian Professional Baseball League, as he himself confirmed to me on his Instagram account. The Colombian right-hander, Las Tunas, will join the ranks of the Caimanes de Barranquilla.

Leyva signed a contract as an international free agent in 2014 with the Baltimore Orioles organization for a bonus of $725,000. The now 24-year-old impressed with his natural speed, stable between 95 and 97 miles, but due to injury problems he did not manage to climb from the Class-A level and was released last March.

In 2017, several Cubans played in the Colombian Professional League and perhaps others will join this winter. Among those who entered last year were Rubi Silva, David Alejandro Castillo and Reydel Medina who finished 2nd among the best hitters.

Leyva comes from pitching at the highest level of baseball in Italy with Tomassin Padova where he finished with a 0-0 record, 6.19 ERA in 16 innings.