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Baseball Flourishes in Colombia's Capital. But Not Because of Colombians.

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Baseball|Baseball Flourishes in Colombia's Capital. But Not Because of Colombians.

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/24/sports/baseball/baseball-colombia-bogota-venezuela.html

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In a Bogotá league, Venezuelans who fled their homeland have carried on their culture in a country surrounded by soccer — and have built a support system. "It's like having a piece of Venezuela here."

Boys from the Leones baseball team at the Hermes Barros Cabas baseball stadium in Bogotá.Credit...Jaír Coll for The New York Times

Baseball is not popular in Colombia. Except on the Caribbean coast, soccer dominates. In Bogotá, the capital, many know very little about "béisbol." And the city has only two public baseball fields.

But swing by Hermes Barros Cabas baseball stadium on any weekend, and it doesn't feel that way. On a recent Sunday, five groups of children dressed in their team uniforms filled every corner of the main field.

Coaches threw batting practice, while children snagged ground balls or pop flies. Parents shouted words of encouragement or instruction. The smell of coffee and fried snacks wafted behind the bleachers.

Most of the people there, though, weren't Colombian.

The vast majority of the 500 players in the Bogotá baseball league are from neighboring Venezuela, where baseball is the most popular sport. As Venezuelans often say, it's in their blood.

"No matter what country I went to, I'd bring my umpiring equipment," said the league's head umpire, Pastor Colmenares, 50. When he left Venezuela for Colombia in search of higher paying work in 2017, Mr. Colmenares's only suitcase was filled with his baseball gear.

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"No matter what country I went to, I'd bring my umpiring equipment," said Pastor Colmenares, a Venezuelan migrant living in Colombia. Credit...Jaír Coll for The New York Times

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