Right-hander Yariel Rodriguez has been the designation of Cuban mentor Armando Jhonson to open today against the Netherlands, in Cuba's debut at the 5th World Baseball Classic in Group A at the Taichung Intercontinental Stadium, in Taipei, China.

Rodriguez, who last season worked as a middle reliever for the Chunichi Dragons in NPB, made two appearances as a starter during the recent practice games of the Cuban team in Asian grounds and his results were superlative.

With straight lines over 95 miles, the right-hander will face a European team that, in recent international games, has become the "bête noire" of the Cuban team, and specifically in editions of World Classics they have a balance of three victories with only one setback, the latter in the first edition of 2006.

But the Tulipans' roster is far from being that of the triumphant teams of yesteryear, as the main figures have seen their best competitive moments and Tom de Blok, the pitcher announced to open today, is no exception.

For Cuba, it will be a historic game, as it will be the first game where players from the national league and others who play in Japan and the Caribbean leagues will be joining major league players.

In this group A, apart from Cuba and the Netherlands, there are Panama, Italy and the host team of Taipei, China. The two best teams will advance to the next phase to be held in Japan.