2024 Caribbean Series coming to loanDepot park
Christina De Nicola
@cdenicola13Nos vemos en Miami. We'll see you in Miami.
loanDepot park will host the 2024 Caribbean Series (Serie del Caribe), the Confederación de Béisbol Profesional del Caribe (CBPC) announced on Saturday afternoon during a press conference in the Dominican Republic. The home of the Marlins will become the first Major League Baseball stadium to do so.
"Five years ago, when Mr. [Bruce] Sherman, Mr. [Derek] Jeter and the current ownership group took control of the organization, we put forth the effort to position loanDepot park as an entertainment destination, and I personally cannot think of a sporting event in the world that is more entertaining than the Caribbean Series," said Adam Jones, the Marlins' chief strategy officer.
"The passion, the excitement, the energy of the Caribbean Series is unmatched, and what we're doing with the Marlins, we're looking to build much of that special energy that exists in international baseball, particularly with Caribbean baseball. But nothing can match the Caribbean Series. It is truly our honor to welcome fans of the Caribbean to loanDepot park to cheer on your country, within our beautiful city, which is one of the more diverse backdrops in America."
The Caribbean Series is a six-team tournament featuring the champion from each of the four professional baseball leagues in the Caribbean Professional Baseball Confederation (Venezuela, the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico and Mexico), as well as one representative each from Panama and Colombia. It takes place after their seasons have ended, and the location is rotated annually among the countries. This will mark just the third time since the tournament's inception in 1949 that it will be held outside of Latin America. Miami also hosted it in 1990 at the Orange Bowl, where loanDepot park resides, and in '91 at Bobby Maduro Stadium.
In 2022, the round-robin competition featured teams from the host Dominican Republic, Venezuela, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Colombia and Panama. The four clubs with the best records will advance to the semifinals before the winners move on to the final. The DR has the most titles (21) among the countries, with Tigres del Licey leading the way with 10 -- most recently in 2008.
This is the latest international baseball competition coming to loanDepot park. The retractable-roof venue was scheduled to host parts of all three rounds of the 2021 World Baseball Classic before the COVID-19 pandemic canceled the event. It has previously held earlier rounds in '13 and '17. The ballpark, which is located in the Little Havana neighborhood of Miami, has a capacity of 37,446. According to 2010 U.S. Census data, Miami-Dade County's population per square mile was 69.4% Hispanic or Latino.
"We truly believe that Miami is the gateway to Latin America and the Caribbean, and loanDepot park is the perfect venue to showcase this incredible celebration," Jones said.
According to Juan Francisco Puello Herrera, commissioner of Professional Baseball of the Caribbean, Lic., there's even a chance that Miami could become a regular host site for the tournament. After Venezuela 2023, Puerto Rico 2025, Mexico 2026 and Mexico again in 2027, he admitted that “in 2028, it could go back to loanDepot park. Nothing has been established yet.”
"I always had the idea of having another series in Miami, and we’ve finally done it after all these years," Puello said in Spanish. " ... This Caribbean Series is going to be a ‘before and after’ event. With the agreement we’ve reached with the Marlins, this Caribbean Series is going to reach levels we’d never thought possible."