Political questions hound Team Venezuela at WBC
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José de Jesus Ortiz, Founder & Editor in Chief
- March 7, 2026
Omar Lopez vows to ignore political questions
Two months after the United States military captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and brought him to the U.S. to face criminal charges, Team Venezuela has been dancing in the dugout while showing pride for their motherland during the World Baseball Classic.
It was only a matter of time, however, before Team Venezuela manager Omar Lopez and his players were asked about their country’s political turmoil. Even worse, Venezuelan legend Miguel Cabrera was taunted on Friday and Saturday at Miami’s loanDepot park.
Cabrera was visibly angered after a fan called him a “Chavista,” which is used to describe the supporters of the late Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez, who moved the South American country toward socialism.
Cabrera is arguably Venezuela’s greatest ballplayer. He is Team Venezuela’s hitting coaching for the 2016 WBC. Barring unforeseen developments, he will be a first-ballot selection for the National Baseball Hall of Fame.
Miguel Cabrera taunted as ‘Chavista’
He’s a beloved baseball figure in Miami, Detroit and Venezuela. Nonetheless, the former Marlins and Tigers star was jeered fans who accuse him of being a Chavista. Team Venezuela’s players and coaching staff would clearly rather keep the focus on baseball instead of politics.
Lopez, the Astros bench coach managing Venezuela for the second consecutive WBC, respectfully yet forcefully told the media Saturday in Miami that he will not address political questions.
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“I hope that you can pass this on to journalists from other countries,” he said in Spanish. “My name is Omar López. I have been working with baseball for 29 years.”
Lopez noted that he doesn’t work in politics and that he didn’t study diplomacy or any political science.
“I am not supporting anybody,” he said. “I support and I am connected with my family and nobody else. So I ask the Venezuelans, the Venezuelan community, please don’t ask me more questions about the political situation of my country, of our country. And please, please share this with the other journalists.”
U.S. President Donald Trump ordered the capture of Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, during a raid on the Venezuelan capital in January. With the approval of the Trump administration, Maduro’s former vice president, Delcy Rodriguez, is now running Venezuela.
Like Maduro, Rodriguez is a Chavista. Cabrera has faced criticism for visiting with Rodriguez. Over the years, some of Venezuela’s biggest baseball stars have been criticized for associating with the late Chavez and Maduro.
Omar Lopez sticks to baseball
With Maduro in an American prison, it’s no surprise that both sides in Venezuela would want to see where their biggest baseball stars stand. Critics of the so-called “Chavismo” movement have lamented that ballplayers haven’t spoken out.
Considering what the Maduro regime has done to the country’s political opposition, it’s no surprise that some players would rather keep their opinions private. Maduro’s supporters, however, would also like to see their baseball heroes speak out against the Trump government’s attack on their sovereignty.
“A couple days ago I had a question,” Lopez said. “I don’t remember from which newspaper, social media, about my political situation – (the) Venezuelan political situation, and I would not answer anything about it. …
“I didn’t go to any type of school to be a politico or diplomatic Congressman or anything like that. If anybody asks me again, my answer is going to be, ‘next question, please.’ I just want to make that clear.”
José de Jesus Ortiz
Founder & Editor in Chief
Award-winning writer Jose de Jesus Ortiz, a former lead sports columnist at the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, has covered Major League Baseball since 1997 in Los Angeles, St. Petersburg, New York and Houston. He was the first Latino to serve as president of the Baseball Writers' Association of America.
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