Abstract

Cuba’s baseball prowess is well-known even to the most casual baseball fan, but its place in Cuban society has fluctuated with the islands’ complex history. This I.S. seeks to answer what the game has represented in Cuba, and to examine the impact that sports can have on national identity. To answer these questions, this project will focus on the position that baseball held in Cuban society in three periods; while Cuba was under Spanish rule, while it was a US protectorate, and after the Cuban Revolution. It will also dive into where and how Cubans were playing baseball during that span. Despite the vast differences in the culture and ideology of the country in each of those three eras, baseball has remained a central source of pride for Cubans. Since the 1860s when the first baseball game was played on the island, baseball has not only reflected but also impacted Cuban national identity. First it served as a tool of an independence movement, then a facilitator of cultural exchange, and finally as a distinctive symbol of nationalist ideals. By examining secondary scholarship, as well as Cuban newspapers, interviews with players, speeches from Fidel Castro, and even baseball cards, this I.S. illustrates the experience for Cuban baseball players and fans for the last 150 years. It will also prove that baseball has remained a significant aspect of Cuba’s ever- changing national identity through monumental shifts in culture and ideology.

Advisor

Holt, Katie

Department

History

Disciplines

Latin American History

Keywords

Cuba, Baseball, History, Latin America, Colonialism, Fidel Castro, Sports, Culture, Nationalism

Publication Date

2026

Degree Granted

Bachelor of Arts

Document Type

Senior Independent Study Thesis

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