The Cuban squad, managed by
León Rojas, beat defending champion Venezuela, avenging a
disappointing loss the previous year, with
Connie Marrero out pitching
Daniel Canónico. The Dominican Republic had a strong finish to win the Silver Medal and beat Cuba in 2 of 3 match-ups. Venezuela failed in their attempt to defend their title.
Luis Aparicio, Sr., father of future Hall of Famer
Luis Aparicio, played shortstop. Mexico earned just three wins, finishing in fourth place. Unlike previous editions, the United States team was not selected by the
U.S.A. Baseball Congress, but was instead represented by the Dade County Airmen, an Eastern Air Lines amateur club from Miami.
Player-manager Joel Tierce was one of the few players with minor league experience. The U.S. was heavily outmatched during the series, suffering two blowout losses to Cuba (20–0 and 17–0), and winning only two games, against Mexico on Oct. 5 (6–1) and its final game against the Dominican Republic on Oct. 11 (3–1). The Oct. 11 game would become notorious due to a brawl between the Dominican team and members of the crowd, which were cheering for the American team; Dominican manager
Luis Ernesto Rodríguez, who was being heckled by the crowd with his nickname "Burrulote" (meaning "big donkey"), angrily threw an errant ball and a bat into the stands, causing the crowd to surge onto the field. The police quickly intervened to maintain order, and Rodriguez was arrested on the field. Dominican dictator
Rafael Trujillo reportedly ordered his team to withdraw, but the organizing committee managed to get him to change his decision. Nevertheless, the U.S. team withdrew from the tournament immediately after the game, forfeiting their last four games (though contemporary accounts cite U.S. government travel restrictions, not the Rodriguez incident, as the cause). Cuban catcher
Andrés Fleitas hit .405 (15-for-37) and was named Most Valuable Player, while pitchers
Julio Moreno and
Isidoro León won three games apiece and posted sub 2.00
earned run averages.
Luis Suárez batted .579 (11-for-19) and
Juan Ealo hit .375 and led the series with four
doubles. Instead of the John Moores Cup, the Cuban team was awarded the "Copa Presidente Batista," renamed by Col.
Jaime Mariné (head of the International Baseball Federation) in honor of Cuban president
Fulgencio Batista. ==Venue==