Dominican Ministry of Sports implements suspension of independent baseball academies

Santo Domingo.- In response to the recent death of baseball prospect Ismael Ureña Pérez, the Dominican Ministry of Sports has announced the suspension of preparation and exhibition activities for prospects at independent baseball academies. The suspension will remain in place until these academies complete a registration and regularization process with the Office of the National Baseball Commissioner, led by Junior Noboa.

Minister of Sports Kelvin Cruz outlined a 45-day period for independent academies to register with the National Baseball Commissioner’s office. The goal is to standardize the process of signing prospects and ensure that all academies meet legal and safety requirements. Cruz emphasized that any academy that fails to comply with the regularization process would lose access to Major League Baseball (MLB) teams for scouting and signing players.

To enforce this measure, the Ministry of Sports will send a letter to MLB requesting that scouts be prohibited from working with prospects from unregistered academies until the regularization is complete. Cruz also addressed the need for stronger oversight, including potential punitive actions for non-compliance, and confirmed that collaboration with the Public Prosecutor’s Office will be pursued to establish legal consequences.

The announcement followed a working group meeting that included various stakeholders, such as representatives from the Ministry of Health, the National Council for Children, the Ombudsman’s office, MLB, and the National Directorate of Drug Control (DNCD). The meeting also discussed issues related to doping and the development of protocols to address it, with collaboration from relevant authorities, including the National Anti-Doping Agency and Public Health.