Nicaragua announced a 26-player roster for the Premier 12 qualifying tournament scheduled for November 26 to 28, 2026, at Panda Heritage Stadium in Zhongshan, China, La Prensa reported.
The national team will compete against the Czech Republic and China in the round-robin tournament, which offers two tickets to the Premier 12. Nicaragua opens play on November 26 against Great Britain, while the Czech Republic faces China.
The 26-player national squad is managed by Sandor Guido. His coaching staff includes Cairo Murillo, Jorge Luis Avellán, José Antenor López, Julio Sánchez, Julio Ráudez, and batting coach Randall Simon.
The pitching staff features 12 arms: Alvarado Amador, Ángel Obando, Bryan Torres, Danilo Bermúdez, Duque Hebbert, Elías Gutiérrez, Kenword Burton, Keny Cruz, Melvin Hernández, Pedro Torres, Santos Gómez, and Stanling Orozco.
The infielders are Aldo Espinoza, Benjamín Alegría, Bryan Ruiz—who was called up to replace the injured Elián Rayo—Emanuel Trujillo, Jesús López, and Saúl Orozco. Rodolfo Bone and Ronald Rivera make up the catching corps, and the outfield is led by naturalized American Chase Dowson, alongside Christian Esquivel, Eddson Martínez, Luis Montealto, Omar Mendoza, and Sandy Bermúdez.
The team received its flag on Saturday at the Instituto Nicaragüense de Deportes (IND) in a ceremony attended by Nemesio Porras, president of FENIBA, and Maurice Ortega Murillo, the presidential delegate for sports.
Two other national delegations were also flagged off on Saturday: the women’s softball team for the Pan American Championship in El Salvador running from November 20 to 28, and the U-12 national team for the Pan American tournament in Boca Chica, Dominican Republic, where they will pursue one of four available berths for the 2027 World Cup.
Keep reading