Marlins sweat in political hotspot

www.sun-sentinel.com By Juan C. Rodriguez Staff Writer Posted February 25 2003

JUPITER -- The food was getting old. Holed up for eight days in a Valencia, Venezuela, hotel, Doug Bochtler heard about a nearby delicatessen that was open.

Bochtler, his wife, Darcy, and their two sons had just begun eating when the din of protesters banging pots and pans reached a crescendo outside the front door. With Venezuela in the midst of a nationwide labor strike, the group was upset the deli hadn't shut down. "We backed into a corner where no one could see us," said Bochtler, a Marlins minor league free-agent pitcher. "The owner went out and told the people he was going to close. We just finished eating and he let us out a little side door so no one would interfere with us. When that happened I told my wife and family they were going home."

Bochtler and other Americans playing Venezuelan winter ball left once games were suspended in early December. Despite its popularity, the game was not immune from the protests against President Hugo Chavez. A month later, what remained of the season was canceled.

Native Venezuelans like shortstop Alex Gonzalez and third base prospect Miguel Cabrera ultimately left as well to join the Marlins' spring training. Only they can't completely distance themselves from the situation.

The focus is on baseball now, but they still receive almost daily updates about the country's deteriorating political and social climates. Gonzalez and Johanna Josely, the mother of his 3-year-old son, Alexander, won't join him until the season starts.

Having recovered from a shoulder injury, Gonzalez was ready to start playing winter ball when the games were suspended. Cabrera was having a standout season with Aragua, batting .329 with four home runs and 24 RBI in 38 games.

Residents of Turmero and Maracay, respectively, Gonzalez and Cabrera weren't exposed to the same degree of unrest as those in the capital city of Caracas.

Minor league free-agent outfielder Robert Stratton played for La Guaira, a Caracas-based team. He went home less than a week before the season was suspended to be with his father, who underwent hip replacement surgery.

Though Stratton hoped to return, he did venture out in Venezuela. He took his meals in the food court of a mall attached to the team hotel.

"I didn't go and see what people had to offer just because of safety reasons," he said. "It's not like we went out to try and find a good steakhouse. ... I saw a lot of things on TV, shooting the gas at [protesters]. It's a crazy thing to see it on TV and knowing it's going on right outside."

Such natives as Philadelphia's Bob Abreu and the Angels' Francisco Rodriguez didn't get much closer. They said they feared leaving their homes during the offseason.

"They live in Caracas, where the biggest problems were happening," Gonzalez said. "I would go out, but I would be very careful. If I was in Caracas like them, I would have been worried. ... There were a lot of crazy people in the streets."

Cabrera also found himself altering his lifestyle. Driving anywhere was problematic. Fuel shortages made filling up a chore. Cabrera said he had to wait in line at the pumps like everyone else.

"Normally you get accustomed to going out a lot," he said. "You didn't have anywhere to go, plus with the instability, you didn't know what could happen if you were out. You preferred to stay at home, do things in the morning and return home."

Marlins third base coach Ozzie Guillen, who maintains a home in Caracas, didn't return as much as he usually does. He spent more time this offseason in the United States due in part to the unrest.

"I didn't see it the same," Guillen said of the past two trips to the homeland. "People don't know what's going to happen. Everybody suffered. The professional league was canceled and now many players don't have jobs because there weren't enough scouts in Venezuela to bring them back.

Friday Guillen will take a one-day trip to Venezuela to attend to a prior engagement. He'll do so with the utmost caution.

Astros outfielder Richard Hidalgo was shot in the left arm during an attempted carjacking last November. In a similar incident a month later, former major-leaguer Chico Carrasquel was beaten.

"As far as danger, obviously when there isn't work or money, you're going to feel less secure," Guillen said. "The people without work have to find a way to survive. ... I read the newspapers and see the news every day. Sometimes you get sad because you hear the same things. We can't make any progress."

Juan C. Rodriguez can be reached at jcrodriguez@sun-sentinel.com.