Yurisbel Gracial Garcia (born 14 October 1985) is a Cuban baseball player who is a free agent. He played in the

Cuban National Series The Cuban National Series (, SNB) is the primary domestic professional baseball competition in Cuba. Formed after the dissolution of the Cuban League in the wake of the Cuban Revolution, the Series is a part of the Cuban baseball league system. ...

for the

Cocodrilos de Matanzas Cocodrilos de Matanzas (English: Matanzas Crocodiles) are a baseball team in the Cuban National Series. Based in Matanzas Province, the ''Cocodrilos'' were formed after the dissolution of Henequeneros and Citricultores, two teams from Matanzas. ...

and with the

Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks The are a Japanese professional baseball team based in Fukuoka, Fukuoka Prefecture. They compete in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) as a member of the Pacific League. The team was formerly known as the Nankai Hawks and was based in Osaka. ...

Nippon Professional Baseball or NPB is the highest level of baseball in Japan. Locally, it is often called , meaning ''Professional Baseball''. Outside Japan, it is often just referred to as "Japanese baseball". The roots of the league can be traced back to the formation ...

Career

Québec Capitales

Gracial served in the

Cuban military The Cuban Revolutionary Armed Forces ( es, Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias; FAR) are the military forces of Cuba. They include ground forces, naval forces, air and air defence forces, and other paramilitary bodies including the Territorial Tro ...

before playing for

Matanzas Matanzas (Cuban ) is the capital of the Cuban province of Matanzas. Known for its poets, culture, and Afro-Cuban folklore, it is located on the northern shore of the island of Cuba, on the Bay of Matanzas (Spanish ''Bahia de Matanzas''), east ...

in the

. In 2016, Gracial played for the

Québec Capitales The Québec Capitales ( French: ''Les Capitales de Québec'') are a professional baseball team based in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. The Capitales have been members of the Frontier League since the 2020 season after a merger between the Can-Am Le ...

of the

Canadian American Association of Professional Baseball The Canadian American Association of Professional Baseball, commonly known as the Can-Am League, was a professional, independent baseball league with teams in the Northeast United States and Eastern Canada, founded in 2005 as a reorganization of ...

, slashing .320/.376/.476 with 9 home runs and 58 RBI. He signed back with the club in 2017, and batted .333/.399/.524 with 13 home runs and 65 RBI. Gracial was released by Québec prior to the 2018 season.

Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks

In 2018, Gracial signed with the

Pacific League The or is one of the two professional baseball leagues constituting Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan. The winner of the league championship competes against the winner in the Central League for the annual Japan Series. It currently consis ...

. In 2018 season, he finished the regular season in 54 games with a batting average of .292, a 9 home runs, and a RBI of 30. And he participated in the

2018 Japan Series The 2018 Japan Series (known as the ''SMBC Nippon Series 2018'' for sponsorship reasons) was the championship series of Nippon Professional Baseball's (NPB) 2018 season. The 69th edition of the Japan Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff betwee ...

. Gracial re-signed with the Hawks for the 2019 season. He batted 6-for-16 (.375) with three home runs and six RBIs in the

2019 Japan Series The 2019 Japan Series (known as the ''SMBC Nippon Series 2019'' for sponsorship reasons) was the championship series of Nippon Professional Baseball's (NPB) 2019 season. The 70th edition of the Japan Series, it was played from 19-23 October. Th ...

and won the

Japan Series Most Valuable Player Award The is given to the player deemed to have the most impact on his team's performance in the Japan Series, which is the final round of the Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) postseason. The award was first presented in 1950. The series follows a b ...

. Gracial finished the regular season in 103 games with a batting average of .319, a 28 home runs, and a RBI of 68. On January 22, 2020, Gracial signed a new two-year contract with Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks. However, due to the influence of the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

, he was unable to leave Cuba and was able to come to Japan on July 19. In 2020 season, Gracial finished the regular season in 69 games with a batting average of .277, 10 home runs and a RBI of 35. In the

2020 Japan Series The 2020 Japan Series (known as the ''SMBC Nippon Series 2020'' for sponsorship reasons) was the championship series of Nippon Professional Baseball's (NPB) 2020 season. The 71st edition of the Japan Series, it was played from November 21 to 25. ...

against the

Yomiuri Giants The are a Japanese professional baseball team competing in Nippon Professional Baseball's Central League. Based in Bunkyo, Tokyo, they are one of two professional baseball teams based in Tokyo, the other being the Tokyo Yakult Swallows. They ...

, Gracial contributed to the team's fourth consecutive Japan Series champion with two hits in Game 1, a home run in Game 2, and an RBI hit in Game 3. In 2021 season, Gracial had been hitting well with a .305 batting average, five home runs, and 15 runs batted in, but on May 8, while reaching base as a runner against the

Saitama Seibu Lions The are a professional baseball team in Japan's Pacific League based north of Tokyo in Tokorozawa, Saitama Prefecture. Before 1979, they were based in Fukuoka, Fukuoka Prefecture in Kyushu. The team is owned by a subsidiary of Seibu Railway, wh ...

, he made contact with second baseman Nien-Ting Wu, breaking the ring finger on his right hand and making a long rehabilitation period inevitable. He ended up finishing the season as he did, playing only 37 games. In 2022 season, Gracial had been in the starting lineup for all of the opening games but was benched on June 25 due to a sore left wrist. Also on the 27th he tested positive for COVID-19 and was removed from the first team registration according to regulations. On July 20, he was re-registered and played a pinch-hitter against the

Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles The , often shortened as the , are a baseball team based in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. It has played in Nippon Professional Baseball's Pacific League since the team's formation in November 2004. The team is owned by the Internet shopping c ...

. On July 27, he himself played in his second time All-Star game, the My navi All-Star Game 2022. He finished the regular season with a disappointing .271 batting average, seven home runs, and 30 runs batted in in 99 games, due in part to his removed from the first team registration from COVID-19. He became a free agent after the 2022 season.

International career

In 2017, Gracial was elected to the

Cuba national baseball team The Cuba national baseball team (Spanish: ''Selección de béisbol de Cuba'') represents Cuba at regional and international levels. The team is made up from the most professional players from the Cuban national baseball system. Cuba has been des ...

at the

2017 World Baseball Classic The 2017 World Baseball Classic (WBC) was an international professional baseball competition, composed of 16 competing nations, held from March 6 to March 22, 2017. It was the fourth iteration of the World Baseball Classic. The first-round hosts ...

. In 2019, Gracial was elected to the Cuba national baseball team at the

2019 WBSC Premier12 The 2019 WBSC Premier12 was an international baseball championship featuring the 12 highest-ranked national teams in the world, held by the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC). It was the second WBSC Premier12 event. The championship ...

References

External links

Career statistics - NPB.jp

- Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks Official site {{DEFAULTSORT:Gracial, Yurisbel 1985 births Living people Baseball players at the 2019 Pan American Games Cocodrilos de Matanzas players Cuban expatriate baseball players in Japan Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks players Nippon Professional Baseball left fielders Nippon Professional Baseball third basemen Pan American Games competitors for Cuba Sportspeople from Guantánamo Québec Capitales players 2017 World Baseball Classic players 2023 World Baseball Classic players Cuban expatriate baseball players in Canada