I had a chance to communicate with Orioles outfielder Henry Urrutia on Wednesday after President Barack Obama announced that full diplomatic relations would be restored with Cuba.
Let's just say Urrutia, who fled Cuba in 2011 and came to the United States for good in 2013, was rather excited, calling it "a big step for us."
"I am very happy to know that finally something is happening, I hope everything is done is for the good of my people," Urrutia said through a series of text messages. It has been "four years since I've seen my family and [I] know that there is now [that] possibility."
His parents and entire immediate family still live in his homeland; they have not seen Urrutia's 8-month-old son, Henry Alexander.
"Nobody [there] knows my baby," Urrutia said. "That is the sad truth."
Urrutia is hopeful that travel restrictions will be lifted between the countries at some point. And he would love for more of his ex-teammates in Cuba to get the opportunity to make the major leagues. He said he was in contact via email and phone calls with some of them Wednesday.
"They are happy. They see a chance to flourish, to improve their lives," texted Urrutia, who has become nearly fluent in English in his two years in the U.S. "And I hope that [happens] for my friends."
Urrutia, 27, signed for $778,500 in 2011, a few months after he defected from Cuba. He lived in the Dominican Republic and then Haiti, before establishing residency and securing a visa. The 6-foot-3 left-handed hitter batted .276 in 24 games with the Orioles in 2013, but he was limited to 65 games in the minors last year because of a sports hernia that required surgery.
It hasn't been an easy road for Urrutia -- his first attempt at defection was thwarted. And so he said he believes it will be easier for some of his countrymen to make an impact in the major leagues if they don't have to worry about defection.
"Cuban players are incredibly talented as I think you have seen," he said. "But it is time to prove it to the world without having to escape from our country without the certainty of when they can see their families."
He said he wasn't sure if Major League Baseball teams would establish future academies in Cuba the way they have in the Dominican Republic.
"I can only tell you that Cuba has the talent to do 30 baseball academies or more," he said.