Dayron Varona couldn’t find a superlative fitting enough to describe what it meant for him to be back in Cuba only three years after he left the island illegally to pursue a Major League Baseball career.
“It feels unbelievable ... magnificent ... to be able to be back in my country," said Varona, a Havana native who made history Tuesday by becoming the first Cuban defector to return and play in his home country. “These three days have been a whirlwind, but that’s how it had to be. I just hope to be able to come back. All is good. All is good.”
From the moment the outfielder walked into the visitor's dugout at Havana’s Estadio Latinoamericano, wearing not his orange Serie Nacional Camagüey jersey but the Tampa Bay Rays' sky blue, until he ran off the field for an uncertain goodbye to his family and friends, everything was a blur.
Familiar faces greeted Varona all around the “Latino,” the stadium he dreamed of one day playing in with the Cuban National Team.
Varona, who signed a minor league contract with the Rays last season, gingerly walked to the Cuban team's dugout to greet his former roommate, Jonder Martínez. Later, Varona watched Martinez retire the six Rays batters he faced in the fifth and sixth innings. Varona made sure to hug and pose for pictures with one of his favorite players, infielder Rudy Reyes, who was responsible for Cuba’s only run in the 4-1 loss, via a home run off right-hander Alex Colomé.
The pregame ceremonies included an emotional moment of silence to honor the victims of the terrorist attacks that morning in Brussels. Varona used the minute to pray and try to calm himself. His heart had been pounding seemingly since the moment he was named to the 34-man roster headed to Havana.
Varona tried to remember the instructions he and his teammates had been given before the game. First, walk across the field hand-in-hand with the little boy who was accompanying him onto the field as part of the festivities, then turn toward the flags, listen to the Cuban national anthem and the "Star-Spangled Banner," turn again, receive the small flag and flowers, pick the little boy up and wave at the crowd. Or was it pick the little boy up and then grab the flag and flowers?
Then it all came rushing in: the waves of emotion, like a tsunami, as the public address announcer began pregame introductions.
“Del equipo de la gerencia de Tampa Bay Rays, como visitante, Kevin Cash ... from the visiting team, manager Kevin Cash ...”
Varona knew his turn was next. Even though Varona was the only player not on Tampa's 40-man roster to travel to Cuba, his teammates had lobbied for him to hit leadoff for this game, for him to take a crack at the first pitch from Cuba’s Yosvani Torres and secure his place in history.
“Ahora la alineación … now the lineup: Jardín derecho, right fielder, Dayron Varona."
Varona took his hat off and waved to the crowd. There were no boos, as he had feared there might be; instead, there were some cheers. The Rays circled the infield as he walked back to the dugout high-fiving teammates and the Cuban grounds crew.
Varona didn't know what to do with the flowers and the red-white-and-blue Cuban flag he was holding. It was a new experience -- walking to the dugout holding something besides his glove -- so Varona looked around to see what his teammates were doing. Brad Miller and Logan Forsythe dropped the presents off, grabbed their gloves and went to warm up, so Varona followed suit.
He had already been asked to try to swing at the first pitch, with the ball likely destined for Cooperstown, and he did. The result was a weak popup. It didn’t matter.
“I wasn’t swinging for the fences. I just wanted to make some contact,” he said later. “And now the ball will go to the Hall of Fame. I don’t think they will let me keep it."
Tampa manager Kevin Cash had it planned perfectly. He removed Varona after his second at-bat in the middle of the third inning to allow his teammates to give him a standing ovation from the dugout. Then, as some fans joined in, Varona almost lost it.
“I’ve known these guys just a few weeks, and look what they have done for me," he said in the dugout minutes later. “I am so grateful."
Varona didn’t know what to do next. He wanted to go and see his sister and his niece and the rest of his family, but it was only the fifth inning. After a few in-game interviews, he sat nervously with catcher René Rivera at the edge of the dugout and cheered his teammates on.
When the end finally came, his family was waiting for him. It was time to say goodbye, with flowers and kisses and hugs and other presents, in the back of the stadium, where those extended family members who couldn’t get a ticket could sneak in at the end of the game and see Varona. Then Varona really lost it, tearing up, because he didn’t know when he would see them again.
The Rays endured a six-hour delay at the José Martí Airport because of mechanical problems. They didn’t land in Tampa until close to 5 a.m. Wednesday.
But at least one player didn’t mind the extra time on Cuban soil.
All is good for Dayron Varona.