The Leñadores (Las Tunas Lumberjacks) have achieved their first goal: reaching the grand finale of the Baseball Champions League Americas 2025 (BCL). But they want more, and this afternoon, they will fight for their dream: to lift the Champion of Champions trophy.

Las Tunas, Cuba.– The green-red squad is not the favorite. That label belongs to their rivals, the Diablos Rojos (Red Devils), whose home, the Alfredo Harp Helú Stadium, also known as the Diamond of Fire in Mexico City, has successfully hosted this first club competition of the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC).

The Diablos are the champions and kings of the Mexican League, with 17 titles. They arrive undefeated in the final, after leading Group A with resounding victories over the Florida Titans of the Double-A Superior League (Puerto Rico) and the Chinandega Tigers of the German Pomares League (Nicaragua); in addition to last night's categorical 17-8 win in the semifinal against the Santa Maria Pirates of the Double-A Curaçao League.

Two teams for the Champion trophy.

The Lumberjacks, meanwhile, reached this stage by the longest route, with one win (Pirates) and one loss (Kane County Cougars) in Group A; they went through the elimination round against the Puerto Rican Titans and the semifinal, again vs. the Cougars.

In this afternoon's final, at 4:00 (Cuban time), the squad will again rely on the pitching of Andy Vargas, who pitched five innings against the Pirates, allowing only three singles and two unearned runs while striking out five. Today, the right-hander from the Cuban capital faces a bigger challenge: hitters of the caliber of former Dominican big leaguers José Mejía and Robinson Canó, second and third among the tournament's best hitters.

The Lumberjacks, meanwhile, will try to prove once again that they are second to none when they face the pitches of 27-year-old right-hander José Bravo, who has played for Triple and Double-A teams in Major League Baseball. The Cuban batters have made a strong showing in the Champions League; Yosvany Alarcón, Rafael Viñales, Yoelkis Guibert, and Andrys Pérez occupy top positions in batting average, RBIs, and home runs.

Speaking to the press, Las Tunas manager, Abeicy Pantoja, expressed his satisfaction with what has been achieved. "It's something we've been working on for a long time, and we're already harvesting the results," he said. "The event has been very good in every aspect. From a sporting perspective, I can tell you that it was a very competitive tournament, especially with a very offensive performance. All the teams performed very well and put on a very nice show for the Mexican fans," he said.

About Sunday's final, he said, "The Diablos Rojos are a great team, and today's game will be very interesting because ours is in very good shape. It doesn't matter if they are the favorites; in the end, games are won by runs." To the Cuban and Las Tunas fans, he said: "Trust in the team and expect the best. We dedicate this result to everyone who has believed in us and those who haven't, too. I say this because some people, even sports journalists, didn't believe in us and underestimated our work. In the end, we are all Cubans and represent the same flag."

Despite whether or not they can raise the winner's trophy, as expected, Las Tunas' performance has sparked debate. The derogatory comments made during this Saturday's official television broadcast about the quality of the Champions League were bitterly received by Las Tunas fans, who asserted that only by challenging for the title would the team perform decently in the event.

In contrast, Boris Luis Cabrera, with the Cuban News Agency, maintained that "the Las Tunas Lumberjacks and their reinforcements should be applauded. Not only for achieving victories, or having reached the tournament final, or deploying an even more powerful offense than in our national tournaments." "They should be applauded -he argued- despite their defensive deficiencies and unconvincing pitching, above all for their carefree play, their joy and ability to react, and for their unity, characteristics that are often lacking in Cuban teams in recent years."