Baseball United announces rosters for Dubai All-Star Showcase

DUBAI: Baseball United has announced the official rosters for the league’s inaugural event — next month’s All-Star Showcase in Dubai.

Forty-four players — 22 on each team — will participate in the two-game series between the East All-Stars and West All-Stars. The event will be held on Nov. 24 at 25 at Dubai International Stadium.

“We are honored to bring many of our best players to Dubai for our first-ever professional games,” said Kash Shaikh, chairman, CEO and majority owner of Baseball United. “Our All-Stars come from 16 different countries and have played at the highest levels of professional baseball. This is truly something the region has never seen. Our fans will get to witness history. It’s the perfect way to launch our league.”

Seventy-five percent of Baseball United’s All-Stars have played Major League Baseball, with others competing in Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball Organization and various international leagues and tournaments.

Baseball United East All-Stars

The Baseball United East All-Stars are led by Bartolo Colon, a four-time MLB All-Star and the winningest Latin American-born pitcher in the competition’s history. Colon, who was selected 16th overall by the Karachi Monarchs in Baseball United’s inaugural draft, will be the East team’s starting pitcher on Nov. 24. When he takes the field in Dubai, he will become one of the oldest professional players in history, having turned 50 earlier this year.

The East team’s starting infield has a total of 32 years of MLB playing experience, with players from the Dominican Republic, the US, Curacao, and Venezuela.

The group includes:

First baseman, Jefry Marte, who hit 15 home runs in 88 games for the Los Angeles Angels in 2016, and 24 home runs in