A story in USA Today not long ago pointed out that when Cuban baseball players defect from their homeland and come to America, their performance levels drop. One of the reasons (in fact, it could be THE reason) is that many of them leave their families behind and are constantly concerned about their safety.

A good example is Amaury Marti, recently signed by the St. Louis Cardinals and now playing for one of their farm clubs, The Springfield (Missouri) Cardinals. According to the Springfield News-Leader, Marti “refuses to talk about his defection from Cuba where he left his parents, brother and a son behind. The former member of the Cuban National team says he left for the chance to play baseball in the United States and, hopefully, in the majors.”

It will be interesting to see how he does in the U.S. Unless he receives counseling regarding his situation, and doesn’t just keep the issue bottled-up inside himself, it’s doubtful that he will perform in America at the same level he did while on the Cuban National team.