Outfielder Jackson Chourio is among the members of the Milwaukee Brewers currently in his native country of Venezuela, in the wake of the United States’ capture of Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro in an overnight strike. It’s unclear for how long, which left the team hustling to sort out logistics with its players the morning of Jan. 3.
Just hours before news of the United States’ actions broke, Chourio on Jan. 2 continued his tear through Venezuelan winter league pitching with perhaps his biggest performance yet, hitting an extra-inning home run that proved to be the game-winner for his team, Aguilas del Zulia, in its playoff opener.
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The Brewers and Chourio had agreed upon an unannounced date to wrap up his stint in the Liga Venezolana de Béisbol Profesional before the end of its postseason, which is in late January.
Chourio himself said he had “very few games left” following the game Jan. 2. With uncertainty afoot in Venezuela in the wake of Maduro’s capture in regards to potential civil conflict or further U.S. involvement – president Donald Trump said Jan. 3 America is going to «run» the country – the Brewers also find themselves in a state of flux in determining how to move forward with their players in Venezuela.
Given the uncertainty in Venezuela, it would be understandable for the Brewers to want to expedite the timeline for Chourio and others to return to America before spring training begins in February, but complicating matters is the federal ban implemented by the Federal Aviation Administration on U.S. aircraft in Venezuela following the military strikes in Caracas.
“We don’t have much info at the moment but are trying to follow up,” Brewers president of baseball operations Matt Arnold told the Journal Sentinel via a team spokesperson. “We know the airports have been shut down but not much beyond that.”
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Brewers infielder Andruw Monasterio is also playing in the LVBP playoffs for Caribes de Anzoátegui, while catcher Jeferson Quero, a Venezuelan native, played for Cardenales de Lara this winter and remains in Venezuela, his agent Peter Greenberg confirmed. Recently-acquired reliever Angel Zerpa was in his native country at the time of the trade to the Brewers in December, though it isn’t known if he remains in Venezuela.
William Contreras, also from Venezuela, resides outside the country during the off-season.
Chourio went 4 for 5 and finished a triple shy of the cycle in his Venezuelan playoff debut – he’s played a stint for Aguilas each of the past five seasons – and is dominating as one of the league’s best players, going 13 for his last 18 with four extra-base hits, eight runs scored and no strikeouts.
Aguilas are in the midst of their best season since 2016-17 when they won the LVBP championship, making it all the more important to Chourio to represent his hometown team in the postseason. The 21-year-old outfielder dealt with a hamstring strain during the regular season and playoffs for the Brewers, limiting him to only eight regular-season games with Zulia. One of those games was played hours before a reported drone strike near Maracaibo, Chourio’s hometown and home of Aguilas, on Dec. 24; Chourio went 5 for 5 that night.
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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Jackson Chourio, other Brewers in Venezuela amid uncertainty
