HAVANA, Oct 23 (Reuters) - Game 5 of the World Series, featuring Cuban-born Marlins' starter Livan Hernandez, will be beamed to Cuba, but baseball fans there are not likely to be able to view the TV Marti broadcast of the clash against Cleveland.
The U.S-government funded station has been jammed by Cuba's communist government since its inception seven years ago. Residents of Havana, for example, say they have never seen it.
The 22-year-old Hernandez, who defected to the United States two years, has become a sensation since starring for Florida down the stretch during the regular season.
He was voted Most Valuable Player of the National League Championship Series that put Florida into the World Series, and then won the opening game of the Fall Classic in Miami over the Indians.
The best-of-seven Series is knotted at two games apiece going into Thursday night's game in Cleveland.
Both TV Marti and Radio Marti, which are part of Washington's pressure for political change in Cuba, are viewed by the Cuban goverment as reflections of U.S. hostility and interference. Cubans will, however, be able to tune into Radio Marti, which is audible, although with a varying quality.
Ahead of Wednesday's decision by Major League Baseball and the U.S. Office of Cuba Broadcasting to broadcast Game 5 on TV and Radio Marti, Cubans were already following the World Series eagerly, albeit not through state media.
Some people tuned into Spanish-language radio stations in Florida.
And some people have watched the games in private homes. Some Cubans have home-made antennas that pick up the signal of a service of foreign television stations sold by Cuban authorities to hotels and foreign residents.
Meanwhile, it was still not certain Thursday if Cuban authorities would grant permission for Hernandez's mother, Miriam Carreras, to travel to the United States to watch her famous son play.
U.S. authorities said Monday they had granted Carreras a visitor's visa. But all residents of Cuba need an exit permit to travel abroad and this can take some time to process.
Carreras, speaking to Reuters Wednesday evening, appeared slightly confused. First she said authorities had denied her request to travel, but then she said it was still being processed.
It would be unusual for the authorities to grant permission to a family member of somebody viewed as a traitor. Sports stars who defect from the communist-ruled island are seen as having betrayed the country, honing their skills in Cuba only to be lured away by the promise of riches.
22:31 10-23-97