Team Plane Sat On The Runway For Nearly Eight Hours

After winning an historic baseball game against the Cuban National team in Havana 4-1 Tuesday, the Tampa Bay Rays found themselves staying in Cuba about eight hours longer than they originally anticipated.

But the delay was not due to any political wranglings. The airplane that was supposed to fly the team home suffered a mechanical difficulty, and the team had to be switched to a different aircraft.

A second plane carrying team executives, other VIPs including St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Kriseman, and reporters got away after a much shorter delay, arriving in Florida at about 10:30 p.m. local time.

Sporting News reports that the team plane was initially delayed for a time before they were allowed to board, and then it sat on the runway for several hours due to a mechanical difficulty. Eventually, the team had to be switched to a different plane for the 55-minute flight back to Tampa.

Team member Steven Souza Jr. (Right Field) Tweeted: "After waiting on the runway for 8 hours we're finally back in Tampa ready to go to sleep" at 5:33 am Wednesday.

The game was attended by President Obama as part of the first visit to Cuba by a sitting President in 88 years.

FMI: http://tampabay.rays.mlb.com