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Yasiel Puig’s tale is far from unique

The Dodgers' Yasiel Puig tapes his wrists before a game. His journey to Los Angeles is a serpentine tale of drug cartels, nighttime escapes and international human smuggling.

The Dodgers’ Yasiel Puig tapes his wrists before a game. His journey to Los Angeles is a serpentine tale of drug cartels, nighttime escapes and international human smuggling.   (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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The smuggling of Cuban baseball players has been the subject of federal investigations for years, resulting in a handful of prosecutions. Still, the flood of risky defections has continued.

Aroldis Chapman

Cincinnati’s Aroldis Chapman, here pitching against Seattle in an exhibition game, defected in 2009 during a tournament in the Netherlands and signed a six-year, $30.25-million contract with the Reds.  (Paul Sancya / AP)

Yasiel Puig

Puig exults after hitting a triple. Like Puig, many Cuban players were spirited away on speedboats to Mexico, Haiti or the Dominican Republic. Once there, they typically were held by traffickers before being released to agents -- for a price.   (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

Yoenis Cespedes

Yoenis Cespedes signed a four-year, $36-million deal with the Oakland Athletics in 2012, just months before the Dodgers gave Puig his deal.   (Otto Greule Jr / Getty Images)

Yasiel Puig

Puig sits on the bench as a designated hitter for the minor league Rancho Cucamonga Quakes. His case drew widespread attention after Los Angeles magazine and ESPN the Magazine published articles detailing the gifted young outfielder’s harrowing trek to the U.S.   (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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