Liberty--and Justice--for All

America, the beautiful.

Two sad-eyed Cubans sat in a Beverly Hills law office Tuesday and thanked the Dodgers for smuggling them out of their impoverished country and giving them a chance to play professional baseball.

Then they ripped the Dodgers for not allowing them to make more money doing it.

Across town, the Dodgers sat quietly in their Chavez Ravine offices after having been punished for smuggling the Cubans out without allowing them to try out for all major league teams.

So quietly, they did not publicly apologize or discipline the people involved.

Five days before the Fourth of July, our town baseball team has reminded us of the fireworks that occur when the pursuit of freedom collides with the pursuit of victory.

There is the cackle of greed. The sizzle of deceit. The boom of exploitation.

The story is an old one, played out daily on our Southern California streets.

Somebody is desperate to come to this country. Somebody with power and money capitalizes on that desperation.

There is a disagreement. There is a confession. There are consequences. The exploiter becomes the exploitee.

We have read this before. We just never thought we’d be reading about it involving a team whose roster has included such names as Fernando Valenzuela, Hideo Nomo and Chan Ho Park.

The Dodgers, we thought, embraced players from countries others often ignored.

Turns out, in at least two cases, the Dodgers also took advantage of them.

And those players, even though their dreams had essentially been saved by the Dodgers, waited for the opportune time to make their saviors pay.

“I’m here today looking for the real truth,” said Josue Perez, one of the Cubans, in broken English.

It is assumed he has found it.

Perez, 21, was an outfielder for Class-A Vero Beach.

Juan Carlos Diaz, 24, was a first baseman at double-A San Antonio.

Neither is considered a top prospect, but Dodger scout Pablo Peguero liked them both after giving them private tryouts during secret trips to Cuba.

The Dodgers concocted schemes that had the players visiting “girlfriends” in the Dominican Republic. Visas were granted. Tickets were purchased.

Unlike many others, the players didn’t need to navigate rough waters on rickety boats to freedom. They simply needed to board a plane.

And when they arrived at freedom’s door, they weren’t sent to a holding center or detention facility. They were escorted to the Dodgers’ Campo Las Palmas baseball camp.

After they had remained there long enough to obtain visas and strengthen their skills, they joined teams in the United States.

And, of course, they were paid.

Diaz was given a $60,000 bonus. Perez was given $40,000.

This was not an escape, it was a red-carpet ride.

Certainly, the Dodgers employed this scheme for their own benefit. They helped the players only because they thought the players could help them.

But just as certainly, if it weren’t for the Dodgers, the players would still be running around some litter-strewn Cuban field with holes in their shoes.

The players were ordered to lie about their background, telling everyone that although they had been born in Cuba, they had moved to the Dominican with their girlfriends.

The players agreed. And at first, it seemed like a good deal for everybody.

The Dodgers had two improving young players, and those players finally had money and freedom.

Then a couple of years passed, and a couple of things happened.

Several top Cuban players--such as Rolando Arrojo and Orlando Hernandez--escaped the country and landed here for public tryouts that netted them millions in bonus money.

At the same time, the Dodgers failed to fulfill a promise that they would also help the two prospects’ families escape.

This spring, the players summoned their agent and told him they were suddenly tired of lying about the Dominican girlfriends. They wanted to reveal the scheme.

This, they had been told, would result in their immediate free agency and a chance at those millions.

“This has nothing to do with being a human being, this is strictly a business decision,” said agent Gus Dominguez. “The Dodgers could have gotten them out and held tryouts for everybody, but they didn’t do that.”

He’s right. The Dodgers were clearly wrong.

But considering that Diaz was smuggled to the Dominican in 1996, and Perez in 1997, what took so long for them to complain?

“They didn’t know the rules, and they never told us the true story about themselves,” Dominguez said.

When they did, he added, he knew they must go for the gold.

“What are you supposed to do when promises have been broken?” Dominguez said.

Promises have indeed been broken. Not just to the players, but to the community.

From the moment they set up shop here, the Dodgers have promised to act as a good citizen.

In this, they have failed.

Other Southern California employers who have tried similar tricks have been jailed.

By merely losing the players and being fined, the Dodgers should consider themselves fortunate.

The Dodgers, incidentally, feel it is important to note that the baseball crimes were not committed under the current Fox regime.

But they were authorized by a club official--Vice President Ralph Avila--who still works there. Yet President Bob Graziano is saying nothing, and apparently doing nothing, while simply hoping it all goes away.

Ask any Southland immigrant who has ever had to keep his mouth shut while his boss broke the rules to keep his salary lower than industry standards.

This kind of thing never just goes away.

As for the two prospects, give them credit.

Three short years ago, they had no idea how our baseball stars are supposed to act.

But they have apparently learned fast.

God bless America.

Bill Plaschke can be reached at his e-mail address: bill.plaschke@latimes.com.